London, Feb 2 (IANS) A British think tank has raised concerns about the health of the artificial intelligence (AI) news environment, calling for the government’s engagement in fostering rules, including fair payment and transparent source disclosure for AI-generated news.
In a report released this week, the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) said that AI tools are rapidly becoming the primary gateway through which the public accesses news, fundamentally reshaping the news ecosystem.
However, according to the report, as major AI companies emerge as new “gatekeepers” on the internet, controlling how citizens access information and reshaping public thought, some official news outlets, such as BBC News, are insufficiently cited by leading AI tools, including ChatGPT and Google Gemini.
The think tank warned that “the disproportionate use of some outlets over others risks narrowing the range of perspectives users are exposed to, potentially amplifying particular viewpoints or agendas without users’ knowledge,” therefore, it outlined three key policy recommendations to establish a healthy AI news environment, reports Xinhua news agency.
First, it said governments should require AI companies to pay for the news they use, by requiring fair payment and collective licensing deals that ensure a wide range of publishers are included.
Second, it recommended that AI companies should introduce clear, standardised “nutrition labels” for AI news, so the public can see where AI answers come from and how they’re generated.
Third, it urged governments to use public funding to protect independent news in the AI era.
The report underscores that swift government action is essential to foster a healthy AI news environment before it is too late to prevent further damage to the news ecosystem.
–IANS
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