Melania Trump is touting a political victory after the House passed a bill to ban non-consensual "deepfakes" and other forms of "revenge porn."
The House voted overwhelmingly, 409-2, to pass the Take It Down Act. The bill, which Melania supports, makes it a crime to share intimate depictions of another person without their consent, including artificially generated images. The legislation requires social media platforms to move quickly to take down revenge porn when they receive notice of it.
It's a rare example of direct public lobbying by the First Lady and former model, who is known for keeping a low profile in Washington D.C.
The bill now heads to President Trump's desk for his signature. It previously passed unanimously in the Senate, where it was introduced by Ted Cruz (R-Tx.).
The legislation targets a growing problem in the era of AI and social media, which have provided new and powerful tools for public humiliation and blackmail.
"It's heartbreaking to witness young teens, especially girls, grappling with the overwhelming challenges posed by malicious online content like deep fakes," Melaina said at a March roundtable discussion. "This toxic environment can be severely damaging."
The Take It Down Act was inspired by the experience of a 15-year-old Texas girl, Elliston Berry, who was victimized by deepfake porn created by one of her classmates.
Her family ended up contacting Senator Cruz after Snapchat was slow to act on their requests to take the images down.
"If you're a victim of revenge porn or AI-generated explicit imagery, your life changes forever," Cruz said in March.
Melania hailed the bill's passage as a necessary step to protect children from abuse.
"Today's bipartisan passage of the Take It Down Act is a powerful statement that we stand united in protecting the dignity, privacy, and safety of our children," Melania said in a statement.
"I am thankful to the Members of Congress — both in the House and Senate — who voted to protect the well-being of our youth," she said.
The Take It Down Act is part of Melania's campaign against online bullying and intimidation, #BeBest, which she started during her husband's first term.
Despite the bill's good intentions, it has faced criticism from some civil libertarians like Thomas Massie (R-Ky.), one of the only two lawmakers who voted no, who called the ban "a slippery slope, ripe for abuse, with unintended consequences."
