In this episode of A Journalist’s Guide to AI we have Esther Paniagua an award winning independent journalist and author specialised in science, technology and cybersecurity.
Esther has received numerous accolades for her work, including multiple journalism awards.
She has been recognized as one of the Top 100 Women Leaders in Spain and named one of Forbes’ Top 100 Most Creative People in Business. She also teaches “AI Journalism” at various universities.
Esther shares her journey from early tech adoption to becoming an expert in AI and journalism, discussing how AI is rapidly transforming the media landscape. They delve into the challenges faced by small newsrooms in adopting AI, the growing dominance of synthetic and AI-generated content (with a stark prediction that 90% of online content could be AI-generated by 2026), and the ongoing shifts in business models as platforms like Google and generative AI tools impact media revenue.
Esther emphasizes the importance of regulation, sustainable funding, and responsible technology development to preserve quality journalism in the face of these changes. She also highlights environmental concerns related to data centers and AI’s carbon footprint, advocating for informed consumer choices and public protest as forms of accountability. Towards the end of the episode, Yumi and Esther discuss practical tips for choosing more privacy-conscious and eco-friendly digital tools.
Esther also noted that the actual estimation of how much money Google owes to US publishers annually for use of their content on its platform is US$10–12 billion. Researchers also estimate (using a conservative assumption) that Facebook owes US$1.9 billion to publishers annually.
Source: IPD Columbia
00:00 - Funding Challenges for Small Newsrooms & Rise of AI Content
00:53 - Introducing Esther Paniagua
01:48 - Esther’s Journey into Journalism & Technology
04:10 - Specializing in Science and Technology Journalism
05:19 - Reporting on AI: Early Days and IBM Watson
07:07 - First AI Applications in Journalism
08:22 - Did We See AI’s Influence on Journalism Coming?
09:56 - How Google Changed the Media Landscape
12:01 - How Search and AI Are Shaping News Consumption
13:25 - AI Platforms Paying for News Content: Worth It?
14:57 - Why Pay for News Anymore? Is It Inevitable?
15:56 - The Role of Regulation in AI & Journalism
19:39 - Saving Journalism: Funding and the Need for Quality News
22:29 - Where Does the Money Come From? The Broken Business Model
27:15 - Covering Technology’s Social & Environmental Impact
32:39 - The Environmental Impact of AI: Energy and Water Use
35:35 - Are There Greener AI Solutions? Deep SEQ Example
40:16 - Regulation: The US vs. EU Approach to AI Oversight
42:28 - What If There’s No AI Regulation?
43:38 - Consumer Power: What You Can Do
46:04 - Practical Tips: Privacy-Friendly Tech Alternatives
51:25 - Social Media, Network Effects, and Consumer Choice
52:06 - Where to Follow Esther’s Work
54:03 - Wrap-Up, Final Thoughts, and Thank You
Follow Esther:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/estherpaniagua/
https://www.instagram.com/e_paniagua
Esther's book: https://estherpaniagua.com/en/books/
Follow Yumi:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/yumiwilson/
Sponsored By: Saspod
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