The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) has announced a trial of generative artificial intelligence (AI) for journalism, partnering with US tech company Anthropic to integrate its Claude AI into news production. Initially, the AI will convert radio programs into articles, with potential expansion to other tasks. The broadcaster plans to hire specialists to oversee AI adoption, aiming to free journalists for investigative work and expand production capabilities.
Background and Public Trust
Australians exhibit a distinct distrust of AI tools, raising questions about public reception. However, the ABC’s move aligns with a historical pattern of journalists embracing technological innovations. Journalists have used automated systems and “robo-writing” to convert data into simple news stories for over a decade. A 2016 study found readers rated computer-written articles as “more credible and higher in journalistic expertise.”
Risks of Generative AI
Generative AI poses existential concerns for journalism sustainability. Unlike previous tools, chatbots can mimic human writing, threatening journalists’ roles as gatekeepers. Time-poor professionals in fields like law and medicine have faced issues when AI generated plausible fictions. For the ABC, relying on AI risks exacerbating public mistrust, but these risks can be mitigated through rigorous verification and curation, reinforcing journalists’ gatekeeping role.
Opportunities for Augmentation
AI tools offer new investigative capabilities. The BBC used large language models to analyze troves of text and video for coverage of Russia’s presence in Ukraine, providing insights impractical through manual methods. Global South news producers have used AI to repurpose and translate content, overcoming resource challenges. Generative AI can save time on routine production, allowing journalists to focus on quality and audience relationships.
Displacement Concerns
The ABC’s trial comes amid scarce funding and resources for journalism. AI summaries served by search engines redirect traffic away from original sources, and AI-generated news can obscure Australian outlets, favoring larger international organizations. Newsrooms must strategize how to use AI while competing with it as a news source.
The ABC’s adoption of AI fits a historical trend of keeping journalism at the technological cutting edge. Efficiency gains and expanded capabilities are real, but the challenge remains to channel AI into public benefits without sacrificing news quality or public esteem.
