AI, Media, And Democracy

As news media organisations around the world find themselves under increasing political, economic, and societal pressure, the AI, Media & Democracy Lab aims to bring together a wide range of researchers, media practitioners, journalists, and civil society to help anticipate and develop solutions for the current challenges that journalists and the media sector are facing.

Thought of as an ethical, legal, and societal laboratory (ELSA Lab), this interdisciplinary group focuses on cutting-edge research at the interfaces of law, social sciences, humanities, and computer sciences as well as on experimenting with AI-driven innovations. The Lab is organized around four clusters that not only speak directly to the biggest challenges regarding the future of media and democracy but at the same time complement each other to create a broad umbrella that is able to observe these phenomena from a diversity of perspectives. The clusters and their leading questions are 1. The newsroom of the future: How will AI impact newsrooms? 2. Making news with Artificial Intelligence: What are specific applications of AI in the production and dissemination of content? 3. Reshaping the relationship with the audience: What new ways of engaging with the audience are made possible by AI? 4. Governing AI in the media: What are the ethical and legal frameworks for the responsible use of AI in the media sector?

The AI, Media & Democracy Lab is a consortium between the University of Amsterdam, the Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences, and Centrum Wiskunde & Informatica, coming together with news media organizations such as RTL Nieuws, civil society in general, and public partners such as Municipality of Amsterdam and the Ministry of Education to tackle the sector-wide challenges.