The Chicago Sun-Times debacle proves why we need to protect human voices in journalism
It was inevitable, but it doesn't make it any less terrifying. Most people working within the creative arts - musicians, animators, filmmakers, designers - have already felt the ramifications of AI within their industries. We've seen very recently how writers have had their work essentially stolen by Meta for the purpose of 'training' their AI model. And now it's coming for journalism. The slow creep that began with harmless self-service checkouts at Tesco is now beginning to look like a landslide.
You may have already heard the story about the Chicago Sun-Times ' recent run-in with AI. An eagle-eyed reader spotted that a 'Summer reading list for 2025' feature contained several titles that were… well, non-existent. Mixed in with some genuine publications like Atonement by Ian McEwan (not exactly what you might call a 'beach book') and Jess Walter's Beautiful Ruin, it made for a chillingly convincing read, nonetheless. One of the entries, titled The Last Algorithm by Andy Weir, read: "Following his success with The Martian and Project Hail Mary, Weir delivers another science-driven thriller. This time, the story follows a programmer who discovers that an AI system has developed consciousness - and has been secretly influencing global systems for years.' Not only does the book not exist, but it felt like a very pointed piece of guff.
Listen: The Ray D'Arcy Show on AI and the music industry
The newspaper quickly released a statement saying "We are looking into how this made it into print as we speak. It is not editorial content and was not created by, or approved by, the Sun-Times newsroom. We value your trust in our reporting and take this very seriously. More info will be provided soon." They later claimed that it was licenced from a 'national content partner' and syndicated to various publications, including their own. Embarrassing, yes. Worrying? Speaking as a journalist, without a doubt.
Most people working within the creative arts - musicians, animators, filmmakers, designers - have already felt the ramifications of AI within their industries.
It's not the first time that AI has pulled the wool over newspaper editors' eyes, either. In 2023, The Irish Times was pretty effectively duped after it was revealed that an opinion piece they had published, which was supposedly written by someone purporting to be a young immigrant, was actually generated by AI.
All of this proves a very important point: AI might cut down on an editor's workload (and budget), never miss a deadline and provide copy that's clean as a whistle - but it cannot replicate the human experience.
Listen: RTÉ Drivetime on AI and the creative industries
When I first dipped my toe into music writing over twenty years ago, I had little to no experience. With no university degree and no formal training, it was a case of learning on my feet. I loved music and I could string a decent sentence together, so it was simply a matter of writing (and reading, and listening to) as much as possible - not an overnight endeavour, by any means. I began writing for an online music zine for free to get experience, and eventually got a job on a website doing interminably dull data entry, in the hope that I could somehow get a foot in the door and work my way up the ladder.
A couple of decades later, I'd like to think that I'm a better writer, having interviewed hundreds of people from across the arts, listened to countless albums, attended a multitude of gigs, read endless books and watched innumerable films and TV shows. I write from the experience of being a human who has done those things and learned something from them all. Even so, the fear that AI is coming for my job - a job that I love, albeit in an industry that is increasingly difficult to make a living from as a freelancer - is always in the back of my mind. When editors choose to syndicate something like the 'summer reading list for 2025' instead of commissioning a living person who has amassed that knowledge or researched it the old fashioned way, it proves the importance of protecting human voices more than ever. And in this era of convincing deepfakes and disinformation, who else can we trust?
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Examiner
9 hours ago
- Irish Examiner
Clowning around: Ireland's oldest working clown on life in the Big Top
The country's oldest working clown has revealed how he swapped life in the Big Top for a regular nine to five, but the 'groundhog nature' of the job had him rushing back to his greasepaint. Mikey Gerbola has been clowning around now for more than half a century and is showing no sign of slowing down. The 58-year-old, who performs with Circus Gerbola, said he and his wife Tara tried working regular jobs in the past, but were both miserable. 'I went truck driving while she worked in the cash office in Tesco. We were in good jobs that paid well. 'About a year and a quarter in, she told me she couldn't do it anymore. I was relieved because I felt the exact same way. It was the same thing every day. The whole thing felt like Groundhog Day. "With circus every day is different. Every day is a challenge. It's like moving a business to a different town every day.' Mikey begin performing as a clown from the age of four, but it was as an eight-year-old that he got his big break in the Big Top, performing full-time. In the wings, beneath the high wire, Mikey Gerbola quietly watches the young performers in his troop wow the audience with their high-flying act. Picture: Chani Anderson 'I started clowning when I was eight but I was doing it well before that. I had two uncle-in-laws who were Spanish that I really admired. "You would always see me there waiting outside the ring for the moment that they called me. "I was only four at the time, but they picked me to perform once a week. "They would put a hat on my head and a cigarette in my mouth. "The act involved them knocking the hat off my head with juggling clubs. "You're basically a stooge or a prop until you learn your trade and do dialogue." 'I went full-time from the age of eight. I learned everything in the circus from the trapeze to roller-skating.' Pay and pensions aside, life in the Big Top brings it own rewards, according to Mikey, who calls Navan, Co Meath, home when he is not touring. "I feel like I make a difference. Kids come up to me and give me a hug. You can't pay for memories like that. People who know me my whole life still remember my first act. Mikey begin performing as a clown from the age of four, but it was as an eight-year-old that he got his big break in the Big Top, performing full-time. Picture: Chani Anderson "One lady came up to me and told me she was so touched by my performance it made her cry. I'm never going to be famous or a millionaire but I have touched a lot of people in the last 50 years. Knowing that is what keeps me going. The showman, whose children Blake Dean, Michael Cole, and Isabella are all involved in the business, hopes that circuses will continue to thrive for generations to come. 'My ancestors were the founders of circus. I have posters and pictures dating back to the 1700s. "How long I go on will depend on how long I live. I'll do it for as long as I can. "Circus people don't retire. They just die.' Circus Gerbola is currently touring different locations in Cork
The Irish Sun
2 days ago
- The Irish Sun
Holiday goers rave over Tesco dupe of £1k Rimowa suitcases loved by celebs – they're under £30 and there's two colours
IF you're jetting off somewhere sunny this year and need a new suitcase, look no further than Tesco The supermarket currently has a dupe of the popular Rimowa brand in stores, and for a bargain price. 2 Libbie showed off her find on TikTok Credit: Tiktok/@libbiemayfitzpatrick 2 The dupes are available in both gold and silver Credit: Tiktok/@libbiemayfitzpatrick You've probably seen the Rimowa suitcases rolling alongside your favourite celebs and influencers without even realising. Stars like Zendaya, Cara Delevingne and Julianne Moore have been photographed with the stylish luggage before, but the Rimowa Classic Cabin will set you back a whopping £1,130 - and prices go up if you want a larger case too. Luckily, one savvy shopper spotted the dupe on the shelves of their local Tesco - and you'll save hundreds. Libbie Fitzpatrick took to TikTok to show off the find - and shoppers can even choose from gold or silver. In the viral video she said: "Get yourself down to Tesco because they've just brought out Rimowa-style suitcases and they are stunning!" The suitcases are priced at £65, but Clubcard shoppers can nab the luggage for just £27.50. Holiday goers took to the comment section of the clip to rave about the find, as one wrote: "They've been reduced a while now, over two weeks!" "I got the blue one a few weeks ago, they didn't have gold and silver then. Still prefer the blue. Most read in Fabulous "Suitcases are so expensive these days so these are a good price on the deal," another wrote. But others weren't sure if plastic suitcases would be a good fit for airport chaos. My daughter is never going to school because our eight family holidays per year are more important - parents who only take trips during the official breaks are 'utter muppets' Meanwhile, others wanted to know if the suitcases were lightweight, "Please tell me it's light weight and won't take off my allowance," one said. And another agreed: "I don't like hard style cases, they weight a bit more so you can't carry as much." If you are on the hunt for a new suitcase that will stand the test of time, Captain Alexander York, who flies The 40-year-old has been using the exact same suitcase for over a decade and knows which cases are more likely to end up being duds. He told Hard-shell luggage is rigid and usually made of plastic or metal, while soft-shell While he did not name a specific one, Samsonite said its hard-shell suitcases are typically made from "high-quality materials like polycarbonate or aluminium." Read more on the Irish Sun Alexander recommended hard cases over soft ones, despite their higher weight, as he believes softer ones are at a greater risk of damage. He said: "I think bags with exposed wheels, or soft pouches are bound to be damaged, so I'd stick with the hard case." Holiday packing tips Jemma Solomon, aka The Label Lady has got 5 packing tips to help you get organised for your next holiday. 1. Write a list Think about all the essentials you need to take with you; suncream, medicine, a few games for the kids, beach towels, and write everything in one list, which you can tick off as you add it to your suitcase. Or for complete ease, try Google's AI app - Gemini - which will create a list for you and help you not over pack. 2. Involve your kids Jemma said: 'My girls are getting older, they're 11 and nine, and they enjoy helping to pack. So I send them a list, and say 'this is what you need' and they follow the list. 'And then I give them a rucksack each - and say to them 'you can have whatever you want in there as long as it's not liquid', and they can take that on the plane. And that's their 'home away from home' items.' 3. Try a hack or two She said: "I think they all work, but for different reasons - and you've just got to pick the right one for your trip. "Rolling your clothes is really good to stop your clothes from getting creases. And if you're trying to get a lot of items into your case, it's a space saver. 'Packing cubes are great - for example, I'm going on holiday with my three kids and we're all using the same suitcase for our clothes. "These handy compartments let you separate your clothes, toiletries and tech into designated cubes, maximising luggage space by keeping your items compressed and neatly stacked. "I love taking them abroad with the family and it means my kids can easily take charge of their own items once we've arrived." 4. Decant beauty products Do you really need to take full-size bottles of shampoo and conditioner with you? The beauty industry has evolved so much, you can now buy shampoo bars or sheets - which are much lighter and smaller. Or, if you'll be popping to the shops when you're abroad, consider buying some items when you arrive. 5. Get organised before you come home Jemma said: 'When you repack on holiday [before coming home], the trick is to separate clean from dirty clothes. 'Also pack it in some form of order - so lights, darks, colours for items that need washing, or if you wash your clothes by person in the household, piles for each person. "Then you can put it straight into the washing machine. Do it straight away, don't leave it."
RTÉ News
3 days ago
- RTÉ News
Succession creator says his new film is 'not an Elon Musk hit job'
Succession creator Jesse Armstrong has said his new film, Mountainhead, is "not an Elon Musk hit job". The film will be Armstrong's first new project since comedy-drama series Succession concluded in 2023 and will see a group of billionaire friends working in tech gather together amid a series of international crises. Asked if he was able to avoid writing about the Tesla boss while making the movie by Matt Chorley on BBC Radio 5 Live, Armstrong said: "Musk's obviously been really present, I've done this really quickly, I didn't start writing it until January. "So, it's not about Elon Musk, we have a sort of richest guy in the world character, but I think people would find some flavours of Mark Zuckerberg (Meta chief executive) and Sam Altman (OpenAI chief executive), and other less well known tech people in there as well. "So, it's not sort of a Musk hit job, it's trying to be a portrait of a group of people, who are so powerful, and maybe (have) a particular way of talking, and a particular way of thinking." Armstrong was also asked about the similarities between the characters in his new film and Succession, and whether they were more about power than rich people. The 54-year-old British screenwriter and film producer replied: "People have been saying why are you writing about these bloody rich people again? "And maybe I've been seduced and I just like hanging around in… rooms that look like hotels, which is where most of the rich people, they seem to live. "We did a lot of research and a lot of scouting locations, it's surprising how similar the spaces are. "But I don't think I'm interested in the money as much as I am in the power of it, I didn't just want to write a rich people show in Succession. "It was about newspaper and news media, TV news power, and this is about tech power, about social media power, about AI power." Succession ended after four series of Scottish actor Brian Cox playing foul-mouthed global media tycoon and family patriarch Logan Roy, opposite Oscar nominee Jeremy Strong, Academy Award winner Kieran Culkin, Sarah Snook, and Alan Ruck as his children. It scooped 19 Emmys including outstanding drama series and nine Golden Globes during its run, along with drawing large audiences and being critically well received. Armstrong is also an Oscar nominee for co-writing The Thick Of It spin-off film In The Loop with Simon Blackwell, Armando Iannucci and Tony Roche, and has won TV Baftas for his work on Peep Show and Succession. Mountainhead will air for the first time on 1 June on Sky and streaming service Now.
