Publishers should block AI training bots from accessing their content to pave the way for future deals.
This was one of the messages which came out from Press Gazette’s Media Strategy Network USA event held at the offices of Stagwell at 1 World Trade Center in New York on 12 March.
Around 70 leaders from US news media publishers gathered for the conference, which provided a forum for publishers and technologists to discuss new ways to make quality journalism pay in the digital age.
[Read more insights aimed at US-based readers of Press Gazette via our weekly Future of Media US newsletter]
Most of the conversations were held on a Chatham House basis to allow more honest discussion, meaning insights can be shared but not direct quotes.
Publishers agreed that where possible, unauthorised LLMs should be blocked from training on their websites. It was argued that it will be impossible to strike deals with AI companies in the future if they have already gained free access.
However, some drew a distinction between blocking AI access for training and allowing some RAG (retrieval-augmented generation) to ensure publisher content still appears in real-time news-related results.
All publishers at the event appear to be using AI in-house in some form, although most agreed that the writing of articles should remain in the hands of human journalists.
Concerns about falling referral traffic to publishers from Google were widespread. While few foresee a day when zero clicks will come to publishers from Google, most agreed that the industry should at least plan for that scenario and also never become dependent on one single third-party tech platform.
Guest speakers included Semafor chief commercial officer Rachel Oppenheim, who spoke about how half the publisher’s $40m revenue comes from events – with the rest mainly derived from sponsorship, especially of newsletters.
Business Insider chief news editor Steve Russolillo spoke about the brand’s renewed focus on creating stories that can’t be read anywhere else to earn trust and create a more direct relationship with its audience.
Closing out the conference was vice chair of Stagwell David Sable. Stagwell hosted the event as part of their ongoing support for publishers via their Future of News initiative.
Stagwell has been making an evidence-based case that advertisers should drop “bogus” concerns about brand safety and invest in professionally produced journalism rather than toxic social media platforms.
Sable said: “News is the cornerstone of democracy. We don’t have the money staff the newsrooms like we once did, we don’t have the editors, and this is a sin.”
Media Strategy Network USA was supported by headline sponsors Pathos Communications and StiboDX as well as Membrana Media, WP Engine, Storyful and partners Stagwell.
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