Unethical Use of AI in News: A Case Study of Plagiarism and Misinformation

In a bizarre turn of events, a sketchy website has been caught plagiarizing an AI ethics guide released by Poynter. The article, published on Tech Gate by a questionable figure named Bourbiza Mohamed, closely mimicked Poynter’s original piece but with strange word choices and peculiar sentence structures.

The Tech Gate article, which appeared just four hours after Poynter’s release, even used Poynter’s art and logo, leading to suspicions that it was likely generated by artificial intelligence. This incident sheds light on the growing issue of unethical use of AI in content creation, as the site in question seems to be stealing content for easy advertising revenue.

Tech Gate, described as a “pink slime news site,” is known for its poor-quality reporting and AI-generated articles. This raises concerns about the devaluation of original content in the face of widespread plagiarism facilitated by AI technology.

The case underscores the challenges faced by news outlets in competing with unethical sources in the age of generative AI. It also raises questions about how to protect intellectual property in an increasingly digital landscape.

As AI continues to shape the future of online content creation, it is crucial for newsrooms to stay vigilant and explore ways to leverage AI ethically. Poynter’s AI ethics guide serves as a valuable resource in navigating these challenges and safeguarding against the rise of AI-generated content.