Modern Journalism and AI - Can We Truly Work Together?

The Rise Of Technology

Technology has become a huge part of our lives in recent decades. We are no longer so dependent on our electric cars and microwaves. To think of life without them would be horrific.

We then come to the revolutionary 1973 invention—the mobile phone. After the noughties, our technology grew and bettered at a rapid pace. Now, 51 years later, we have robots telling us anything we could want to know and at our fingertips.

AI's Big Entrance

The most recent revelation from technology is the rise of AI (Artificial Intelligence). Artificial Intelligence takes the only real resistance we have against technology. Knowledge.

It fills these machines with unlimited knowledge at a moment's notice, and you can buy it at the supermarket. It is not all bad, though; we have it in our social media algorithms, Alexa and Siri, smart lights and thermostats, and spam email filters, to name a few. We might not realize it, but even the most opposed have let it infiltrate their lives in some form. AI helps these things remain personalized and viable for everyone, as well as helping big industries such as Google and Apple make trillions of dollars. You would think it is an all-around good invention that helps everyone. While there is some truth to that

Chat GPT

To show the power of this, I opened my laptop and typed "Write two lines on AI in our everyday lives" into ChatGPT. In 10 seconds, I had this:

"AI enhances our daily lives by powering smart assistants, personalizing recommendations, and improving convenience in communication, shopping, and entertainment. From managing home devices to optimizing routes and providing health insights, AI seamlessly integrates into our routines for greater efficiency and comfort."

How Does This Affect Journalism?

There are many ways AI beats human journalism. It is fast and more cost-effective for businesses, can remain unbiased, quickly absorb large amounts of information, and identify trends. AI is free for anyone to use and quick, very quick.

Thismakes it a more sustainable option for media outlets that need breaking news fast and well. Being extremely cheap or free is just a bonus. AI can be altered to an infinite number of settings such as formal or informal wording, ten words or ten pages,

The Cons of AI in Journalism

While AI is great for Journalism, it also causes some big problems, such as a lack of work for writers. It also needs to be monitored to reduce the spread of misinformation and can be used for malicious reasons, such as bringing information from the dark web to light and creating hacking software.

According to TechRadar, as of April 2024, ChatGPT is now trained and knowledgeable on information until December 2023. I asked ChatGPT about Taylor Swift's most recent album, "The Tortured Poets Department," released on April 19 this year. After asking the question, I researched three sites: People Magazine, Yahoo.com, and Bing.com. After about a minute (which is slow for AI), the bot came out with the following:

"Taylor Swift's most recent album is titled "The Tortured Poets Department," which she announced during the 2024 Grammy Awards. The album is set to release on April 19, 2024. It features 16 tracks with themes centered around heartbreak, exploring the stages of a breakup. Notably, the album includes collaborations with Post Malone and Florence + The Machine (Yahoo) (Peoplemag)."

The information is true and holds citations on its sources. However, it is missing information on the deluxe version, which was released a few hours later.

While what it said is true, it is missing some facts. And could be biased because of its sources.

The Big E

While AI beats real journalism in a few ways, I personally think there is one big thing we are forgetting which journalism needs. And with all the knowledge in the world, AI cannot beat. Emotion.

Emotion is a crucial part of journalism. It helps the reader connect with not only the topic at hand but the writer. Without emotion, articles would only hold so much gravity and always miss something.

Humans react better to media portraying emotion; they see something relatable, and we feel seen. We are full of emotions. So, seeing stories about disturbing subjects with no emotions is strange. To show this, I have used AI to rewrite a paragraph under the same subtitle as a New York Times Article on Father's Day gifts. The subtitle is "Music, Books and More for the Cowboy at Heart."

"This Father's Day, cater to your cowboy-at-heart dad with gifts that speak to his love for music and literature of the Wild West. Consider classic country albums or a Western-themed streaming service for his musical enjoyment. For his reading pleasure, explore timeless tales of frontier life or 'Eight Seconds: Black Rodeo Culture' by Ivan McClellan, offering a unique glimpse into cowboy heritage. Add a rugged leather journal or a stylish hat for that extra cowboy flair. Celebrate his passion with gifts that embody the spirit of the American West."

ChatGPT

"Even if your dad isn't a Beyoncé fan, he might have noticed — and rejoiced in — the renewed fascination with the American West that's sweeping the country. Stoke the enthusiasm with gifts fit for a modern cowboy. For his book "Eight Seconds: Black Rodeo Culture," the photojournalist Ivan McClellan spent a decade traveling to places like the nation's longest-running Black rodeo in Oklahoma and the Compton Cowboys' Los Angeles ranch."

New York Times Article

Conclusion

Humans can change and alter writing, we can intake information, and we can do everything AI can. It may not be as fast, but it can be done. The only big difference between us and AI is there is an us.

We can relate and feel empathy. We can be enraged and delighted. We can laugh and cry. We, as humans, are so complex that a computer simply cannot understand. It can write facts in a paragraph, but it cannot write a human story; it cannot hold emotion or biases, which we all do, which we all share through our work. We have each other when AI doesn't understand.