The Washington Post Launches “Ask The Post AI,” a New Search Experience

Washingtonpost - 

The Washington Post has launched "Ask The Post AI," a generative AI tool that uses the publication's fact-based journalism to provide summarised answers and curated results to user queries. The tool draws from articles published since 2016, ranking results by relevance and withholding answers if no suitable content is found, ensuring the integrity of its reporting. This launch aligns with the Post’s record audience reach during its comprehensive 2024 election coverage and reflects its commitment to adapting to evolving user search behaviours. Part of a broader AI strategy, this initiative follows previous launches like AI-audio news, article key takeaways, and the "Climate Answers" experiment.

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Telegraph is launching an AI-driven newsroom tool every month

Press Gazette - November 14, 2024

The Telegraph is leveraging AI to revolutionise its newsroom workflow by launching 12 significant uses of AI over 12 months. The tools are improving customer engagement, increasing click-through rates by 20% with AI-generated email summaries, translating podcasts for international audiences, and aiding in editorial research, demonstrating the potential of AI in journalism.

Read more at Press Gazette (8 mins)

How AI is offering journalists protection from persecution in Venezuela

Theweekuk - November 17, 2024

Venezuelan media organisations have launched a news show, "Venezuela Retweets", hosted by AI-generated avatars to protect journalists from the authoritarian regime of Nicolás Maduro. The AI news anchors read real news created by journalists who have found it increasingly dangerous to report news in the country due to intense censorship and threats, and the platform is designed to be shared on social media, making it harder for the government to track.

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FT CEO John Ridding: quality journalism vital as AI, political shifts reshape news

Yonhap News Agency - November 16, 2024

The CEO of the Financial Times Group, John Ridding, has emphasised the importance of trusted journalism and face-to-face interviews in the era of AI-generated content. He outlined his belief in the need for news outlets to innovate and adapt to changing media consumption habits while underscoring the importance of providing unique, reliable content that readers will pay for. 

Read more at Yonhap News Agency (4 mins)

Opportunities and Challenges of AI for Journalism

IDN-InDepthNews - November 14, 2024

In a thought-provoking discussion on the role of AI in journalism, LEADERSHIP Editor-In-Chief Azu Ishiekwene explores the opportunities and challenges presented by artificial intelligence in the industry. He discusses the potential of AI in streamlining content production, personalising content, enhancing engagement, and creating new opportunities while also raising ethical concerns around potential misinformation, legal liabilities, and quality control.

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From transcription to trust: How AI is transforming news production

Editor and Publisher - November 14, 2024

According to Nicholas Diakopoulos, director of the Computational Journalism Lab at Northwestern University, Artificial Intelligence (AI) is now being used extensively in newsrooms, from transcription to fact-checking and even news production. However, as more tasks become automated, the ethical implications and the need for disclosure to the public become increasingly important topics of discussion.

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How The Meta-Reuters Deal Signals A New Era For AI And Media

Forbes - November 14, 2024

AI companies are striking licensing deals with news publishers, using their content to enhance user experiences on platforms like ChatGPT, as exemplified by Meta's recent agreement with Reuters. However, this trend has polarized the media industry, with some outlets embracing the opportunity while others, like The New York Times, are suing AI companies over alleged copyright infringement and the undermining of their business models.

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The 9th Street Journal publishes AI-generated articles in experimental ‘10th Street Journal’

The Chronicle - November 13, 2024

The 9th Street Journal, a student-run news outlet in Durham, is pioneering the use of AI-generated content in a project called The 10th Street Journal. The AI generates stories from official news sources, covering under-reported local events and contributing to combating news deserts, with each piece reviewed by human editors for accuracy and style before publication. 

Read more at The Chronicle (4 mins)

Making Use of AI In Local News Reporting

The Gila Herald - November 14, 2024

Discover how AI is reshaping the landscape of local news and journalism by automating routine reporting, optimizing data analysis and visualization, and personalizing content delivery. Learn how these technological advancements can unlock efficiency and value in your news organization, revitalizing an industry often considered as fading.

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Readers can’t accurately distinguish between AI and human essays, researchers find

Yale Daily News - November 18, 2024

A recent study found that readers struggle to distinguish between human and AI-generated essays, correctly identifying them only 50% of the time. While AI-written essays were often rated higher for composition and structure, the study raises important questions about the role of AI in education and academia, with professionals advocating for responsible and effective use of the technology. 

Read more at Yale Daily News (4 mins)

AI is finally delivering bang for its buck, according to Microsoft

ITPro - November 18, 2024

According to a report commissioned by Microsoft, generative AI offers a robust return on investment, yielding $3.70 for every dollar spent. Despite concerns over high costs and data security, the study shows a significant rise in adoption rates, with 75% of respondents using generative AI. It predicts a shift towards custom-built AI solutions and applications in product development and manufacturing over the next two years. 

Read more at ITPro (3 mins)

Scholarly Publishing World Slow to Embrace Generative AI

Inside Higher Ed | Higher Education News, Events and Jobs - November 14, 2024

The scholarly publishing industry is set for rapid AI adoption across research and publication processes, according to a report by education research firm Ithaka S+R. While the report highlights potential efficiency gains in writing, reviewing, editing, and discovery, it also notes slow adoption among researchers and concerns over the integrity of AI-trained models using freely accessible, potentially unvetted data. 

Read more at Inside Higher Ed | Higher Education News, Events and Jobs (6 mins)

When Publishers Want to License Your Book to Generative AI Firms (updated)

Daily Nous - news for & about the philosophy profession - November 12, 2024

A philosophy professor has raised questions about licensing book content to generative AI providers like ChatGPT. The discussion invites input on the ethics and prudence of such licensing in light of potential opportunities and risks and also addresses authors' perspectives on AI training usage, attribution, compensation, and the choice to opt in.

Read more at Daily Nous - news for & about the philosophy profession (3 mins)

Publishers: Please don’t sell my writing to AI Companies!

Medium - November 16, 2024

MIT Press is seeking authors' opinions on licensing its authors' work to train AI systems like ChatGPT. The publisher cited potential extra revenue and representation on popular knowledge discovery platforms as reasons. Unlike other publishers, MIT Press aims to involve authors in the decision-making process.

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New Data Shows AI Companies Love 'Premium Publisher' Content

CNET - November 9, 2024

According to a research paper by Ziff Davis, AI giants such as OpenAI, Google, Meta, and Anthropic heavily rely on high-quality content from premium publishers to train their large language models (LLMs). The study reveals that these companies often downplay their use of copyrighted content, leading to disputes with publishers who claim their work is being used without permission or compensation.

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Educating Global Publishers About BookTok and Meta

PublishersWeekly.com - 

The NYU Center for Publishing and Applied Liberal Arts recently partnered with the Sharjah Book Authority to present a training program for Arab and African publishing professionals. The program focused on using AI and social media platforms in the publishing industry, with industry leaders discussing how these tools can help publishers enhance their businesses, find new audiences, and increase sales.

Read more at PublishersWeekly.com (4 mins)

HarperCollins is selling their authors’ work to AI tech.

Literary Hub - November 18, 2024

Author Daniel Kibblesmith has spoken out against HarperCollins' offer to use his book for AI training with an unnamed tech company for a non-negotiable $2,500. This article calls on writers to resist such offers and urges readers to support authors who reject AI licensing to preserve the uniquely human quality of literature.

Read more at Literary Hub (3 mins)

HarperCollins asks authors to license their books to train AI models

BGR - November 19, 2024

HarperCollins is offering authors a one-time payment of $2,500 to use their books to train an AI language learning model, a move that has sparked controversy within the writing community. While some authors see this as an opportunity, others, like writer and comedian Daniel Kibblesmith, worry it may contribute to their own obsolescence and are refusing to agree to the terms. 

Read more at BGR (3 mins)

Penguin Random House puts the kibosh on AI Training

Good e-Reader - The latest news on e-readers, ebooks & audiobooks- October 30, 2024

Penguin Random House, the world's largest book publisher, has updated its copyright page to prohibit the use of its print or e-books for AI training. This move, the first among the Big Five publishers, aims to offer legal protection against new search engines and those who wish to harvest books to train language models, thereby safeguarding authors. 

Read more at Good e-Reader - The latest news on e-readers, ebooks & audiobooks (1 min)

Some of Substack’s Biggest Newsletters Rely on AI Writing Tools

WIRED - November 15, 2024

A new analysis by GPTZero has revealed that several popular newsletters on Substack, including those focusing on investment news and personal finance advice, are using AI-generated content. Despite the subscription platform not having an official policy on AI usage, the findings indicate that hundreds of thousands of subscribers are regularly consuming, and in some cases paying for, AI-assisted or AI-generated content. 

Read more at WIRED (6 mins)