Generative AI was a hot topic of discussion at Deloitte's Media & Telecom 2024 and Beyond conference in London on Tuesday, where newspaper and media executives discussed deals with artificial intelligence companies.
Executives on the panel included Anna Bateson, CEO of The Guardian Media Group; Sun Publisher Dominic Carter, Telegraph Media Group CEO Anna Jones, Daily Mail Rachel Corp., owner of DMG Media and CEO of ITN
“AI can't replace journalism,” Carter argues. “Journalism is a human endeavor.” By comparison, the current election season in the UK is a time when deep fakes are more likely to surface.
Regarding questions Sun “Control is very important,” Carter said of News Corp's owner's recent deal with Open AI, “and transparency and accountability are also important.”
The AI deal may bring benefits, but could it also become a headache for the industry, as past deals with social media companies have done? Social media deals are all about traffic generation, and for years, “we've all had fun with that,” Carter said. But expectations and promises of benefits for newspapers quickly proved to be overblown, executives suggested.
Bateson said the Guardian was open to the possibility of a deal on AI and other technologies, but only if “fundamental respect for copyright” and monetization were guaranteed. He added that governments must balance innovation with potential regulation to avoid harm. An “appropriate regulatory framework” would include protecting copyright and ensuring accountability, he suggested.
Jones argued that being “fairly compensated” would allow media companies to reinvest revenues related to AI companies into news operations and news production.
Meanwhile, Cope said that fact-checking is more important than ever amid the risk of misinformation and disinformation driven by AI and other factors. “There is a danger out there,” but the industry hasn't seen much of it so far this election season, Cope said. Cope cited the fake video released on election day of the British prime minister high-fiving Russian President Putin as a potential example of deepfakes that would be difficult for traditional reporting to counter, saying such videos could quickly spread on social media, while reporting guidelines would likely restrict media on election day.
Speaking after the panel, John Boumfrey, country manager for Amazon's UK operations, called generative AI the “most transformative” technology since the advent of the internet, and said every team and department at Amazon is exploring how to apply AI.
Liberty Global CEO Mike Vries also mentioned AI later on stage, but mainly as an efficiency tool. “There are concerns about AI,” Vries acknowledged, especially around social and content. But in the Netherlands, Vries explained, AI technology is already saving 20 seconds per customer service call.
Matt Brittin, President, Google EMEA
Eoin Noonan/Web Summit via Getty Images
Later in the day, Google's president of Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA) Matt Brittin will also be discussing artificial intelligence in a session alongside investor Cherie Coutu, who serves on the board of directors of the UK Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, the London Stock Exchange and Pearson, and was previously on LinkedIn's advisory board.
The Edinburgh TV Festival also recently put the spotlight on AI, with Black Eyed Peas bandleader will.i.am due to speak about the future of technology and creativity at the industry event in August.
Other big names making announcements at the Deloitte conference on Tuesday included Netflix co-CEO Greg Peters, Warner Bros. Discovery's Andrew Georgiou, Sky CEO Dana Strong and Walt Disney's Jan Koeppen.
