SXSW Moments: Is it Real — or Fake?
The Forrest Four-Cast: July 24, 2019
Did you miss something at SXSW 2019? Want to relive the magic? Look to this space over the coming weeks for links to video and audio replays of some of the most incredible experiences from this year’s event.
The 50th anniversary of the historic Apollo 11 mission has given us an excuse to revisit the bizarre conspiracy theory that the landing was faked. But while the moonfake genre is mostly whimsical, it highlights profound issues about the current media landscape: trust, manipulation, authority, and the impact of new technology on the news business. Check out some of these panels from SXSW 2019.
AI-Powered Media Manipulation and Its Consequences
Pictures…and it didn’t happen. Artificial intelligence and machine learning technologies are vastly increasing the scope of media manipulation. Technology now enables fabricated or altered media (manipulation by editing) and distorts what media people can access (manipulation by curation). This panel covers two case studies: an AI that does rapid, automated “doctoring” of images, and media recommendation algorithms that amplify or suppress content. Panelists debate the society-wide dangers of fake and misleading media to democracy, privacy, cultural production, and more. They discuss current efforts to raise awareness as well as possible legal remedies for the development and use of AIs that generate fraudulent, defamatory, or otherwise unlawful content.
Preparing for the Next Wave: Video Fake News
A startlingly realistic new breed of AI-driven faked videos is starting to emerge, open to circulation by propagandists and other shadowy actors via social platforms. These videos appear to show news events, or public figures speaking. However, they are in fact highly sophisticated AI-driven video forgeries. This session explores what strategies and technologies news outlets and consumers should be adopting to defend themselves against this frightening new development.
AI and the Future of Journalism
Artificial intelligence is already revolutionizing the news industry, as organizations use machine learning to automate thousands of stories, sift through massive data sets to find trends and outliers, and build bots that scale individual conversations with their audiences. That’s just the beginning. But as the potential for artificial intelligence grows, so do the ethical implications. This session explores the pitfalls and possibilities of how AI will transform the way we report — and consume — the news.
How AI Has and Will Impact the News Industry
Artificial Intelligence is a powerful technology that has and will continue to revolutionize and change how news media content is collected, created, and consumed. Media companies can leverage AI to augment their editorial teams, personalize the reader experience, and experiment with new consumption mediums, such as chat bots or conversational UI’s. This session looks into how news media companies are using AI today, what is possible in the future, and how to integrate AI into the newsroom.
Did a Robot Write Your News?
Using technology to create automated news content presents unique challenges and questions. How do you make sure you have timely data? How do you ensure the information is correct and not misleading? What impact does automation have on journalists and how they do their jobs? This panel discusses the benefits and issues that arise as automated journalism becomes integrated into newsrooms.
More Memories from SXSW 2019
Future Travel
The Future of Food
AI, With Feeling
Future of AI
Why News Matters
Better Storytelling
Innovative Design
Addressing MeToo
AI for Business
Public Interest AI
Change is Coming
Urban Mobility
It’s Time for Sports!
Saving the Ocean
Military Matters
Women’s Health
Social Media Power
Telling New Media Stories
Motherhood
Marvel’s Magic
Future Health
May the Fourth
Women in Tech
Growing Unicorns
Thriving at Work
Making a Difference
Fighting Fake News
Disaster Response
Hacking Democracy
Pete Buttigieg
Kara Swisher
Arlan Hamilton
Hugh Forrest serves as Chief Programming Officer at SXSW, the world’s most unique gathering of creative professionals. He also tries to write at least four paragraphs per day on Medium. These posts often cover tech-related trends; other times they focus on books, pop culture, sports and other current events.
