Gannett tiptoes into generative AI, giving humans the last word

tech.hindustantimes.com:

Publisher Gannett plans to include generative artificial intelligence in the system it uses to publish stories as it and other news organizations begin to roll out the popular technology that may help save money and improve efficiency.

But the largest U.S. newspaper publisher with over 200 daily outlets said it will include humans in the process so that the technology can't be deployed automatically, without oversight. Generative AI is a way to create efficiencies and eliminate some tedious tasks for journalists, Renn Turiano, senior vice president and head of product at Gannett said.

However, Turiano added, “The desire to go fast was a mistake for some of the other news services,” he said without singling out a specific outlet. “We're not making that mistake.”

Gannett is hardly alone in its balancing act. For instance Reuters President Paul Bascobert said in a statement Thursday, responding to a reporter's request for comment about the company's plans, that as the news agency embraces AI technologies, it is "taking a responsible approach that safeguards accuracy and fosters trust.”

Many U.S. newsrooms are grappling with how best to incorporate AI tools that generate new content or data in response to a prompt, or question, by a user.

But generative AI's limitations, which include the tendency to “hallucinate,” or serve up misinformation with a veneer of certainty, are particularly problematic in an industry that demands accuracy, some experts say.

“Where I am right now is I wouldn't recommend these models for any journalistic use case where you're publishing automatically to a public channel,” said Northwestern University associate professor Nicholas Diakopoulos.

Gannett's strategy reflects the measured approach a number of