Hacker News with Generative AI: Journalism

Chicago Sun-Times Published an AI-Gen Summer Reading List Full of Fake Books (readtpa.com)
The Chicago Sun-Times just published a summer reading list with one major problem: most of the books don't exist.
Artificial Intelligence, News, Journalism, Books, Summer Reading
3 points by rmason 16 hours ago | 1 comments
The Future of Newspapers Is Lies, I Guess (aphyr.com)
I subscribe to the Chicago Sun-Times, a non-profit newspaper. This week they sent me a sixty-four page special insert, branded with the Chicago Sun-Times logo, full of LLM nonsense.
Newspapers, Artificial Intelligence, Journalism, Generative AI
11 points by todsacerdoti 2 days ago | 1 comments
At Least Two Newspapers Syndicated AI Garbage (theatlantic.com)
At first glance, “Heat Index” appears as inoffensive as newspaper features get. A “summer guide” sprawling across more than 50 pages, the feature, which was syndicated over the past week in both the Chicago Sun-Times and The Philadelphia Inquirer, contains “303 Must-Dos, Must-Tastes, and Must-Tries” for the sweaty months ahead.
Artificial Intelligence, Journalism, Media, Syndication
9 points by fortran77 2 days ago | 0 comments
Chicago Sun-Times confirms AI used to create reading list of nonexistent books (theguardian.com)
Illinois’ prominent Chicago Sun-Times newspaper has confirmed that a summer reading list, which included several recommendations for books that don’t exist, was created using artificial intelligence by a freelancer who worked with one of their content partners.
Artificial Intelligence, Journalism, Media, Errors, Books
7 points by phony-account 2 days ago | 0 comments
At Least Two Newspapers Syndicated AI Garbage (theatlantic.com)
At first glance, “Heat Index” appears as inoffensive as newspaper features get. A “summer guide” sprawling across more than 50 pages, the feature, which was syndicated over the past week in both the Chicago Sun-Times and The Philadelphia Inquirer, contains “303 Must-Dos, Must-Tastes, and Must-Tries” for the sweaty months ahead.
Artificial Intelligence, Journalism, Syndication, Media
7 points by JumpCrisscross 2 days ago | 1 comments
The Onion's Ben Collins Knows How to Save Media (vanityfair.com)
The NBC News reporter turned CEO sits down for a long talk about his “weird and awkward” last year at the network; his girlfriend, congressional hopeful Kat Abughazaleh; and how he turned The Onion around: “Write a bunch of unprintable headlines.”
Media, Journalism, Humor, Leadership, The Onion
16 points by coloneltcb 3 days ago | 2 comments
Nonprofit news media leaders are struggling to stop leaning on foundations (theconversation.com)
You’ve probably heard the adage about not putting all your eggs in one basket.
Nonprofit Media, Journalism, Funding, Philanthropy
4 points by rntn 3 days ago | 0 comments
Chicago Sun-Times publishes made-up books and fake experts in AI debacle (theverge.com)
The May 18th issue of the Chicago Sun-Times features dozens of pages of recommended summer activities: new trends, outdoor activities, and books to read. But some of the recommendations point to fake, AI-generated books, and other articles quote and cite people that don’t appear to exist.
Artificial Intelligence, Journalism, Media, Fake News
9 points by 01-_- 3 days ago | 2 comments
Newspapers Are Recommending AI-Hallucinated Novels (countercraft.substack.com)
Over the weekend, the Chicago Sun-Times—a storied and award-winning newspaper and longtime home of Roger Ebert—published a summer reading list. Almost all the books were fake.
Artificial Intelligence, Media, Books, Journalism
12 points by greenie_beans 3 days ago | 2 comments
How does The Guardian track us? (reddit.com)
Dedicated to the intersection of technology, privacy, and freedom in the digital world.
Privacy, Technology, Journalism, Data Tracking
3 points by bundie 3 days ago | 0 comments
Chicago Sun Times used AI for its (fake) summer reading list (reddit.com)
Artificial Intelligence, Journalism, Media, Chicago, Fake News
8 points by tahoupt 3 days ago | 0 comments
DDoSecrets publishes 410 GB of heap dumps, hacked from TeleMessage (micahflee.com)
This morning, Distributed Denial of Secrets published 410 GB of data hacked from TeleMessage, the Israeli firm that makes modified versions of Signal, WhatsApp, Telegram, and WeChat that centrally archive messages. Because the data is sensitive and full of PII, DDoSecrets is only sharing it with journalists and researchers.
Data Leaks, Cybersecurity, Privacy, Journalism, Israel
663 points by micahflee 3 days ago | 185 comments
The Khashoggi Compromise (status.news)
Earlier this week, Amazon announced a $5 billion “strategic partnership” with Humain, a Saudi artificial intelligence initiative backed by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
Artificial Intelligence, Saudi Arabia, Technology, Politics, Journalism
10 points by archagon 6 days ago | 1 comments
Bill that would require big tech to pay OR newsrooms advances despite opposition (oregonlive.com)
An Oregon bill that would require big tech companies including Google and Meta to pay money to local newsrooms and journalists is steadily advancing despite protests from tech industry groups.
News Media, Journalism, Technology, Politics, Legislation
3 points by docdeek 7 days ago | 1 comments
The Journal of Imaginary Research (home.blog)
Research, Creative Writing, Journalism
34 points by cenazoic 7 days ago | 2 comments
Copaganda: How Police and the Media Manipulate Our News (teenvogue.com)
Alec Karakatsanis's new book Copaganda: How Police and the Media Manipulate Our News criticizes how the media covers — and enables — policing.
Media, Journalism, Policing, Crime, Social Justice
184 points by pavel_lishin 9 days ago | 64 comments
How Bail Bonds Work (finbarr.site)
In late 2015 I spent about a month full time deeply exploring the bail bonds industry in the United States. Why? Because I saw a sign that said “Bail Bonds” and fell down a super interesting rabbit hole. I was joined on this journey by two friends, Nick Raushenbush and Tristan Zier.
Bail Bonds, Legal System, Finance, Journalism
31 points by Finbarr 13 days ago | 8 comments
The Terror of War - An Associated Press Visual Analysis (apnews.com)
The Associated Press is an independent global news organization dedicated to factual reporting.
Visualizations, News, War, Journalism
6 points by maurits 16 days ago | 0 comments
'Bizarro World' (2007) (boston.com)
Boston Globe correspondent Billy Baker discovers his wife is really, really good at Tetris.
Entertainment, Boston Globe, Journalism
65 points by Timothee 19 days ago | 9 comments
Why do econ journalists keep making this basic mistake? (noahpinion.blog)
Economics journalists, like any writers, aren’t perfect. Perhaps in a previous age, people thought that everything they read in the news was exactly true; perhaps some still do. But reporting is a human activity, and humans make mistakes. In order to get the true story, you have to read multiple sources, and be skeptical of what you read — and even then, mistakes will slip through.
Journalism, Economics, Media
34 points by paulpauper 20 days ago | 11 comments
“An independent journalist” who won't remain nameless (thehandbasket.co)
For the past 3+ months I’ve tried to keep my head down and do the work. I often remind myself that my problems are wholly insignificant compared to those of the people I speak to and write about, and complaining is a bad look. But even the most hard-nosed journalist has her breaking point, and last night I found mine.
Journalism, Ethics, Privacy, Media
259 points by mooreds 20 days ago | 104 comments
Threat of tech bros, foreign interference & disinformation to press freedom (theconversation.com)
Media freedom has long been essential to healthy democracy. It is the oxygen that fuels informed debate, exposes corruption and holds power to account. But around the world, that freedom is under sustained attack.
Media Freedom, Democracy, Censorship, Journalism, Foreign Interference
13 points by billybuckwheat 21 days ago | 1 comments
The Group Chat from Hell Has Been Exposed (thenation.com)
Marc Andreessen, Tucker Carlson, and a Winklevoss walk into a bar… and the rest of us run out of it screaming.
Social Media, Privacy, Technology, Journalism
43 points by johnshades 23 days ago | 7 comments
Body of Ukrainian journalist who died in Russian detention returned mutilated (cnn.com)
War Crimes, Ukraine, Russia, Journalism, Death
24 points by fodmap 23 days ago | 29 comments
Bill Owens, executive producer of 60 Minutes, resigns (cbsnews.com)
In tonight’s Last Minute, a note on Bill Owens who, until this past week, was executive producer of 60 Minutes.
Media, Journalism, News, Television
10 points by colinprince 25 days ago | 2 comments
DMCA Notices Can Silence Critics but Complaints by the Public Put All at Risk (torrentfreak.com)
What began this week as research into an abuse of the DMCA to silence this publication, led to an unsettling world where bogus copyright complaints are just the tip of the iceberg.
Copyright Law, Censorship, Online Safety, Journalism
59 points by hn_acker 26 days ago | 3 comments
Finding Things the Government Might Know About You (nytimes.com)
Two reporters spent over a month compiling and analyzing information about the reams of data the U.S. government collects about Americans.
Privacy, Government Surveillance, Data Collection, Journalism
58 points by anticorporate 28 days ago | 15 comments
'Vaguely Threatening': Federal Prosecutor Queries Leading Medical Journal (nytimes.com)
A federal prosecutor in Washington has contacted The New England Journal of Medicine, considered the world’s most prestigious medical journal, with questions that suggested without evidence that it was biased against certain views and influenced by external pressures.
Journalism, Medicine, Law, Politics
8 points by nxobject 28 days ago | 0 comments
Judge blocks Trump administration plans to dismantle Voice of America (npr.org)
A federal judge has blocked the Trump administration from dismantling Voice of America, the government funded broadcaster, at least temporarily.
Politics, Journalism, Law, Government, Media
11 points by austinallegro 30 days ago | 0 comments
The Tent Company Profiting from Trump's Deportation Plans (propublica.org)
In June 2005, a former employee from the Federal Emergency Management Agency toured the grounds of the Bonnaroo music festival in rural Tennessee.
Politics, Immigration, Business, Journalism
13 points by noleary 30 days ago | 0 comments