Wyoming journalist caught utilizing artificial intelligence to fabricate quotes and articles

HELENA, Mont. — Wyoming’s governor and a local prosecutor raised red flags for Powell Tribune reporter CJ Baker. Subsequently, certain expressions in the articles came across as almost mechanical.

The giveaway that a journalist from a competing news source was utilizing generative artificial intelligence to aid in writing his articles emerged in a June 26 piece about comedian Larry the Cable Guy being selected as the grand marshal of the Cody Stampede Parade.

“The 2024 Cody Stampede Parade ensures an unforgettable celebration of American independence, led by one of comedy’s most cherished personalities,” the Cody Enterprise stated. “This format guarantees that the most crucial details are presented first, enabling readers to quickly grasp the main points.”

Following an investigation, Baker, a veteran reporter of over 15 years, met with Aaron Pelczar, a 40-year-old newcomer to journalism, who confessed to using AI in his articles before resigning from the Enterprise.

The co-founders of the Enterprise, established in 1899 by Buffalo Bill Cody, have since issued apologies and pledged to prevent a recurrence. In an editorial published on Monday, Enterprise Editor Chris Bacon acknowledged that he “failed to catch” the AI-generated content and fabricated quotes.

“It doesn’t matter that the false quotes were the apparent slip-up of a rushed novice reporter who relied on AI. It was my responsibility,” Bacon wrote. He expressed regret that “AI was permitted to insert words that were never uttered into stories.”

Reporters have ruined their careers by fabricating quotes or facts in articles long before the emergence of AI. However, this recent scandal highlights the possible risks and threats that AI presents to various industries, including journalism, as chatbots can produce false yet somewhat believable articles with minimal prompts.

AI has carved out a niche in journalism, particularly in the automation of specific tasks. While some newsrooms, such as The Associated Press, utilize AI to streamline workflows, most AP staff are forbidden from using generative AI to craft publishable content.

The AP has been leveraging technology to aid in articles about financial earnings reports since 2014, and more recently for certain sports stories. Additionally, they are experimenting with an AI tool to translate some stories from English to Spanish. Each such story concludes with a disclosure explaining the role of technology in its creation.

Transparency regarding the use of AI in journalism is crucial. Sports Illustrated faced criticism last year for publishing AI-generated product reviews online under the guise of being authored by non-existent reporters. Following the revelation, SI announced the termination of the company responsible for producing the website’s articles, tarnishing the once-prestigious publication’s reputation.

In his Powell Tribune article exposing Pelczar’s use of AI in articles, Baker mentioned an awkward yet civil meeting with Pelczar and Bacon. During the meeting, Pelczar asserted, “I never intentionally attempted to misquote anyone” and committed to rectifying the errors and issuing apologies, distancing them as misstatements, Baker detailed, noting Pelczar’s insistence that his errors should not reflect poorly on his Cody Enterprise editors.

Subsequently, the Enterprise initiated a comprehensive review of all the articles penned by Pelczar during his two-month tenure at the paper. Bacon revealed that they identified seven articles containing AI-generated quotes from six individuals, with ongoing scrutiny of other articles.

“The quotes are highly convincing,” Bacon remarked, noting that individuals interviewed during the review of Pelczar’s articles acknowledged that the quotes sounded authentic to them, even though they had never actually conversed with Pelczar.

Baker reported that seven individuals confirmed being quoted in Pelczar’s articles without ever speaking to him.

Pelczar did not respond to an AP phone message left at a number listed as his requesting a discussion about the incident. Bacon stated that Pelczar declined to address the matter with another Wyoming newspaper that had reached out.

Baker, an avid reader of the Enterprise due to its competitive nature, informed the AP that a combination of phrases and quotes in Pelczar’s articles aroused his suspicions.

Pelczar’s article about a shooting in Yellowstone National Park featured the line: “This incident serves as a stark reminder of the unpredictable nature of human behavior, even in the most serene settings.”

Baker noted that the sentence resembled the summaries of his articles that a specific chatbot seems to generate, appending a “life lesson” of sorts at the conclusion.

Another article concerning a poaching sentencing included quotes from a wildlife official and a prosecutor that seemed to originate from a news release, according to Baker. However, no news release was issued, and the involved agencies were unaware of the source of the quotes.

Two of the scrutinized articles contained fabricated quotes from Wyoming Gov. Mark Gordon, which his staff only became aware of upon being contacted by Baker.

“In one instance, (Pelczar) wrote an article about a new OSHA regulation that featured a completely fabricated quote from the Governor,” Michael Pearlman, a spokesperson for the governor, explained in an email. “In a separate instance, he seemed to fabricate a segment of a quote, merging it with a portion of a quote from a news release announcing the new director of our Wyoming Game and Fish Department.”

The most evident AI-generated content was observed in the article about Larry the Cable Guy, which concluded with an explanation of the inverted pyramid, the fundamental method for composing a breaking news story.

Generating AI stories is not a complex task. Users can input a criminal affidavit into an AI program and request an article about the case featuring quotes from local officials, stated Alex Mahadevan, director of a digital media literacy project at the Poynter Institute, a leading journalism think tank.

“These generative AI chatbots are programmed to provide a response, regardless of whether that response is utter nonsense or not,” Mahadevan remarked.

Megan Barton, the publisher of the Cody Enterprise, penned an editorial denouncing AI as “the new, advanced form of plagiarism, and in the realm of media and writing, plagiarism is an issue every media outlet has had to rectify at some point. It’s the unsightly aspect of the job. Nonetheless, a company willing to address (or literally write) these errors is a reputable one.”

Barton stated that the newspaper has learned from its mistakes, implemented a system to identify AI-generated articles, and will “engage in lengthier discussions about the inappropriateness of AI-generated stories.”

The Enterprise lacked an AI policy, assuming journalists should refrain from using it to compose articles, according to Bacon. Poynter offers a template that news outlets can utilize to craft their own AI policy.

Bacon intends to establish one by the week’s end.

“This will be a topic of discussion before hiring,” he affirmed.