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Artificial Intelligence (AI) is the future of journalism, and as such media organisations need to invest in both newsroom infrastructure and human resource to leverage its potential.
To ensure that the revolutionary innovation does not hamper ethical standards of journalism, media organisations must also develop clear policies and plans for the integration of AI into their news production and dissemination process.
This was the unanimous position held by experts and other speakers at the 75th anniversary lecture and conference of the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) held in Accra last Thursday evening.
Those who made the call are the Founder and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Edel Technology Consulting, Ethel Cofie; the General Manager, External of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG), Charles Nii Ayiku Ayiku; the Minister of Information, Fatimatu Abubakar; the President of the Institute of Public Relations (IPR), Esther Cobbah, and the President of the GJA, Albert Kwabena Dwumfour.
The speakers stressed that the future of journalism in the country was bright, given the potential of AI to shape it, but it was up to media organisations and journalists to harness that potential in a way that would enhance their craft.
They cautioned, therefore, that there was the need for journalists to adhere to accountable journalism by applying ethical standards even as they embraced AI.
The diamond jubilee lecture was organised by GJA to reflect on the journey of the association which was birthed on August 15, 1949.
The commemorative lecture was on the theme: "75 years of excellence in journalism: honouring the past, embracing the present and shaping the future," with the sub-theme "AI and the future of Journalism."
The event brought together the crème de la crème in the media industry, including past presidents of the GJA, policymakers, media managers and other stakeholders.
Some of the dignitaries at the commemorative lecture were the acting Dean of the School of Communication Studies at the Wisconsin International University College, Baaba Cofie; veteran journalists such as a former ace broadcaster at the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC), Godwin Avenorgbo, a former Editor, Graphic, Kobby Asmah and former GJA president Ransford Tetteh.
Also in attendance were the Executive Director of the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO), Commissioner of Police (COP) Maame Yaa Tiwaa Addo-Danquah, the Country Director of UNESCO, Edmond Moukala, and members of the diplomatic corps.
Ms Cofie said in building the AI infrastructure for newsrooms, the ecosystem needed to be cross-cutting and not focused on only journalists.
“You cannot just put journalists in the room and design your AI policy or plan around them. You need the journalists, editors, IT specialists, data scientists in the ecosystem, so it becomes a collaborative effort to make newsrooms AI efficient,” she said.
She also said before media organisations built AI infrastructure, they must develop and implement ethical guidelines to ensure that journalistic standards were not compromised.
“If you are going into AI without a clear ethical guideline, then you are in trouble because that is where you are going to use to tell whether AI is doing its job or not.
Ms Cofie said AI was comparable to a double-edged sword because it could be both a threat and an opportunity.
She added that although AI was a powerful collaborator for journalists with the ability to enhance their work, it had to be done carefully.
Ms Cofie said beyond the threats of job losses, there was the threat of misinformation because AI could be used for creating highly realistic fake news.
Again, she observed that the concentration of AI tools in a few technology companies, such as Google, Microsoft and Amazon, might cause a significant issue for the news industry because it risked shifting control to those technology companies.
The IT experts also said AI had the potential to create new jobs such as data analysts, data visualisation experts, designers of user experience, investigative journalism and other roles, including source verification, ethics and compliance within newsrooms.
“Future prospects of AI are great and newsrooms will have to begin to integrate it carefully into their systems. There is the need to provide training for people to build the tools to be abreast of AI,” Ms Cofie stressed.
For his part, Mr Ayiku said journalists should view AI as a tool that would enhance their work rather than diminishing their roles.
He said the advent of AI was an opportunity for journalists to focus more on investigative journalism and in-depth reporting using those digital tools and platforms.
“By leveraging AI in data analysis, journalists can uncover hidden truths and hold the powerful more accountable,” he said.
Mr Ayiku added that when journalists deployed AI as a fact-checking tool, they could maintain credibility and trust that journalism depended on.
The Minister of Information called on media organisations to commit more resources to investment in capacity-building for journalists and innovative AI tools in the newsrooms.
Ms Abubakar said while the adoption of AI was certain for the media, it was also important to balance innovation with responsible journalism.
She said the Ministry of Information would foster stronger partnership with media organisations to enhance effective delivery of balanced information.
"A free and responsible press is critical to national development so the ministry would continue its training programme for journalists, which has so far benefited 149 people," she said.
Mr Dwumfour paid glowing tribute to all former presidents of the GJA, as well as all persons who had contributed significantly to the sustenance of the association over the past 75 years.
"Let us use this 75th anniversary to settle our differences and work together for a better GJA and journalism that will drive the national development agenda," he said.
Mr Dwumfour added that the GJA would continue to reward outstanding journalists but would not hesitate to name and shame errant practitioners.
The IPR president described the theme for the 75th anniversary of the GJA as apt because it had celebrated the role played by the forebears and looked into the future.
Ms Cobbah said journalism would play a critical role in navigating the complexities of the future so it was important for journalists to imbibe progressive innovations to stay relevant.
"Journalistic ethics cannot be sacrificed because of technology. Journalists should use AI but must ensure that it is used to enhance their productivity," she said.
