Here's How Kansas City Star Slowly Transitions Into AI Slop

The fate of the Kansas City Star was once a controversial point of contention amongst local denizens of the discourse, politicos and avid news watchers . . . Now the topic inspires far less discord as dead-tree media no longer sets the local agenda.

Accordingly . . . 

Credit to veteran newsman Dan Margolies for taking his former employer to task over their tech decisions. 

The Star has made a series of bad decisions in their long journey down the toilet bowl of history but this might be one of their worst yet — prioritizing content mill strategy over real life reporters and community outreach.

The artificial sameness of their content doesn't give subscribers much incentive to pick the paper over other sources and, even worse, NEXTGEN reader understand the desperate tactic more than anyone else and feel disconnected from the not-so-local news outlet. 

In our experience . . . All of our bests posts have come by way of talking with REAL PEOPLE that often challenge algorithm and trends.

Automation has its charms and there are many AI tools that can help real world newsies . . . For instance, TKC didn't hand draw that lead image which still makes me giggle a bit. However, Mr. Maroglies deserves credit for calling his old school bosses to task in picking machine-manufactured-gristle over more substantial news gathering strategies.  

Here's the word . . . 

"Just days after McClatchy laid off half a dozen Kansas City Star reporters who covered local news, it announced that it had hired three editors for its new AI-powered “Content Innovation Lab.”

"An AI-detection company estimated that as many as 12% of the articles in The Star between June and August were AI-generated."

Read more via www.TonysKansasCity.com link . . .

Notes from KC: Even As It Lays Off Reporters At The Star, McClatchy Is Hiring For Its AI-Powered Lab 

Developing . . .