CHEYENNE, Wyoming: A reporter from a Wyoming publication confessed to using generative artificial intelligence to manufacture quotes of the Governor and the prosecutor and sometimes even vast parts of stories without the publisher’s knowledge.
Powell Tribune reporter CJ Baker realized something was off when he read quotes from Wyoming’s governor and a local prosecutor in a report. Reading further, he found that some phrases in the stories were nearly as robotic.
The dead giveaway came in a June 26 article about the comedian Larry the Cable Guy being chosen as the grand marshal of a local parade. It concludes by explaining the inverted pyramid, which is the basic approach to writing a breaking news story.
“The 2024 Cody Stampede Parade promises to be an unforgettable celebration of American independence, led by one of comedy’s most beloved figures,” The Associated Press said, quoting the Cody Enterprise. “This structure ensures that the most critical information is presented first, making it easier for readers to grasp the main points quickly.”
Baker, who has been a reporter for over 15 years, met with Aaron Pelczar, a 40-year-old new to journalism. He admitted to using AI in his stories before he resigned from the Enterprise.
The publisher and editor at the Enterprise, which was co-founded in 1899 by Buffalo Bill Cody, have since apologized and vowed to take steps to ensure it never happens again. In an editorial published Monday, Enterprise Editor Chris Bacon said he “failed to catch” the AI copy and false quotes and apologized that “AI was allowed to put words that were never spoken into stories.”
Journalists have derailed their careers by making up quotes or facts in stories long before AI emerged. But this latest scandal illustrates AI’s potential pitfalls and dangers to many industries, including journalism, as chatbots can spit out spurious if somewhat plausible, articles with only a few prompts.
AI has found a role in journalism, including in the automation of certain tasks. Some newsrooms, including The Associated Press, use AI to free up reporters for more impactful work, but most AP staff are not allowed to use generative AI to create publishable content.
In his Powell Tribune story breaking the news about Pelczar’s use of AI in articles, Baker wrote that he had an uncomfortable but cordial meeting with Pelczar and Bacon. During the meeting, Pelczar said, “Obviously I have never intentionally tried to misquote anybody” and promised to “correct them and issue apologies and say they are misstatements,” Baker wrote, noting that Pelczar insisted his mistakes should not reflect on his Cody Enterprise editors.
After the meeting, Bacon said that the Enterprise had discovered seven stories that included AI-generated quotes from six people. He is still reviewing other stories.
“They are very believable quotes,” Bacon said, noting that the people he spoke to during his review of Pelczar’s articles said the quotes sounded like something they would say but that they had never actually talked to Pelczar.
Baker reported that seven people told him that they had been quoted in Pelczar stories but had not spoken to him.
Another story – about a poaching sentencing – included quotes from a wildlife official and a prosecutor that sounded like they came from a news release, Baker said. However, there wasn’t a news release and the agencies involved didn’t know where the quotes had come from, he said.
Two of the questioned stories included fake quotes from Wyoming Gov. Mark Gordon that his staff only learned about when Baker called them. One quote was entirely fabricated and another was partially fabricated, said Michael Pearlman, a spokesperson for the governor.
Bacon, a military veteran and former air ambulance pilot who was named editor in May after a few months working as a reporter, plans to have a policy in place by the end of the week.
“This will be a pre-employment topic of discussion,” he said.
