CNET is Quietly Publishing Entire Articles Generated by AI
upstart writes:
"This article was generated using automation technology," reads a dropdown description:
Next time you're on your favorite news site, you might want to double check the byline to see if it was written by an actual human.
CNET, a massively popular tech news outlet, has been quietly employing the help of "automation technology" - a stylistic euphemism for AI - on a new wave of financial explainer articles, seemingly starting around November of last year.
[...] The articles are published under the unassuming appellation of "CNET Money Staff," and encompass topics like "Should You Break an Early CD for a Better Rate?" or "What is Zelle and How Does It Work?"
That byline obviously does not paint the full picture, and so your average reader visiting the site likely would have no idea that what they're reading is AI-generated. It's only when you click on "CNET Money Staff," that the actual "authorship" is revealed.
"This article was generated using automation technology," reads a dropdown description, "and thoroughly edited and fact-checked by an editor on our editorial staff."
Since the program began, CNET has put out around 73 AI-generated articles. That's not a whole lot for a site that big, and absent an official announcement of the program, it appears leadership is trying to keep the experiment as lowkey as possible. CNET did not respond to questions about the AI-generated articles.
[...] Nonetheless, AP's justification for using AI - and a talking point being adopted across the industry - is that it frees up journalists and other staff from having to write tedious recaps. In reality, it's hard to believe that the technology would forever be limited to a cure to tedium and never intrude on "real" writing jobs.
Now, looking at the entire explainers that CNET has generated using AI, it looks like that goalpost has already shifted - and may never return.
Read more of this story at SoylentNews.