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Workforce automation is about to cost dozens of news contractors their jobs. The Seattle Times and The Guardian report that Microsoft is letting go of dozens of news contractors (about 50 in the US,27 in the UK) after June 30th due to a shift to AI news production on MSN. The workers were responsible for choosing,editing and curating stories. People employed full-time by Microsoft will stay at the company.
In a statement to the Times,Microsoft said it “evaluate[s] our business on a regular basis” like most companies and that this could involve “re-deployment.” It stressed that the contractor job cuts were “not the result of the current pandemic.”
The concept of AI choosing and even writing news isn’t new. However,this is a real-world case where jobs at a major site have been affected. The question is whether or not the heavier automation will be effective. One affected person talking to The Guardian was concerned the AI might inadvertently violate “strict editorial guidelines,” such as keeping violent material out of immediate view. This is as much an expanded test of AI as it is a practical measure to cut costs.
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