The Peril and Promise of AI for Journalism

Journalists around the world are responding to the dramatic rise of artificial intelligence (AI), and particularly generative AI. Many newsrooms are experimenting with these tools and identifying new opportunities. At the same time, many journalists and commentators see AI as the biggest threat to journalism in decades.This report draws on insights from researchers and journalists to address three major issues: 1) How generative AI can make disinformation campaigns faster, more targeted, and more persuasive. 2) How newsrooms’ adoption of AI tools can lead to inaccuracies and other risks. 3) How AI may threaten the viability of professional journalism, including through automation and content generation that replaces human journalists.The report examines how journalists are improving investigative practices to expose disinformation campaigns, experimenting with AI tools to make their own work more efficient, and developing ethical guidelines and labour protections to defend professional journalism. It argues for the news industry and policymakers to undertake further actions to safeguard professional journalism and its contributions to democratic societies.