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Are robot reporters the future of media + PR?

11.01.2022

AI and machine learning are impacting almost every industry, including the media. According to the NY Times, a third of Bloomberg News is produced by some form of automated technology – and it’s not the only one. Media outlets across the globe are turning to automation – Forbes, The Guardian Australia, Associated Press – to name a few. The Washington Post even designed its very own bot called ‘Heliograf’, producing 300 short reports and alerts on the Rio Olympics. 

But let’s not run in despair at the thought of automation taking over. The reality is, the media is more stretched than ever before. The 24/7 news agenda is demanding and these pressures are met with slimmed-down teams. Bots can provide the resource needed to give journalists space to focus on quality work that ignites their creativity and curiosity.

AI is also a great way to analyse stories. It can monitor how popular a news story is, and help journalists ensure facts and figures are accurate.

As AI and automation become more prevalent, PR strategies will need to adapt. In the same way we optimize for SEO, PRs will need to adjust content for newsroom AI algorithms. Quality content that is highly targetted and relevant will be critical to get in the hands of human reporters. This is a practice that has for a long time been a staple of PR and will be more important than ever before.

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