Bennet raises concerns about what chatbots say to kids

Senator from Colorado points to examples

BY KAITLIN KIM COLORADO PUBLIC RADIO

Generative Arti cial Intelligence, like Chat GPT, may be able to write an episode of South Park or ace the LSAT, but Colorado U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet is concerned about what these chatbots might be saying to kids.

is comes after journalists and others, posing as kids and young teens, reported that generative AI programs helped provide information to questions that should have raised red ags.

e examples listed in Bennet’s letter include AI giving tips on how to protect access to social media apps parents wanted kids to delete, how to cover up bruises before a visit from Child Protective Services and advice on setting the mood with “candles or music” for someone who posed as a 13-year-old girl preparing to meet a 31-year-old man.

“Although generative AI has enormous potential, the race to integrate it into everyday applications cannot come at the expense of younger users’ safety and well being,” Bennet writes to the heads of Open AI, Snap, Alphabet, Microsoft and Meta. “Although AI-powered chatbots come with risks for anyone – for example, by providing false information, perpetuating bias, or manipulating users – children and adolescents are especially vulnerable. Younger users are at an earlier stage of cognitive, emotional, and intellectual development, making them more impressionable, impulsive, and less equipped to distinguish fact from ction.” is push comes as more lawmakers have expressed concerns about how social media is a ecting teens’ mental health and how social media companies use the data they are collecting. Answers to Bennet’s questions could help shape any congressional response, either legislation or future hearings, to these concerns. e CEO of TikTok will testify in front of the house Energy and Commerce committee later this week.

Bennet had several questions for the tech leaders as they move to integrate generative AI into their apps, including what existing or planned safety features they will implement for younger users, whether they have assessed or planned to assess potential harms to younger audiences, and what kind of auditing processes they have for the AI models behind chatbots that talk to the public.

Bennet is one of several lawmakers from both sides of the aisle who have expressed concerns about the popular social media app TikTok, in particular.

In the last Congress, Bennet also introduced a bill to set up a federal commission to provide oversight of digital platforms “to protect consumers, promote competition, and defend the public interest.” is story is from CPR News, a nonpro t news source. Used by permission. For more, and to support Colorado Public Radio, visit cpr.org. e moratorium applies to projects that have not been built or established by the city yet and are proposed to be within 500 feet of residential properties, residentially zoned areas, or residential land uses, he said.

“It puts a six-month pause on the city accepting, processing or reviewing and then an issuance of approvals or permits for outdoor pickleball courts, again, within that 500 feet,” Marciniak said.

Pickleball courts that are already established, permitted and in use currently are not subject to the moratorium, he said. It also does not apply to indoor pickleball courts, courts that are more than 500 feet from residential areas, or temporary courts. A temporary court, for example, is when a tennis court is temporarily altered to be used as a pickleball court. ere is no shortage of videos, news stories and research on the apparent con ict between pickleball courts and adjacent residential uses, Marciniak said. Research shows that one of the main concerns regarding noise from pickleball courts is that the sound that is produced by the impact of the paddle hitting the ball is classi ed as an “impulsive sound” and is “near the most sensitive frequency range of human hearing,” he said.

Yet, the city’s noise regulations, land development code and municipal code do not speci cally address noise or other impacts from pickleball courts, he said.

“ is is certainly not a war on pickleball from the city. Our goal here, really, is to create some predictable outcomes for our residents, for pickleball operators, for players, for the community at large,” Marciniak said. “And at this time, the regulations that the city has in place to regulate pickleball courts are not equipped to ensure that predictable outcome throughout the city.” e moratorium provides time for city sta to study the impact of the pickleball courts and potentially create some new regulations, if the city decides it is necessary, he said. Sta intend to engage with experts in the noise and acoustics eld to advise the city on the impacts and potential mitigation options, such as noise-reducing materials like fences, padding and landscaping.

Engaging with residents, pickleball operators, parks and recreation districts and homeowner association (HOA) groups will also be a priority, he noted.

“We’re trying to prevent the noise issue becoming an issue in the city, and we’re asking for some time to be able to study the issue and create standards around it to prevent those noise issues,” he said.

In Centennial, there are currently two permanent outdoor pickleball courts that the city sta are aware of — one in Chenango Park and the other in Smoky Hill Park. However, Senior Assistant City Attorney Jill Hassman noted the city is aware of various HOAs and metro districts interested in adding a pickleball court.

“We know that pickleball is the number one growing sport in the nation, and we also are aware that there’s a huge demand for it. And so, though we only have two permanent courts now, the demand is massive to add so many more permanent courts,” Hassman said. “I think the city is better poised to be proactive instead of reactive when it comes to noise.”

Residents, business speak on moratorium

Before the council voted on whether to approve the moratorium, a public hearing was held, providing the community a chance to share their opinions. Of the 20 people who spoke during the public hearing, 11 were in favor and nine opposed the moratorium. Several council members said they received numerous emails regarding this issue as well.

Mayor Stephanie Piko said the council received a “substantial number of comments,” many of which were speci cally tied to the proposed outdoor pickleball courts at Life Time Fitness, an athletic country club resort located at 5000 E. Dry Creek Road.

Piko said the council is aware that Life Time has submitted an application to amend its site plan to allow for the new outdoor pickleball courts.

“ is moratorium is not directed at or about any proposed pickleball courts at Life Time Fitness or elsewhere in the city,” she said. “Because this is a quasi-judicial matter, it is not appropriate for city council to conduct any investigation or speci cally discuss Life Time Fitness or its pending application. So city council would appreciate it if when you direct your comments … that you keep them on task of the moratorium.” e rst people up to the podium were representatives of Life Time.

“I’m here today to speak on behalf of Life Time and our active application for a site plan amendment currently under review of the city. We’ve been working on this application for several months, including conducting community outreach and commissioning a sound study,” said Ashley Astor, a development manager with the Life Time property development team.

Life Time has more than 160 locations across the United States and Canada, and it currently operates more than 450 indoor and outdoor courts with a path to operate more than 600 by the end of 2023, she said. She noted that Life Time is willing to share its resources and knowledge of pickleball design with Centennial for future pickleball developers.

“Adoption (of) this moratorium will halt our in-progress application,” Astor said. “We don’t think we’re the type of project the city needs to delay.”

Allison Alteris also spoke during the public hearing on behalf of Life Time and the organization’s opposition to the temporary moratorium.

“We are not here tonight … to seek your approval of Life Time’s plan or to deliberate over the merits of it. We’re here tonight to seek your approval of Life Time’s ability to just continue processing their plans with the city,” Alteris said. “If the moratorium were adopted in its current form, the city would be prohibited from continuing (to) process Life Time’s amendment, which essentially means no more technical review, no more referral review with any outside agencies and it would just be frozen in time.”

“What we respectfully disagree with is halting e ectively eight months worth of work and missing a seasonal construction opportunity when they’re e ectively already providing what the city wants, which is sound studies, community outreach and then responsive design. e city, in our view, doesn’t need the moratorium to get Life Time to give it what it wants,” she added.

Alteris said that Life Time developed an amendment to the moratorium that would allow in-progress applications, like Life Time’s, to continue through the city’s critical review process while the moratorium is in place. Ultimately, there was no motion made by the council to amend the proposed moratorium and include the language Life Time provided.

Others who opposed the moratorium spoke about the value of the sport to physical and mental wellness.

“You need to consider the health, safety and welfare of all the stakeholders, which include the people that play pickleball,” said Michael Evans, a Centennial resident.

Some of the health bene ts of pickleball include lowering heart disease risk and reducing loneliness, Evans said.

“I think that, when you’re looking at the City of Centennial, these are the types of activities you want to be making (for) your children and your residents,” he said.

Supporters of the moratorium, on the other hand, also highlighted mental health, with many expressing concerns about what it would be like to live near an outdoor pickleball court and to frequently hear the sound of pickleball. Many residents referred to the proposed Life Time pickleball courts in their comments.

“I think it’s important that we take a step back, consider all the facts before deciding on allowing a development. I think it’s better for us as a city to make an informed decision, albeit slightly delayed, than deal with future complaints and litigation,” said Ray Sandifer, a Centennial resident living near Life Time. “Given the proximity of our homes, the noise generated by these courts will disrupt our quality of life and the ability to enjoy our homes and our yards with our families.”

Many of those who spoke, regardless of whether they supported the moratorium, agreed that pickleball is a great sport.

“Our issue is not with pickleball. Pickleball is … a great sport,” said Michael McKenzie, of Centennial. “As long as it’s not too close to our neighborhood.”

Council approves moratorium in 8-1 vote

Following the public hearing, the proposed moratorium was approved by the majority of the council in an 8-1 vote. Councilmember Candace Moon was the only opposing vote, saying that the city is missing the mark and should be talking about noise.

“We have to decide whether to vote to look into the noise that pickleball makes or we have to decide another route. I personally think that we need to decide another route,” Moon said. “We need to decide: Do we really want to take a bandaid approach, which I believe this ordinance does, in looking speci cally at one cause factor of noise? Or do we need to sit down and rewrite our noise ordinance in our land development code?”

Moon asked for the council’s support in directing sta to review the city’s noise ordinance and develop a more speci ed ordinance to address the noise issues and complaints that have been brought forth. e council supported the direction.

Several council members who supported the moratorium said they still have lots of questions that need answers.