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02 | theJournalist Main feature


14 The rapid rise of the fake expert Major titles quote AI phantoms


W News


e all know that quotes are a vital component of journalism – they are essential for getting all sides of the story,


speaking to a witness of an event, adding an expert’s opinion. But what happens if the generators of those quotes don’t actually exist?


In our cover feature, Stephanie Power talks to a journalist whose suspicions about one person he was emailing led him to discover a whole host of ‘experts’ who could only be reached online – never on a phone – because they were in fact AI creations. One interaction that journalist Martin Shipton had which was most definitely real and not AI was when police smashed down his front door in the early hours of the morning with a search warrant. He describes his experiences on Page 6. In our regular features, Ruth Addicott speaks to journalists


who covered the aftermath of the Magdalene laundries scandals in Ireland, and Ray Snoddy looks at whether the Government’s initiative to boost local news is likely to bear fruit. We are also on the move – Jeff Farrell looks back on reporting in


Venezuela and Eugene Costello reports on press trips and their possible tax implications. I hope you enjoy the latest edition of your magazine.


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Cover Howard McWilliam


03 One in 10 BBC jobs to be cut


Fears over quality and workloads


04 Government boost for local news Initiative follows NUJ campaign


05 Women journalists suffer daily attacks


Online abuse must not be ‘normalised’


Features


10 When taxes outstrip earnings HMRC targeting travel writers


12 Drugs, guns and guerillas A correspondent’s life in Venezuela


16 An AI battle is won … but not the war Tech firms won’t get freebies


22 How to get that novel published Lowdown on agents … and getting paid


Regulars


20 On our patch 26 Obituaries


On media


It’s good news for a change


Page 09


The women who defied a huge US corporation


Page 24 Arts


And finally...


We love fear and loathing Page 27


Access all the latest NUJ news and views by scanning the QR code here or by visiting www.nuj.org.uk


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