Prerequisites: None

Exam Type: In Class
Assessment will be based on class participation and an in-class final exam.

Artificial intelligence is reshaping how information is created, distributed, and governed. Generative AI systems can produce text, imagery, and audio at unprecedented scale, creating new opportunities for expression while also enabling new forms of fraud, manipulation, and abuse. At the same time, AI has a growing role in recommendation systems and automated content moderation tools that shape what people see online.

This course examines the legal, regulatory, and institutional challenges posed by AI-generated and AI-moderated speech. Topics will include synthetic media, misinformation, and fraud on social media; generative AI model training; deployment of AI in content moderation and recommendation systems; transparency and accountability mechanisms; and emerging regulatory frameworks in the United States and abroad.

We will consider values, statutory and regulatory frameworks, institutional incentives, and the practical realities of implementation. The course is designed to explore not only what legal rules should govern emerging technologies, but also how governance decisions are made in practice by policymakers, regulators, and private platforms.

Note: Students are not eligible to enroll in both, Online Speech Governance (Fall 2026) and Artificial Intelligence and Speech Governance (Spring 2027), for credit. Students are only allowed to enroll in one of Professor Bickert’s course offerings.