We followed the lead of a tech news site and implemented AI technology to cover the same news
The use of AI-powered text generators like Chat-GPT, VALL-E, and BlenderBot 3 is becoming a potential threat to the job market for human writers. According to a recent report, CNET, a popular tech site, has been using “automation technology” to generate a series of financial explainer posts under the byline of CNET Money Staff since November 2022. This information was first reported by online marketer Gael Breton on Twitter, and since then, CNET has taken down the CNET Money Staff bio page and removed the “Staff” from many of the posts.
The use of text generators in journalism is not yet a widespread practice, but some outlets like the Associated Press and the Washington Post have used them for low-level copywriting tasks such as writing about high school football or the 2016 Rio Olympics. However, when an outlet makes a significant change to its newsroom operations, they typically inform the public through a press release or social media announcement. CNET has not yet made any public statement about this program beyond the dropdown explainer window.
The quality of the content generated by CNET’s system is quite different from the AP’s system, which is more of a mail merge that inserts specific data into preformatted story templates for repetitive tasks. CNET’s system appears to be more advanced, capable of composing feature-length explainer posts on complex financial concepts. The company has not yet responded to requests for comment on this matter.
In the mean time Connie Guglielmo from CNN has posted on the CNN and here is the quick summary of the note
“CNET has been experimenting with using AI-powered technology like ChatGPT to generate financial explainer articles since November. The goal of the experiment was to see if the technology could assist their busy editorial team in creating more helpful content for their audience.
So far, they’ve published around 75 such articles and every article is still reviewed, fact-checked, and edited by an editor before being published. The byline has been changed to “CNET Money” and the disclosure has been moved to be more visible, noting that the story was “assisted by an AI engine and reviewed, fact-checked, and edited by our editorial staff.”
CNET plans to continue testing and experimenting with AI technology while still maintaining their reputation as a fact-based, unbiased source of news and advice.”
What Google has said about AI Content?
A Google spokesperson has clarified that AI-generated content is not completely prohibited by the company, despite John Mueller, a high-ranking official, stating last year that AI-generated content with the primary goal of manipulating search rankings is against the company’s policies.
Public liaison for Search, Danny Sullivan, stated in a statement to Futurism, “Our goal for Search is to show helpful, relevant content that’s created for people, rather than to attain search engine rankings. Our ranking team focuses on the usefulness of content, rather than how the content is produced. This allows us to create solutions that aim to reduce all types of unhelpful content in Search, whether it’s produced by humans or through automated processes.”
The implementation of AI technology in journalism raises concerns about the transparency and morality of the practice, as well as its potential effect on the authenticity and reliability of news. Additionally, it also raises concerns on the implications this might have on SEO and Google searches.
Note: This article was written entirely by ChatGPT and reviewed by an SEO 🙂
