I have so many questions about the “appropriate” need for disclosure in journalism when using AI for producing said journalism:

• When a writer uses Google to do research, does it require disclosure that Google was used for research?

• When a writer uses Grammarly to edit, does it require disclosure that Grammarly was used for editing?

• When a writer uses Otter for transcribing, does it require disclosure that Otter was used for transcribing?

Journalists have used tech tools to perform their work with heft, and AI is no different of a tech tool. Sure, it is tempting for many writers to let the AI do their work entirely and without safeguards. But that’s not a tool problem; that’s a human problem; that’s an ethics problem.

And if that’s an ethics problem, I question whether it’s a matter of ethics for the institution of journalism, the people who practice it, or the audiences that consume it. Do consumers even care? Does disclosure make a difference in aggregate to the information ecosystem?