Computation and Language - Echoes of Automation The Increasing Use of LLMs in Newsmaking

Hey PaperLedge crew, Ernis here, ready to dive into some fascinating research! Today, we're tackling a topic that's been buzzing in newsrooms and beyond: Generative AI and its impact on journalism.

Think about it – AI like ChatGPT is getting seriously good at writing. This paper asks a really important question: are news outlets using AI to write articles, and if so, what's the effect?

Now, the researchers didn't just guess. They took a massive sample of over 40,000 news articles from all sorts of places – big national papers, your local news website, even college newspapers. They looked at different formats too, not just text, but also things like news scripts for video. Then, they put those articles through some pretty sophisticated AI detectors – think of them as super-powered plagiarism checkers specifically designed to sniff out AI-written text.

And here's what they found:

• AI use in news is definitely on the rise, especially in recent years. It's like the AI genie is slowly creeping out of the bottle.


• Local and college news outlets are using AI more than the big national players. This makes sense, right? Smaller newsrooms might be struggling with resources and see AI as a way to boost their output.


• AI is often used to write the introductions of news articles, but the conclusions are usually written by humans. It's like AI is helping get the ball rolling, but the reporters are still closing out the story.

But it doesn't stop there. The researchers also looked at how AI is changing the writing itself.

"Linguistic analysis shows GenAI boosts word richness and readability but lowers formality, leading to more uniform writing styles, particularly in local media."

Basically, AI can make articles easier to read and more descriptive, but it also tends to flatten out the writing style, making everything sound a bit more...same-y. This is especially true for local news. Imagine if all the local restaurants started using the exact same menu descriptions – you'd lose a bit of what makes each place unique, right?

So, why does all this matter?

• For journalists: This research highlights the need for transparency. Are news outlets being upfront about their use of AI? And how can journalists maintain their unique voice and expertise in an AI-driven world?


• For news consumers: It's a wake-up call to be more critical of the news we read. Are we getting the full picture, or is AI subtly shaping the narrative?


• For researchers: This study provides a valuable starting point for further investigation into the ethical and societal implications of AI in journalism.

This research opens up a whole can of worms, doesn't it?

Here are a couple of questions bouncing around in my head:

• If AI is making news more readable but less formal, is that necessarily a bad thing? Could it actually make news more accessible to a wider audience?


• How can we ensure that AI is used ethically in journalism, without sacrificing journalistic integrity or contributing to the spread of misinformation?

Food for thought, PaperLedge crew! Let me know what you think of this research. What are your biggest concerns – or potential benefits – of AI in journalism? Hit me up on the socials, and let's keep the conversation going!