Press freedom in the digital age: Caribbean journalists reflect on AI's impact

In an era where cascading global crises are stretching newsroom resources to their limits, the recent boon in AI tools has proven to be a mixed blessing for journalists — including in the Caribbean. On one hand, journalists benefit from the generative capacities of a free personal assistant; on the other, so too can bad faith actors and misinformed commentators.

As the world marks World Press Freedom Day 2025, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) is calling for a global response to this evolving media landscape through its observance theme: "Reporting in the Brave New World – The Impact of Artificial Intelligence on Press Freedom and the Media".

The United Nations Information Centre for the Caribbean Area (UNIC) sought insights from three respected Caribbean media professionals: Julian Rogers, Peter Richards, and Nneka Parsanlal. Their reflections come at a critical juncture, as UN Secretary-General António Guterres warns, "Artificial intelligence can support freedom of expression — or stifle it."

AI and the evolving role of journalism

Long before AI could mimic the yield of the human hand, journalism already faced an existential crisis, vis-à-vis social media. Veteran journalist Julian Rogers said the average citizen often breaks stories before traditional media can respond, forcing newsrooms to "adapt or risk irrelevance".

Since the advent of AI, Content Manager Nneka Parsanlal said even more checks and balances need to be instituted by media entities to protect information sharing. For the 28 April 2025 election held in Trinidad and Tobago, she noted that she observed AI-generated content being deployed by different campaigns.

"Being able to discern whether a photo or video was AI-generated, or even just edited with AI and designed to mislead, is now a big part of what we face when it comes to misinformation," she said.

Despite the new challenges, newsrooms that adapt have been able to harness AI tools for good. News editor Peter Richards said he uses AI tools to strengthen material, helping to find quotations and summarise past events.

Rogers noted, however, that regionally, most media houses have not invested in or adopted these technologies at scale, adding that fact-checking still relies heavily on manual processes and personal relationships. "This imbalance means we're not fighting misinformation with equal tools," he said.

The AI threat to journalistic integrity

The ease with which AI can generate ostensibly credible content has raised alarm among some Caribbean media professionals. Richards warned that the creative process of journalism has potentially been compromised, emphasising the significant difference between using AI to proof read and using AI to draft entire articles.

This concern extends to the potential disconnect from fieldwork, a cornerstone of quality journalism. Richards stressed, "Talking to people in 'real life' is the best way to do journalism. AI can only work with digital data and information, it cannot go out into the field and interview victims and witnesses, perform on-scene reporting."

Rogers warned that through algorithm manipulation, AI could be weaponised to suppress alternative views or skew narratives, at the behest of private tech firms or state actors. He also cautioned about the potential dilution of Caribbean expression as AI systems often fail to reflect local linguistic, legal, and cultural contexts. This, he said, leads to distortions and misinterpretations that can reinforce racial, gender, and geopolitical biases.

Reframing AI: From automation to augmentation

Despite these challenges, the journalists all see potential for AI to enhance their work when used judiciously. Rogers advocates for a shift in perspective: "We need to shift the culture—from fear of automation to a focus on augmentation".  Should regional media fail to make this shift, Rogers warned that it risks being outpaced by its own audiences who are already consuming, creating, and distributing content at "AI-accelerated speeds".

Parsanlal stressed the need for ongoing staff education, stating, "We have to train staff to better understand how AI works and that can affect how good we are at our jobs."

The journalists agreed that a policy framework is needed to guide the integration of AI in newsrooms. For Rogers, this extends to a coordinated regional response that includes developing ethical guidelines, conducting bias audits, developing local training datasets, promoting diversity in AI development, and maintaining human oversight in the editorial process.

As Caribbean media navigate this brave new world, the imperative remains clear: to harness the power of AI while safeguarding the fundamental principles of journalism.

UN response to AI

In line with these efforts, the United Nations' Global Digital Compact, adopted on 22 September 2024 at the UN Summit of the Future, aims to foster international cooperation and establish guidelines to ensure that digital technologies, including AI, are used responsibly and equitably, supporting media integrity and press freedom in the process.