Leveraging the opportunities and managing the risks of using artificial intelligence in local news
Breakthroughs in generative artificial intelligence have triggered a “best of times/worst of times” extremism that makes it challenging for journalists and news leaders to separate sensationalism from strategy when it comes to applying AI in their news organizations.
On one hand, AI offers seemingly unimagined opportunities to do more journalism, better and faster, including offering more personalization of news, more versions of stories and in more formats. The possibilities appear to be limited only by our imaginations.
On the other hand, AI presents all kinds of threats to journalists, journalism and indeed to the information ecosystem itself. All the early generative AI models suffer from “hallucinations,” the confident creation of false answers, including not just facts but sources; AI also makes it even easier for bad actors to create and propagate fake news; and misuse and missteps in AI by traditional news outlets can further erode trust in news.
This report provides a roadmap and tools for newsrooms to develop and implement AI policies and practices that can build rather than break that essential bond of trust — and in the process, drive innovation and sustainability without jeopardizing a newsroom’s ethics, brand and intellectual property.
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