Republican State Senator Michael Lee’s campaign has received a cease-and-desist letter following an AI-generated advertisement against Democrat challenger Jessica Bichler.
Lee and Bichler are facing off in the race for State Senate District 7, which includes most of New Hanover County. Lee's ad uses a deepfake, or artificially generated image, to portray Wilmington Yoga owner Bichler contorting in physically impossible ways. Bichler told WWAY that she felt the images were “bizarre and somewhat suggestive in a way that was inappropriate.”
“Some liberals lean to the left,” a voiceover says in the ad. “Some stretch all the way to woke. But yoga instructor Jessica Bichler, she’s totally bonkers.”
The ad includes a disclaimer that it was made with AI.
However, the cease-and-desist letter focuses on claims made in text accompanying the video. It claims that Bichler has ties to the American Friends Service Committee, which Lee’s ad criticizes for advocating to defund the police.
Bichler has denied any connections to the organization. Lee’s campaign provided a photo of a screen showing a campaign launch party for Bichler hosted by the group back in January, though she said that the link was the result of a Google cache error.
Following the letter, Lee's campaign posted a second ad with a more prominent disclaimer. Bichler noted that the new ad cites different sources, including Carolina Forward, and that it has slightly different messaging claiming that Bichler supports higher income and property taxes.
Lee’s campaign confirmed that they have received the cease-and-desist letter. The campaign’s attorney is reviewing it and will respond through counsel.
This marks the second straight election cycle for Lee that his campaign has received a cease-and-desist over his campaign ads. In 2024, Democratic Party candidate David Hill issued a cease-and-desist over mailers stating that "State Senate Candidate David Hill strongly supports sex change surgery for kids."
Hill's legal counsel said that the claim "represents libel per se" due to its relation to Hill's profession as a physician. Lee’s campaign stood by the ad’s claims.
"The ad is about David’s extreme liberal ideology on three important issues," the committee wrote. "The ad was never intended to, nor does it state, anything about his competence to practice medicine, but explicitly calls into question his stance on these important issues."
Daniel Sheehan covers New Hanover County for the StarNews. Reach him at dsheehan@usatodayco.com.
This article originally appeared on Wilmington StarNews: Cease-and-desist issued over AI-generated Michael Lee campaign ad
