Third of Observer staff to take redundancy | IPSO raps Sun over intrusion
Plus BBC research finds AI news responses routinely make mistakes and the "world's most wholesome men's magazine" goes digital-only
Good morning and welcome to your daily Press Gazette media briefing on Wednesday 12 February.
If you like your news right then you'd be wrong to look for it using generative AI.
The BBC has published its own research analysing news responses provided by Microsoft Copilot, OpenAI's ChatGPT, Google’s Gemini and Perplexity.
It found that in most cases responses were at least partly wrong, with some AI answers including huge blunders around health advice and recent criminal cases.
The danger of all this isn't just that it adds to the rising swamp of online misinformation. Generative AI also clearly presents major reputational dangers for newsbrands who are cited as the source of inaccurate summaries.
Check out Press Gazette's advice here on how to protect your news website from AI scrapers.
We also report on a dreadful blunder from The Sun, which sent a reporter to visit the parents of a British aid worker killed in Gaza before they had been told of their son's death.
So-called 'death knocks' are an essential part of journalism that no one with a heart will enjoy doing. I think it’s better to write about those who have died in newsworthy circumstances with the cooperation of the family to ensure the facts are right.
But timing is everything and on this occasion, The Sun got it badly wrong.
With The Observer set to transfer across to new owners Tortoise Media, Press Gazette understands around one third of staff have taken voluntary redundancy.
Observer owners Guardian Media Group re-opened a previous redundancy scheme and the fact that so many have chosen to head for the exit underlines the uncertainty many still feel about their new owner. But taking a glass-is-half-full approach, 46 staffers appear to have decided to take the plunge with the final transfer of ownership set to happen next month.
The new Observer has investment of £25m and (along with existing Tortoise Media staff) will have a headcount of 100-plus staff. Its long-term survival will depend on finding enough paying readers for its new standalone digital presence to outpace print decline.
On Press Gazette
Observer front page for 13 October 2024
Around one third of Observer journalists ‘taking redundancy’ ahead of Tortoise transfer
Press Gazette understands from one well-placed source that redundancy payouts from Guardian Media Group were capped at £120,000 plus notice period.
Most generative AI responses based on news content contain inaccuracies
The BBC said Google’s Gemini raised the most concerns on accuracy, with 46% of responses flagged as having significant issues. Perplexity’s response had the most issues overall (more than 80%).
Sun reporter visited parents of aid worker killed in Gaza before they knew of his death
Press regulator IPSO criticised the fact that the journalist entered the property of the couple even after he discovered they were not yet aware of what had happened.
‘World’s most wholesome men’s magazine’ goes digital-only
Steve Legg launched Sorted magazine in 2007 and remained its editor until last year. He died in September from cancer aged 57.
News in brief
Nordic news publisher Schibsted Media has signed a deal with OpenAI allowing the tech giant to integrate real-time news articles from some of its newsbrands into products like ChatGPT. (Press Gazette)
Editorial staff at PS, formerly known as Popsugar, have won voluntary recognition from Vox Media management meaning their 20-person unit will join the 300-member Vox Media Union and be covered by its collective bargaining agreement once negotiations are done. (The Wrap)
Social video publisher Now This more than doubled revenues in 2024 to $20m and was profitable for the first time as an independent company. It was spun out from Vox Media in 2023. (Adweek)
BBC Today presenter Nick Robinson's X account has been hacked in a cryptocurrency scam. (The Independent)
Longtime BBC Panorama journalist John Ware has sued Al Jazeera and Pink Floyd singer Roger Waters for libel after he called Ware a "pro-Zionist, pro-genocider" in a broadcast. Ware had made a documentary for Campaign Against Antisemitism called The Dark Side of Roger Waters. (Jewish News)
Buzzfeed is creating a social platform "to spread joy". Chief executive Jonah Peretti said it will "use AI to give users agency instead of stealing their agency... I am very excited, after years of being beholden to other platforms, to take the big step of making our own”. (Buzzfeed)
The Associated Press says the White House blocked it from covering an official event because it did not refer to the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America. (NPR)
The best of Press Gazette this week:
DeepSeek launch underlines value of news content to AI companies
Top 50 news websites in the world: India.com reports fastest year-on-year growth
Top 50 news websites in the US: Trump and wildfires spur traffic increases
Garth Pearce: Showbiz writer who lived like a celebrity without having to be one
Reach reporters warned over unauthorised linking to commercial sites
London Economic editor steps down citing ‘punishing algorithms and scarce resources’
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