ChatGPT, an AI-powered chatbot built by American research laboratory OpenAI, has recently taken the internet by storm with its ability to provide conversational, human-like answers to almost any question in seconds.
With its monthly active users expected to have surpassed 100 million in January, ChatGPT is seen by many as a game changer that would redefine the way people learn and work. And journalists are no exception.
How can ChatGPT provide support to journalists? We asked this question to none other than the chatbot itself and immediately got the answer, which is presented in italics below:
1. Fact-Checking
“Journalists can use ChatGPT to quickly verify information and ensure the accuracy of their reporting.”
ChatGPT has been trained on a vast amount of text data from the internet that goes until 2021. Hence, it can find information on what had happened up to that year.
It can, for instance, easily let us know about the UK’s first confirmed case of Covid-19, which was reported in January 2020. Nevertheless, when asked who the current UK prime minister is, it answered: “As of my knowledge cut-off in 2021, the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom was Boris Johnson.”
Nevertheless, it must be noted that ChatGPT is not as reliable as it suggests in terms of fact-checking. It may be able to answer with what seems to be the facts, but journalists must verify the chatbot’s answers again, and again.
2. Research Assistance
“ChatGPT can help journalists gather information on a variety of topics, allowing them to save time and focus on the writing and reporting process.”
Forbes has described ChatGPT as “an on-demand version of Wikipedia that creates all content on the fly”. The chatbot indeed makes it easier for journalists to do their research before reporting and writing on something, but as OpenAi explains on its website, “ChatGPT sometimes writes plausible-sounding but incorrect or nonsensical answers”. Hence, it’s best to verify every information from multiple sources before using it.
3. Content Generation
“ChatGPT can be used to generate ideas for articles, headlines, or story angles, or even to generate summaries or highlights from long-form content.”
This can be useful and save hours of time, but journalists must be aware that the chatbot’s answers lie on data from the internet written by humans, meaning that it lacks originality and personalisation.
4. Translation
“ChatGPT can translate text from one language to another, making it easier for journalists to report on global events.”
ChatGPT offers a rough translation that is often laughable. But it can give you the general sense of what’s going on in a foreign text.
5. Data Analysis
“ChatGPT can help journalists analyse large datasets and uncover trends and insights that might be relevant to their reporting.”
With a massive amount of data now generated every day, journalists must be able to make sense of and turn the data deluge into impactful stories, which could empower the people to make better decisions about their lives and hold those in power to account. ChatGPT can come in handy when journalists want to find hidden trends in large datasets, as long as they can ask the right questions with the right phrasing to the chatbot.
6. News Summarisation
“ChatGPT can summarise long articles and news stories into brief, easy-to-understand summaries, which can help journalists keep up with the latest developments in their field.”
As journalists often have to deliver stories on a tight deadline, ChatGPT can help sum up long pieces of text, including government reports and journal articles, and provide only the most important points.
Conclusion
Listen to what the chatbot says about it being used to support journalists’ work:
“Overall, while ChatGPT can be a valuable tool for journalists, it’s important to use it with caution and to verify information from multiple sources. By being aware of the potential dangers and using critical thinking, journalists can effectively use ChatGPT to support their work.”