The Sift: Journalist’s AI misuse

April 6, 2026

Artificial intelligence Health/wellness Journalism Misinformation Press freedoms/First Amendment

An educator's guide
to news literacy

April 6, 2026

In this issue

Journalist's AI misuse | RumorGuard slides

Daily Do Now slides

Don’t miss this week’s classroom-ready resource.

Top picks

Here are the latest news literacy topics and tips on how to integrate them into your classroom.

An AI chatbot with a speech bubble showing a news website.

Standards-based newsrooms may allow the use of AI for some tasks — but with human oversight.

1. New York Times drops freelance writer over AI use

What role, if any, should AI play in journalism? News outlets have answered this question differently, but there is agreement in standards-based newsrooms that AI use requires disclosure.

Undisclosed AI use: The New York Times recently dropped a freelance journalist after a reader pointed out similarities between the freelancer’s book review and one in The Guardian. The journalist admitted he used an AI tool when drafting the review and did not notice it had taken parts of it from The Guardian.
Accountability: After investigating, The New York Times notified The Guardian and added an editor’s note to the review, saying the journalist’s “reliance on A.I. and his use of unattributed work by another writer are a clear violation of The Times’s standards.”

💬 Discuss:

Should journalists use AI in their work? Does using this technology conflict with or violate any standards of quality journalism?
How should journalists disclose AI use in their work?
If you were in charge of a newsroom, what would your AI policy look like?

💡 Idea: Have students share a news story about a topic they care about or one in which a lack of accuracy could cause significant or immediate harm (like a health article, for example). Then prompt a chatbot to produce a news story that is the same length and about the same topic. Ask students to compare and analyze the output. Use the second set of bulleted questions in this Poynter piece (under “Refine and repeat” section) to examine the text and sources. Here are additional guiding questions: Are chatbots capable of doing original reporting? Is your chatbot in this exercise doing reporting/journalism or synthesizing the reporting of others?

⭐ NLP Resources:

Infographic: “6 things to know about AI”
Slides: “AI-generated news or not?”
Lesson plan: “AI or not?”

🔗 Related:

“An AI Upheaval Is Coming for Media. This Journalist Is Already All In.” (The Wall Street Journal)
“An AI company set out to fix news deserts. Instead, it copied local journalists’ work” (Poynter)

2. Celebrity culture fuels misinfo, expert says

Health law professor and misinformation expert Timothy Caulfield had a blunt message at a recent lecture in Canada: “Misinformation is killing people.”

Tied to identity: While health misinformation started as part of an alternative wellness culture in the 1960s, it is now being spread by celebrity influencers, amplified by social media algorithms and has become tethered to political identity, he said.
Critical thinking: Caulfield notes the importance of teaching students critical thinking skills to help them avoid the pitfalls of a complex “information environment largely shaped by emotional responses.”
Less blaming: He also underscored the importance of treating people who are genuinely looking for answers to their health concerns with compassion instead of blame when they fall for health-related falsehoods.

💬 Discuss:

What attracts people to influencers or celebrities discussing health and wellness? Why might someone believe an influencer’s health claim even when it lacks or conflicts with scientific evidence?
What are some real-life consequences that health misinformation can have?
How can you determine whether a social media post about health and wellness is credible or not?

💡 Idea: Use the “Critical thinking” and “Reflect” slides in Week 20 of the Daily Do Now resource to explore this topic with students in 5-10 minutes.

⭐ NLP Resources:

“Be Health Informed” (Checkology® virtual classroom)
“Intro to Algorithms” (Checkology)
Sift quiz: “Wellness & science claims”

🔗 Related:

“Truth, or misinformation? A statistician explains the challenge of assessing evidence” (The Conversation)

3. Press freedom concerns intensify

In the United States and abroad, journalists risk arrest, injury and even death for reporting the news. Here’s a roundup of recent press freedom situations:

Retaliation for reporting? Nashville-based journalist Estefany Rodríguez shared details of her recent detainment by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, saying her arrest was retaliatory for her reporting on local immigration issues. Federal attorneys questioned whether she had First Amendment rights since she is not a U.S. citizen.
Journalist kidnapped: An American freelance journalist — who has spent a decade reporting across the Middle East and is described as “gutsy” by her colleagues — was kidnapped in Baghdad on March 31.
Journalists attacked: In Serbia, 100 reporters have been attacked this year so far, according to the Independent Journalists’ Association of Serbia. About 20 of these attacks took place at a recent demonstration.
Journalists killed: Several journalism groups are condemning what they say are Israel’s apparent targeted killings of journalists, including three Lebanese journalists killed March 28.

💬 Discuss:

Can democracy work well without protections for press freedoms?
What are ways that press freedoms can be protected?
How might the reporting of journalists on the ground in conflict zones be different than reporting remotely?

🗒️ Note: Check out NLP’s “Teach about the freedom of the press” page for more resources.

⭐ NLP Resources:

Alt text: The News Literacy Project’s First Amendment poster has five icons for the five rights protected, including the freedom of religion, speech, press, and to assemble and petition.

Poster: “The First Amendment”
“Press Freedoms Around the World” (Checkology)
Slides: “Press freedom collection” (Daily Do Now)

🔗 Related:

These interactive slide decks help students think carefully and critically about viral claims in the digital age.

Viral post ‘spilling the beans’ about paid No Kings protesters is parody

A post reads, “Ok, I'm spilling the beans. Yesterday myself and several others were paid between $20 and $40 per hour to attend a No Kings protest. The reason many people don’t talk about it is because it impacts our welfare payments if we disclose. MAGA cope and seethe.” The News Literacy Project has added a label that says “PARODY ACCOUNT.”

❌ NO: This post is not evidence that some No Kings participants were paid to join the March 28 protests.

✅ YES: This account frequently posts “rage bait,” or content designed to elicit angry reactions.

✅ YES: Millions of people gathered in cities around the country for No Kings events to protest President Donald Trump’s policies.

⭐ NewsLit takeaway:

False claims about paid protesters are common online and typically spread to diminish the perceived popularity of a grassroots movement. These falsehoods may involve AI-generated content, out-of-context claims or, as in the case above, evidence-free accusations. Check out these Google Slides for tips to spot these rage bait claims.

➕ The world’s oldest tortoise, Jonathan, enjoys snacking on bananas and taking naps. He was unaffected by false claims of his death, which started with a viral X post that seemed to come from his vet but was a donation scam. A few reputable news outlets were among those duped and had to publish corrections.

➕ NASA’s Artemis mission has renewed online discussion about moon landing conspiracy theories. They began with a pamphlet in the 1970s, according to this interview with the curator of the Smithsonian’s Apollo Collection.

➕ Teens who are lonely and less social are more attracted to AI chatbots, according to a scientist in this New York Times piece about teens turning to AI companions.

➕ Struggling with students using AI to generate essays? One professor found a solution: She has her students use manual typewriters. The result is more intentional writing, fewer distractions — and a workout for pinky fingers.

➕ A national study of 20,000 people found that the more someone uses social media, the less likely they are to support democracy.

➕ Journalist Yeganeh Torbati is still covering the war in Iran, even though she is unable to safely enter the country. She interviews sources through apps like WhatsApp and Telegram.

➕ A 27-year-old news influencer who speaks Spanish and addresses his audience as mi gente has nearly 22.5 million online followers. He is ranked in the top five influencers American adults say they turn to for news, according to Pew Research Center.