The move comes as several news organizations, including NPR and Insider, are exploring how AI could be responsibly used in their newsrooms. However, there are concerns about the potential spread of misinformation through AI-generated articles that aren't thoroughly fact-checked or edited. This was highlighted when CNET had to issue corrections on more than half of the AI-generated articles due to factual errors and potential plagiarism.
Key takeaways:
- Google is testing an AI tool, codenamed 'Genesis', that can generate news copy, and has pitched it to major publications like The New York Times, The Washington Post and News Corp.
- The tool is seen as a potential assistant for journalists, automating some tasks to free up time for others, but has been viewed as 'unsettling' by some executives.
- Several news organizations, including NPR and Insider, are also exploring the use of AI in their newsrooms, while others like The Associated Press have been using AI to generate certain types of stories for some time.
- There are concerns about the potential for AI-generated articles to spread misinformation, as evidenced by CNET's experience of having to issue corrections on over half of the articles generated by AI due to factual errors and potential plagiarism.