As the use of artificial intelligence (AI) becomes more prevalent in nearly every field and workplace, critics are raising concerns that this new technology, which mimics human intelligence, will replace workers.
Many AI advocates argue that AI is simply a new technological advancement that, unlike computers and calculators, can serve as a useful tool in almost every field.
The world of journalism is not immune to AI, either. According to a study by the University of Maryland, about 9% of major newspapers use artificial intelligence to create news content. Experts estimate that smaller publications use AI more extensively.
Therefore, it is essential for journalism students to learn how to use new technology, experts agree.
“Artificial intelligence is transforming the production and reception of our news, accelerating the pace of distribution, amplifying the publication of sensational content, and emphasizing accessibility,” said Karin Wilkins, dean of the University of Miami’s School of Communication. “While we are witnessing a change in the nature of journalistic workflows, the essential need for reliable information remains.”
Through the support of three grants, the School of Communication established an AI Task Force to provide training and resources for faculty to use AI in the classroom, as well as for their own professional advancement.
Boriana Treadwell, a senior lecturer at the school, leads one stream of the AI Task Force. She believes that AI can be a very useful tool for journalists.
“In fact, I think AI can be very helpful to journalists if used responsibly and ethically,” she said. “Before AI came to our rescue, journalists spent vast amounts of time on simple tasks. Now that AI can perform these tasks, we can do more important work, such as field reporting.”
She lists a variety of ways that AI chatbots such as ChatGPT, Copilot, and Claude can assist journalists.
- Transcribe the recorded interview into text.
- Create and provide a timeline.
- Scan data from large numbers of documents, official documents, and legal documents.
- Read through long legal documents, government documents, and other types of documents, summarize their content, and highlight important points.
- You can find trends in various texts and turn them into stories.
- It will suggest many headings for your article depending on the style of your text.
- For broadcasters, AI can clean up video and audio, provide captions, and enhance music tracks as needed.
Generative AI can also draft news articles. Some news organizations, including the Cleveland Plain Dealer, use it for this purpose, having reporters submit notes and the AI drafting the article.
A human editor then reviews the copy before publication. Other news organizations such as The Associated Press, Business Insider, Bloomberg, and Yahoo News are using AI in various ways to enhance their news coverage.
Marcia Gomez, a senior lecturer who taught a class called “Where AI Meets Public Relations,” said AI cannot replace the work of journalists.
“Chatbots can speed up drafts and summaries, but they can’t replace the relationship-based work of journalism: gaining trust with sources, digging for facts, and making editorial decisions,” she says. Most major news organizations experimenting with AI still hold journalists to scrutiny and accountability, she added.
However, the use of AI in news organizations raises ethical questions.
Treadwell said it’s always important for news organizations that adopt this technology to be transparent about how they use it. Human reporters and editors must constantly check the AI’s output for errors known as hallucinations, she says.
To ensure that students have done their work, she insists that they keep a record of their debriefing (whether it’s written notes or a recording of an interview) to refer to for accountability purposes.
“Accountability is important in our business,” she said.
A one-day event exploring the many ways that artificial intelligence (AI) is impacting all aspects of communication will be held on April 10 at the School of Communication.
For more information on “AI in Communication”, please click here.
