SPH Media looks to plug into AI channels without losing its place in the news
Cartoon · AI-generated
The publisher is partnering with Google and using AI-assisted translation to reach new audiences, while warning that AI could make news organisations less visible to readers.
SPH Media is seeking to secure a place in the channels through which people increasingly find news, rather than trying to resist the spread of artificial intelligence, executive chairman Chan Yeng Kit has said. His concern is that publishers could lose their role between reporting and audiences if AI services become a primary route to information.
The risk is part of a wider shift in the relationship between news organisations and technology platforms. The Tow Center for Digital Journalism has traced how publishers have previously relied on search and social media to reach readers, only to find that changes in platform priorities could weaken their control over distribution and revenue. AI services that summarise journalism may intensify that pressure if people receive information without visiting or recognising the publishers that produced it.
SPH Media’s response includes working with technology companies. The organisation’s partnership with Google is intended to improve the reach of its journalism through Google’s channels and strengthen newsroom capabilities in areas including generative AI verification and AI-enabled workflows. The companies have also identified talent development and audience engagement as areas of cooperation. These are stated aims of the partnership; their practical impact on publisher control and sustainable revenue remains uncertain.
One early application of AI is helping SPH Media make its reporting available to readers who do not speak the original language. Lianhe Zaobao has launched an English-language website using AI-assisted translation alongside human proofreading and editing. The publication says the initiative is designed to bring its reporting and analysis to younger readers and people from other language communities, while preserving its Chinese-language edition. Malay and Tamil-language offerings are expected to be considered progressively as the operation develops.
Chan has argued that technology can help extend the audience for existing journalism, but that reporting still depends on people’s ability to build trust, draw out personal accounts and make editorial decisions. The Associated Press similarly says AI may assist newsroom work but does not replace journalists’ responsibility for gathering and assessing facts. Its standards require staff to verify AI-generated material and remain accountable for published work; ProPublica also says AI-assisted journalism must receive human review and meet the newsroom’s usual editorial standards.
The tools and their effects are still developing, leaving publishers to balance access to new distribution systems against the risk of becoming less visible to audiences. SPH Media has presented its approach as one of adaptation, alongside investment in a range of products and the fundamentals of journalism. Chan has also pointed to staff commitment to the organisation’s public purpose as a source of confidence in its future.
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Source: Noah Wire Services · Original