Ever since Francesco Marconi, the CEO of AppliedXL and Author of 'Newsmakers: Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Journalism,' made a LinkedIn post asking, "Will you trust predictive journalism?" I have been discussing this topic with him and I have been doing some research on what the advancements in AI means for predictive journalism. My discussions led Francesco to introduce me to Paul Quigley, the CEO of NewsWhip. And so, on the latest episode of Newsroom Robots Podcast, we have Paul talk about his company's role in predictive journalism.
We discussed how NewsWhip has been helping newsrooms in identifying trending stories and predicting viral news through real-time social media monitoring and analytics. NewsWhip, an innovative technology product, is utilized by PR professionals and journalists in over 80 countries, with leading newsrooms such as the Associated Press, Reuters, and the BBC among its users.
It's also been used by the WHO and numerous fact-checking organizations to counter political disinformation.
Here are the three main topics I discussed with Paul:
1️⃣ NewsWhip recently announced a partnership with LinkedIn. The partnership grants real-time insights into content engagement across all 67 million LinkedIn Company Pages.
What does it mean for newsrooms to access real-time data on a platform that has surpassed 1 billion users and plays an increasingly significant role in professional social networking?
2️⃣ NewsWhip is currently experimenting with large language models to send out AI-generated alerts and digests about prediction data.
This shows the potential of AI-generated content to assist journalists in quickly and efficiently consuming and comprehending news events.
3️⃣ The business model of the news industry still relies on a user visiting the website, clicking on an article, and being shown an ad while reading it.
But what happens when, through generative AI search, users no longer need to visit the article because a quick snippet from Google Bard or Microsoft Bing about the news suffices?
What does the possible disruption from generative AI to the news media industry's business model look like?
The answers to all these questions are not easy to figure out, but I'll continue researching and will keep you updated on my findings. In the meantime, listen to the episode on your favorite platform, and let's keep the conversation going.
Also, I have an exciting announcement to share.
Newsroom Robots has collaborated with Jeremy Caplan's WonderTools to introduce the 'Generative AI for Media Professionals Masterclass.' This course is designed to empower journalists and media professionals with practical tools and knowledge to integrate generative AI into their work, enhancing their operational effectiveness and advancing their careers.
Jeremy is the Director of Teaching and Learning at the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism at the City University of New York. I will co-teach the course with him in December, drawing on the experience from Generative AI workshops I've led at respected institutions, including the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism at the City University of New York, the International Center for Journalists, and the University of Toronto.
Sign up now to be among the first to know when course registration opens.
Paul Quigley: How NewsWhip Uses AI To Predict Viral Stories