AI will soon be able to cover public meetings. But should it?

Thursday, June 15, 2023

AI will soon be able to cover public meetings. But should it? “Is it ready for primetime, ready to be released to the masses? Absolutely not…But can it be done? Can you design an AI system that attends a city meeting and generates a story? Yeah, I did it.” By Sophie Culpepper.

What We’re ReadingTwitter / Max TaniInsider is weakening its paywall →“In the near future, all of our work will be behind a ‘smart paywall,’ which will ask people to pay only if a very smart algorithm thinks they are likely to pay.”Pew Research Center / Sara AtskeA profile of the top-ranked podcasts in the U.S. →“15% of top-ranked podcasts focus on news, and 18% are affiliated with a news organization.” Deadline / Ted JohnsonSenate Judiciary Committee advances journalism bill →“Past attempts to pass the bill into law have stalled…The bill was left out of end-of-the-year defense legislation and never made it to the Senate floor.”TechCrunch / Ivan MehtaInstagram is rolling out its Channels feature for broadcasting messages globally →“Meta announced today that it’s rolling out Instagram’s Channels features for broadcasting messages globally. Until now, the feature was available to select creators and users.”The Verge / Jess WeatherbedStreamlabs’ new editing tool helps streamers jump into podcasting →“Announced today by Streamlabs’ parent company Logitech, the new Podcast Editor includes AI-assisted tools like text-based editing and automatic transcript generation to help streamers record and edit their audio and video…The editor additionally provides AI-assisted tools to find clips worth highlighting within recorded footage, cut unnecessary pauses to reduce video length, and even remove filler words like ‘ums’ and ‘oohs.'”Substack / Richard J. TofelIf cable news is dying, here are four reasons why →“Good journalism doesn’t equate to good ratings.”New York Times / Robert D. McFaddenRemembering editor Robert Gottlieb →“I have never encountered a publisher or editor with a greater understanding of what a writer was trying to do — and how to help him do it.”Reuters / Magali Druscovich and Sheila DangNews junkies turn to TikTok to chart new paths in media →“Since the surge in popularity of the short-form video app at the start of the pandemic, people like Spehar [creator of Under the Desk News] have flocked to the platform to discuss, document and share what’s happening in the world. Many call themselves creators or influencers. They do not aspire to be traditional journalists.”Vanity Fair / Charlotte KleinWhy CNN and MSNBC didn’t carry Trump’s post-arraignment speech live →“As the Trump circus continued into Tuesday evening, so too did anchors’ decisive monitoring of their broadcasts. Neither CNN nor MSNBC carried Trump’s speech live from his golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey, where he was holding the first fundraiser for his 2024 campaign.”Al Jazeera / Jeff AbbottGuatemalan court convicts prominent journalist José Rubén Zamora →“An award-winning journalist in Guatemala has been convicted on criminal charges in what human rights observers call yet another blow to press freedom and democracy in the Central American country.”Axios / Dan PrimackTrump’s Truth Social troubles →“For Truth Social to grow, it needs investment. But that seems increasingly unlikely to come from DWAC, given the molasses-like speed at which the legal investigations are proceeding. Remember, it’s DWAC that might be in legal hot water, not Truth Social.”Rest of World / Russell BrandomThe slow decline of Meta’s Trusted Partner program →“The program was supposed to be a fast lane for the most urgent and credible reports, but it turned out to be the same speed as the slow lane.”The Guardian / Jim WatersonThe Guardian bans all gambling advertising →“Anna Bateson, the chief executive of Guardian Media Group, said advertising – particularly online – could trap gamblers in an ‘addictive cycle’ that caused financial distress, mental health issues and wider social problems.”The Washington Post / Will Sommer and Elahe IzadiThe bitter strike at Insider – longest ever in digital media – is over →“The new deal boosts the salary minimum for Insider staffers from $60,000 to $65,000 a year, includes a pledge to not lay off any more employees for the rest of the year, and offers an immediate 3.5 percent raise for most staff once the contract is ratified.”The Atlantic / McKay CoppinsThe gross spectacle of murder fandom →After reporters, TikTok and reddit sleuths, and true crime podcasters swarmed Moscow, Idaho to dig into the brutal murders of four students, “perhaps more disturbing than the vulturous reporters or the vortex of TikTok speculation was the way the media and the sleuths seemed to encourage and sustain each other—their priorities converging in a vicious ouroboros.”Complex / Karla RodriguezPhilip Lewis on turning Twitter popularity into a journalism career →“There’s usually a couple of things that I’m thinking about. Is the story underrepresented? Has it been shared in other places? Who’s involved in the story? I do sometimes think about the potential of virality. So, I’m thinking about, is this a story that resonates with a wide group of people? If it isn’t, can I word it or phrase it or do something on Twitter?”

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