Judge Strikes Hawaii Deepfake Election Law

Yesterday U.S. District Judge Shanlyn Park in Babylon Bee, LLC v. Lopez (D. Haw.) held Hawaii's Act 191 unconstitutional, striking down a law that banned reckless distribution of "materially deceptive" election-related media and imposed criminal and civil penalties. The court found the statute content-based and not narrowly tailored under strict scrutiny, citing onerous disclaimer and citation requirements and endorsing less restrictive alternatives like counter-speech and media literacy.