Today on Midday, guest host and WYPR news anchor Gabe Ortis looks at the use of AI in the newsroom.
Nearly 10 percent of U.S. newspaper articles contain at least some text created by artificial intelligence, according to researchers at the University of Maryland.
But at the Baltimore Sun earlier this month, we saw something novel: two news articles fully written by AI and edited by humans.
Workers with the Washington-Baltimore News Guild are not happy, saying the move raises questions about transparency, quality and the future of local journalism. Members of the newsroom union join Midday to explain.
Dan Belson, a Baltimore Sun public safety reporter, is unit chair of the Baltimore Sun Guild; and Ariel Wittenberg, a public health reporter with POLITICO’S E&E News, is unit chair of the POLITICO-E&E (PEN) News Guild.
Sun publisher and editor-in-chief Trif Alatzas, in a statement sent to Midday Monday morning, described the newsroom’s use of AI for editorial content as “innovation,” and said the Sun intends to be transparent as it continues to explore ways to use AI-powered tools.
Alatzas noted that the news organization does “not have plans to replace reporting or writing from our journalists.”
Here is the Sun’s full statement about its use of AI-generated news copy:
Midday plans to invite a representative of the Baltimore Sun on the show in the near future to discuss in greater detail the role the company sees for AI in its newsroom.
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