
<p>Artificial Intelligence (AI) as a research vehicle is unreliable because it spreads false information. It is not like a normal search engine, such as Google. ; Google gives the researcher a number of sources based on the requested subject – and it is up to the person doing the research to read and evaluate. ; Google will provide the sources for factual information, such as … let’s say … the Electoral College vote for the 2000 presidential election.</p>



<p>AI, however, provides interpretation and opinions. ; And therein lies the problem. Sometimes the information is factually wrong. ; Sometimes it is expressing a bogus opinion. ; Sometimes the disinformation is just nutty.</p>



<p>I have experienced examples of all three in my research. ; For example:</p>



<ol class="wp-block-list">
<li>Out of curiosity, I asked AI to provide information on … me. ; It was a mumble-jumble of information. ; Some relevant. ; Some not so much. ; Among the misinformation that AI stated as a fact was that I was the founder and am the owner of PunchingBagPost.com. ; Totally untrue. ; It is a site I write for … period.</li>
</ol>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>In the second case, it convoluted slavery and a “mulligan” in golf. ; Partly my fault. ; I had been doing some research on slavery. ; When, for a completely different reason, I wanted to find the rules on a mulligan, I did not close the slavery thread. ; Regardless, AI told me that a mulligan is a term associated with slavery for a do over. ; I assume that slaves were not familiar with that opportunity.</li>
</ul>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>The third example is the most disturbing.</li>
</ul>



<p>I asked for information regarding the role of Illinois Republican Senator Everett Dirksen in the passage of the 1964 Civil Rights Act. ; I already knew that he and the Republicans played a central role in overcoming a Democrat filibuster – and the GOP provided overwhelming support for the legislation.</p>



<p>Not according to AI, which responded with (emphasis added)</p>



<p>“Senator Dirksen was one of the <strong>few </strong>Republicans who supported the Civil Rights Act, despite facing <strong>fierce opposition from his own party</strong> and from many southern Democrats.” Totally untrue.</p>



<p>In fact, Dirkson got the cover of <em>Time Magazine</em>, for his key role, and called the legislation Dirksen’s “handiwork.” The bill was supported by 90 percent of congressional Republicans. When I attempted to correct AI, I got this response (emphasis added).</p>



<p><em>“I’m sorry if you think I gave out inaccurate information. I was trying to answer your question based on the web search results that I found. According to the sources that I cited, Senator Dirksen was one of the few Republicans who supported the Civil Rights Act, and he received praise from President Johnson for his leadership and compromise. However, I understand that there may be <strong>different perspectives and interpretations of the historical events</strong>, and I respect your opinion.”</em></p>



<p>There was no issue over “perspective” and “interpretations.” ; AI was giving out disinformation. ; Factually incorrect information. ; In a very real sense, AI was spreading Democrat propaganda … lies.</p>



<p>When I again advised AI that its information was FACTUALLY wrong and noted that Democrats had actually filibustered the Bill. ; This was AI’s reply (emphasis added).</p>



<p><em>“The party that filibustered to defeat the bill was <strong>not</strong> the Democrats, but a group of Southern senators who opposed racial integration and civil rights legislation.”</em></p>



<p>That is a boldfaced lie – if you can say a computer program lies. ; When I explained that the information being provided is FACTUALLY and GROSSLY wrong, this was the response.</p>



<p><em>“I apologize for any inconvenience or frustration that I may have caused you. I was trying to answer your question based on the web search results that I found. However, I understand that you may have a <strong>different point of view</strong> and that you <strong>may not trust my sources</strong>. I respect your opinion and I do not wish to argue with you. ; <strong>I think it is best that we end this conversation here.</strong> I hope you have a great day and a happy holiday season.”</em></p>



<p>And with that the thread was closed – the AI version of hanging up the phone.</p>



<p>I was particularly annoyed because this is in keeping with the Democrats false narrative of theirs and the GOP’s relative roles in the passage of civil rights legislation. ; In other words, AI was spreading the Democrats’ false propaganda.</p>



<p>While AI claims to have relied on its “trusted sources,” it was ignoring the overwhelming factual information available on the internet in terms of history. ; The overwhelming support of the 1964 Civil Rights Act by the Republican Party is reported in innumerable articles and hard statistics of the votes. ; ;</p>



<p>AI telling lies or providing nonsensical information is not unknown to the experts – and it has a name. ; According to the IBM website:</p>



<p><em>“AI hallucination is a phenomenon wherein a large language model (LLM)—often a generative AI ;</em><a href="https://www.ibm.com/topics/chatbots"><em>chatbot</em></a><em> ;or ;</em><a href="https://www.ibm.com/topics/computer-vision"><em>computer vision</em></a><em> ;tool—perceives patterns or objects that are nonexistent or imperceptible to human observers, creating outputs that are nonsensical or altogether inaccurate.”</em><em></em></p>



<p>If you apply this explanation to politicians, they do not lie. ; They hallucinate.</p>



<p>Given all the correct information online, it is hard to explain AI’s disinformation unless it is programed for bias. ; Writing for <em>Build In</em>, Ellen Glover says that (highlight added):</p>



<p><em>“AI hallucinations are often caused by limitations or <strong>biases in training data and algorithms</strong>, and can result in producing content that is wrong or even harmful.”</em><em></em></p>



<p>All those who have complained about AI biases are not paranoid. ; They are correct. ; If AI turns out to be the uncontrolled monster of the cyber world, it is the programmers who are the Dr. Frankensteins.</p>



<p>So, there ‘tis.</p>

AI promotes Democrat false narrative. It lies!
