(New York) The Associated Press issued guidelines on artificial intelligence, saying that this tool could not be used to create publishable content and images, while encouraging its employees to familiarize themselves with this technology.
The Associated Press (AP) is one of a handful of news outlets that have begun to develop guidelines for how to integrate tech tools like “ChatGPT” into their work, which are growing at breakneck speed. .
AP Vice President of Journalistic Standards and Inclusion Amanda Barrett said Wednesday that the news agency wants to give employees a good way to understand how experimentation can be done while maintaining a level of safety.
Journalism think tank Poynter Institute, saying this is a “pivotal moment” in the industry, was urging news media this spring to establish journalistic standards for the use of journalism. artificial intelligence (AI), and to share these policies with readers and viewers.
As a result, the AP has decided that material produced by the AI should be carefully reviewed, as should any material from any other news source. Similarly, an AI-generated photo, video, or audio segment should not be used at AP unless the edited material is itself the subject of a news story.
The AP experimented with simpler forms of artificial intelligence for a decade, using it to create short dispatches from sports or financial results. Ms. Barrett said the AP wants to “enter this new phase with caution, being careful to protect our journalism and our credibility.”
High profile cases of “hallucinations” or AI-invented facts make it important for consumers to know that standards are in place to “ensure that the content they read, watch and listen to is verified, credible and as fair as possible,” Poynter said in an op-ed.
Insider media editor Nicholas Carlson explained that the AI could suggest possible edits to make an article more concise and readable, or suggest possible questions for an interview.
Journalists have expressed concern that artificial intelligence could one day replace humans in newsrooms. This issue is of great interest, for example, in contract negotiations between the AP and its union, the News Media Guild.
