ChatGPT, an artificial-intelligence chatbot that can both answer complex questions and respond to written prompts with humanlike fluency, has taken the internet by storm over the last few days with stunningly credible (if still imperfect) renderings of college essays and Seinfeld scripts. But for journalists, an uncomfortable question tempered the laughs: Would ChatGPT render us even less necessary?
New York Magazine contributor Ben Jacobs tested that proposition by feeding ChatGPT a wacky premise: “Write a 2024 presidential debate between former New York mayor Bill de Blasio and former president Donald Trump. De Blasio attacks Trump for his efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election. Trump responds by attacking de Blasio for abandoning his campaign pledge on the Central Park carriage horses.” After digesting the resulting (and unedited) masterpiece below, we can only bow to our future AI overlords.
The debate hall was filled with excitement as the two candidates took to the stage. Former New York City Mayor Bill De Blasio, the Democratic nominee, and former President Donald Trump, the Republican nominee, faced off in their first head-to-head debate of the 2024 presidential election.
De Blasio began by attacking Trump’s efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 election.
“Mr. Trump, you tried to undermine the very foundation of our democracy by refusing to accept the results of a free and fair election,” De Blasio said, his voice rising with anger. “You spread lies and misinformation, and you encouraged your supporters to attack our Capitol and attempt to overturn the will of the American people. That is unacceptable and you should be ashamed of yourself.”
Trump responded by denying De Blasio’s accusations and shifting the focus to his opponent’s record as mayor of New York City. “Mr. De Blasio, you talk about democracy, but what about the way you treated the Central Park carriage horses?” Trump said, his voice dripping with sarcasm. “You made a campaign promise to ban them, and then you broke that promise as soon as you were elected. You can’t be trusted to keep your word, and the American people deserve better than a leader who can’t be trusted.”
De Blasio tried to defend himself, but Trump continued to attack, painting the former mayor as a flip-flopper who couldn’t be trusted to follow through on his promises. The two candidates continued to spar, each trying to score points against the other, as the audience watched in amazement.
