Experts Worry About News Stories Written with Artificial Intelligence
2023-08-04
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1Google is developing an artificial intelligence tool that produces news articles. And the development is troubling some experts.
2They say such tools risk spreading propaganda or threatening the safety of people who provide reporters with information, or sources.
3The New York Times reported last week that Google is testing a new product named Genesis.
4It uses artificial intelligence (AI) to produce news stories, or articles.
5The New York Times said Genesis gathers information, like details about current events, to create news stories.
6Google already has pitched the product to the Times and other organizations, including The Washington Post and News Corp., which owns The Wall Street Journal newspaper.
7The launch of AI chatbot ChatGPT last fall created a debate about how AI ought to be used in the news industry.
8AI tools can help reporters research by quickly examining data from large computer files.
9AI can also help reporters confirm or disprove information from sources.
10But there is fear that AI tools could spread propaganda and cause journalists to lose the skill of reporting.
11John Scott-Railton studies disinformation at the Citizen Lab, part of the University of Toronto.
12He told VOA that a lot of information gathered by AI comes from places on the internet "where disinformation and propaganda get targeted."
13Paul M. Barrett is with New York University's Stern Center for Business and Human Rights.
14He agrees that AI could increase the spread of false information.
15"It's going to be easier to generate myths and disinformation," he told VOA.
16"The supply of misleading content is, I think, going to go up."
17In an emailed statement to VOA, a Google spokesperson said its tool is designed to help reporters, or journalists, in their work, not replace them.
18AI cannot replace the "role journalists have in reporting, creating and fact-checking their articles," the spokesperson said.
19AI tools in journalism could also hurt trust in news organizations.
20Public opinion researchers Gallup and the Knight Foundation released a study in February about trust in the media.
21It said that half of Americans believe that national news organizations try to mislead or misinform the public.
22"I'm puzzled that anyone thinks that the solution to this problem is to introduce a much less credible tool," said Scott-Railton.
23He earlier received support from Google's research group Google Ideas.
24Reports say that AI chatbots regularly produce answers that are wrong or made up.
25Digital experts are also concerned about the security risks of using AI tools to produce news stories.
26Reporters would have to be careful not to reveal to AI systems information like "the identity of a confidential source, or, I would say, even information that the journalist wants to make sure doesn't become public," Barrett said.
27Scott-Railton said he thinks AI probably could be used in most industries.
28But it is important not to introduce the technology too quickly, especially in the news.
29"What scares me is that the lessons learned in this case will come at the cost of well-earned reputations, will come at the cost of factual accuracy when it actually counts," he said.
30I'm Dan Novak.
1Google is developing an artificial intelligence tool that produces news articles. And the development is troubling some experts. 2They say such tools risk spreading propaganda or threatening the safety of people who provide reporters with information, or sources. 3The New York Times reported last week that Google is testing a new product named Genesis. It uses artificial intelligence (AI) to produce news stories, or articles. 4The New York Times said Genesis gathers information, like details about current events, to create news stories. Google already has pitched the product to the Times and other organizations, including The Washington Post and News Corp., which owns The Wall Street Journal newspaper. 5The launch of AI chatbot ChatGPT last fall created a debate about how AI ought to be used in the news industry. 6AI tools can help reporters research by quickly examining data from large computer files. AI can also help reporters confirm or disprove information from sources. But there is fear that AI tools could spread propaganda and cause journalists to lose the skill of reporting. 7John Scott-Railton studies disinformation at the Citizen Lab, part of the University of Toronto. He told VOA that a lot of information gathered by AI comes from places on the internet "where disinformation and propaganda get targeted." 8Paul M. Barrett is with New York University's Stern Center for Business and Human Rights. He agrees that AI could increase the spread of false information. 9"It's going to be easier to generate myths and disinformation," he told VOA. "The supply of misleading content is, I think, going to go up." 10In an emailed statement to VOA, a Google spokesperson said its tool is designed to help reporters, or journalists, in their work, not replace them. AI cannot replace the "role journalists have in reporting, creating and fact-checking their articles," the spokesperson said. 11AI tools in journalism could also hurt trust in news organizations. Public opinion researchers Gallup and the Knight Foundation released a study in February about trust in the media. It said that half of Americans believe that national news organizations try to mislead or misinform the public. 12"I'm puzzled that anyone thinks that the solution to this problem is to introduce a much less credible tool," said Scott-Railton. He earlier received support from Google's research group Google Ideas. 13Reports say that AI chatbots regularly produce answers that are wrong or made up. Digital experts are also concerned about the security risks of using AI tools to produce news stories. 14Reporters would have to be careful not to reveal to AI systems information like "the identity of a confidential source, or, I would say, even information that the journalist wants to make sure doesn't become public," Barrett said. 15Scott-Railton said he thinks AI probably could be used in most industries. But it is important not to introduce the technology too quickly, especially in the news. 16"What scares me is that the lessons learned in this case will come at the cost of well-earned reputations, will come at the cost of factual accuracy when it actually counts," he said. 17I'm Dan Novak. 18Liam Scott wrote this story for Voice of America. Dan Novak adapted it for VOA Learning English. 19___________________________________________________ 20Words in This Story 21pitch - v. to try to sell something to someone; to talk about something or someone in a way that will make others accept it 22myth - n. an idea or story believed by many people but that is not true 23content - n. the information that appears in media such as books, newspapers, television, movies 24puzzle - v. to be confused; to make something difficult to understand 25confidential - adj. secret or private 26scare - v. to make a person afraid or fearful 27reputation - n. the common opinion people have about a person 28accuracy -n. the quality of having no mistake or error