AP’s local news AI initiative

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Read our new report

Generative AI in Journalism: The Evolution of Newswork and Ethics in a Generative Information Ecosystem

Building tools and training newsrooms

AP’s Local News AI helps local newsrooms to identify and adopt artificial intelligence-based solutions. The program’s most-recent survey “Generative AI in Journalism: The Evolution of Newswork and Ethics in a Generative Information Ecosystem,” includes responses from almost 300 news professionals to better understand generative AI and its use in the field of journalism.
In 2021, Local News AI surveyed U.S. local newsrooms on AI readiness, published a report of the findings and created a six-unit course to teach to knowledge interests in AI and news. The program also developed five projects with newsrooms that use AI. The first two years of the Local News AI initiative was made possible by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.

Narrowing the technology gap between national and local newsrooms

AP worked with five newsrooms and university development teams at Northwestern University, Stanford University, and the University of Missouri to build these projects. The code base is available for use for free when indicated at AP’s GitHub repository, click the relevant blurbs below to access.

Introduction

AP’s Aimee Rinehart and Ernest Kung provide an overview of the five projects and two years of work on the Local News AI initiative.

Brainerd Dispatch (Minn.)

Automated writing of public safety incidents into the content management system.

El Vocero de Puerto Rico

Publication of Spanish-language news alerts using National Weather Service data in English.

KSAT-TV (Texas)

Automated transcription of recorded videos and summarizing the transcripts to create an article’s initial framework.

Michigan Radio

Rebuilt the core of the Minutes application, which creates transcripts of city council meetings, along with adding keyword-based reporter alerts

WFMZ-TV (Pa.)

Sorting of event pitches received via email and automatically populating them into the coverage planner.

Reporting on AI

There are many benefits for local newsrooms to implement tools that include automation and AI, however there are also complexities and risks inherent with tools that include AI. Below are links to recent AP investigations on how AI impacts society.

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