In ‘The bookseller of Florence’ author Ross King cites a letter written in mid-1400’s about someone who saw the novel printed ‘books’ created by Johannes Gutenberg. This letter aptly dubs Gutenberg as the ‘Miraculous Man’, highlighting the immense impact of this innovative printing method on the Western European book industry. Fast forward to the 21st century, should we then consider Artificial Intelligence as the ‘Miraculous’ agent, revolutionising nearly every aspect of our lives, including how we consume news?
Up until last year, you likely received news through social media, sandwiched between adorable dog pictures and funny memes. And probably, you saw it on Facebook, which remains the primary source of news referrals, although its popularity is waning. However, with conventional AI becoming increasingly accessible, will it replace your current news delivery?
Is this a novel approach? Not necessarily. Smart home devices like Amazon’s Alexa can provide a summary of major news stories if you command them to. However, with the rise of conventional AI tools like ChatGPT, some people are already turning to AI instead of searching for information on search engines. A study conducted last year found that 63% of respondents preferred going directly to ChatGPT instead of Google to perform their searches (not just for news).
Can AI be trusted to deliver accurate news? Recent research by the BBC suggests otherwise, at least for now. The research highlights that AI assistants cannot currently be relied upon to provide accurate news and risk misleading the audience. In essence, the research explains why AI assistants cannot be considered a complete source of news. The findings reveal that 91% of responses from AI assistants contained “some issues,” which include factual inaccuracies, missing context, and incorrect sourcing.
Specific examples of inaccuracies include details about recent major events and incorrect percentages on facts. Another issue was related to older articles that were mistaken for current ones and the impartiality and the distinction between news and opinion was also flagged as a problem. The research noted instances where AI assistants struggled to differentiate between an op-ed (opinion piece) and an actual news article.
But for now, it’s uncommon for audiences to rely on AI assistants for their news. A study conducted by the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism revealed last year that in the six countries analysed, only 5% of respondents used an AI chatbot to retrieve news. However, it would be naïve to assume that this trend will persist in the future. As Yuval Noah Harari aptly stated in his latest book, ‘Nexus,’ “AI is the first technology in history capable of making decisions and generating novel ideas autonomously.”He further characterises AI as an agent rather than a mere tool. And, what prevents AI from deliberately misinforming you with news?
The next significant challenge will be developing effective tools to monitor and control AI, particularly in the context of news. As put in the November 2024 issue of National Geographic magazine, Rayid Ghani, a professor at Carnegie Mellon’s University’s Machine Learning department, said: “We need to figure out how to put guardrails around these chatbots, augmenting them with tools that check citations and facts…”
In this information crisis, seeking out long-established and reputable news sources will be critical. Trusted newsrooms have the right mindset to combat misinformation and provide accurate information. So instead of relying solely on trending AI-generated content, subscribe to a reputable news source for a comprehensive understanding of current events.
Josef Cutajar, Communications Consultant