Last weekend, I was reading news online when I came across a video titled, “President Trump issues a war threat to China while on a foreign trip.”
The video featured President Trump on a trip to Russia, addressing journalists after a meeting with Russian President Putin. For a minute, I was shook.
Is America going to become an ally with Russia against China?
Things do not add up.
What about Ukraine? Isn’t Russia at war with Ukraine? Isn’t the US supporting Ukraine against Russia?
And that’s when it all started making sense. This is not real.
In the world of AI, these stories are common. Some days, you will come across bizarre news of a stock market crash, and other days, maybe of the bitcoin price rising. In this AI-driven world, it is not only about the news you read but also the way you assess and consume it.
So, if you are also curious about the evolution of new reporting in the world of AI and the way information is now consumed, then keep reading. For the convenience of the reader, this write-up is divided into two main sections, addressing both the consumer and reporter sides.
How AI Is Changing the Way News Is Reported?
· On-the-go Reporting
Reporters generally have to be present on site. They gather information and then convert it into a report. However, in time-sensitive stories where information needs to be sorted within minutes, things can get tricky.
However, thanks to AI and availability of affordable 5G home internet plans, reporters can now use content information tools to create detailed reports within seconds, and on the go.
· News Writing
News writing sits at the core of journalism. Most journalists train for years and work for days just to cover a story.
Now that AI has launched writing assistance tools, journalists can cover a story within seconds. The readability of these stories is not just better; it is much easier for the reader to access the news.
Apart from this, there are automated journalism tools that can help readers to directly access the news, earnings reports, and sports results anytime.
· Story Research
For journalists, research plays a very important role. In most cases, story research, backtracking the timeline, and exploring history might take months.
Now, with the help of AI tools like ChatGPT and Gemini, journalists can access all the information related to an event within seconds. The best part is that since these tools use NLP, researchers can ask questions about an incident in a conversational tone rather than sticking to a formal template.
· Instant Translation
While searching for global news, journalists are hired based on their proficiency in a specific language. This means a Hispanic-speaking journalist will get to cover news about Latin America or Spanish-speaking countries.
In most cases, this brings out a biased opinion. With the use of AI, anyone can easily translate information, which means the reporting will no longer be limited to journalists fluent in the language.
Instead, anyone with proper research tools can easily cover the story.
· Unbiased Opinion Generation
Opinion pieces are one of the most loved parts of the newspaper. Similarly, in digital media audience loves reviews and criticism-based programs.
The majority of these programs involve an expert analyst who can assess the situation and offer an opinion. These opinions can be biased based on prior experience, personal influence, or the outlook of the individual.
However, with the help of AI, journalists can generate unbiased opinions and cover a story objectively.
· AI News Trends
Trending news helps in generating more engagement, which is very important for digital media and mass media. However, the prediction about the trending topics is never concrete.
AI can help journalists, media companies, and news outlets assess the trending topics. These trending topics can then help companies to fix their popular slots so they can generate maximum engagement through this information.
How AI Is Changing the Way News Is Consumed
In the ever-evolving digital space, we all come across fake news. Sometimes we know it, other times we do not.
This is not because most of us miss the details; instead, information is widely spread that every time we see it, there is little time to evaluate its credibility. Apart from this, most of the published news comes with videos and supporting content that adds to its credibility.
How?
Well, that is where AI comes in. Today, AI has become so advanced and sophisticated that it has changed the way we consume and trust information.
Here are some of the major ways AI has transformed the way we consume news and information:
· Curated Content Timeline
Remember the time when the news bulletin was read aloud for the masses?
Well, now you can pick which news interests you. In fact, thanks to AI, your timeline is filled with news that matches your interests. From social media to digital media, even your Google, news apps, and Safari search are all curated for you.
AI records the way you interact with news, the way you scroll through content, or where you stop. This is tracked as a sign of interest and eventually helps AI to pick similar news for the future.
· Smart Search Engines
Everyone is talking about ChatGPT, Gemini, and other AI-based smart engines. This evolution has led to a greater focus on AI visibility and generative engine optimization, ensuring that information is not just indexed but accurately summarized for the reader. However, most people do not realize that Google also utilizes NLP (natural language processing) for understanding news and searches.
· Fake News Detection
One of the biggest issues of recent times is fake news. Most people do not realize that fake news is not a recent issue. Instead, it is more common and detectable now, compared to traditional media.
Now, there are sites, apps, and cross-checking tools that can help users check the authenticity of the news. Moreover, you can search the same news online and verify it from multiple sources.
· Visual Search Options
You open the browser, and there is an image of a dead president?
What will you do?
Many platforms now offer a visual search option, which means you can search for any news or information with the help of Google Lens, Pinterest’s visual search, Instagram search, etc.
This way, you can search the whole story related to the image you just discovered, or you can also check the authenticity of the same image.
· Multilingual News Access
The world is accessible to all. People move around and want to stay connected to their hometown. Apart from this majority of people are multilingual and prefer news in their native language.
This is where news translation apps are required. With the help of these apps, you cannot just translate the news instantly, but also you can read foreign news from other official sources.
· AI Assistant
Hey Siri, how’s the weather outside?
We have all done that, right?
Well, this is the new way of consuming news and information. Now you can pick the kind of information you want and then filter out the content that you would like to learn about. An AI assistant fetches information across multiple news platforms and brings the verified news.
· News Summaries
Have you ever heard someone say, “I love reading the news”?
Me neither.
So, there is no doubt that news can be boring, dry, and lengthy sometimes. This is where you can rely on bite-sized news summaries.
Either readers can rely on apps like Summly, or they can use AI tools like ChatGPT to summarize and simplify complex news. This helps in making news accessible for all, regardless of their level of education, origin, or history.
FAQ’s
How is AI used in News Reporting?
AI is excellent for research, which means it can handle simple stories like sports scores, financial reports, and weather updates. This helps journalists and reporters to focus more on critical, complex, and investigative stories that require more time and effort.
Can AI replace news reporters?
While AI can speed up and help with reporting, it lacks the ability to critically analyze situations and make decisions. So, there is no way it can replace real reports and journalists.