Can readers tell when a local news site isn't real?
[Short answer to go here — four sentences, no jargon.]
Local News in the Crosshairs: Audience Perceptions of Algorithmic News Sites
Abstract
Amid years of declines in American local news media, recent advances in artificial intelligence have brought about a host of algorithmic news sites purporting to cover local issues. Can audiences distinguish between these algorithmic sites and real local news outlets? And can a digital literacy intervention improve discernment? We report results from a pair of survey experiments and a complementary content analysis in which participants are shown live websites from matched pairs of journalistic and algorithmically generated real-world news outlets. Participants randomly assigned to receive a digital media literacy intervention paid more attention to valuable source cues, such as bylines and "About Us" pages. However, the intervention had little effect on site evaluations or preference, as participants continued to base their choices on heuristics like layout and perceived bias. Algorithmic sites, not facing the need to pay human staff, can forego intrusive advertising and bundling of hard and soft news, boosting their perceived credibility. As generative AI lowers the cost of producing increasingly sophisticated imitation news sites, these results raise urgent concerns about democratic accountability and journalism's place in the digital environment.
Local NewsArtificial IntelligenceMedia LiteracyMedia TrustSurvey Experiment