Oriented on making people closer

All corners of the Celestial Empire know about the teachings of the ancient Chinese philosopher Confucius. According to his philosophy, the duality of all things is inherently embedded in the nature of every object, phenomenon, process, and so on.

And this teaching principle, formulated by Confucius in times immemorial, remains applicable to the evaluation of everything around us, including the latest technologies and their products.

In the report by Xinhua Agency titled “Responsibility and Mission of News Media in AI Era”, published on the opening day of the VI World Media Summit in Urumqi, various topics were discussed, including the dangers posed by AI in the realm of mass media. The authors of the study highlight that the unethical application of artificial intelligence contributes to the active production and dissemination of false information.

Indeed, fake news has already flooded the global information space today, receiving particular amplification on social media. The truth is that false reports owe much of their uncontrolled expansion to artificial intelligence. Fakes have become so massive, so commonplace, that they no longer surprise readers. However, not everyone can always determine between credible news and information provocation.

Each speaker at the forum in Urumqi, among the foreign guests, traditionally but sincerely thanked the organizers for the invitation to participate in the summit, which, like all previous events of this format, was well organized, and the issues discussed were highly relevant.

However, it wouldn't take much effort, using the capabilities of artificial intelligence, to put words of indignation into the mouth of a grateful speaker about how... he was kindly invited to this summit. At the same time, the speaker's speech organs could be visually manipulated in the video frame to match the words of indignation, thus completely distorting the meaning of what he actually said.

The salvation from lies in this case may be the media literacy of the reader, their awareness of what is actually happening, and their inner conviction of the unreality of such a situation. It will also be helpful to verify information with other authoritative sources.

In the mentioned report from the Xinhua agency, concerns are expressed about the potential use of artificial intelligence to manipulate public opinion and conduct information confrontation. The report emphasizes that the tools and methods of manipulation are constantly evolving, making the information environment increasingly complex and unpredictable.

There is no denying that the persistence and almost hypnotic effect of fakes on mass consciousness have serious consequences. False reports from stock exchanges can cause financial volcanoes to erupt dangerously for the economy, while some inflammatory reports can trigger powerful social protests and even military clashes.

The Director-General of the Xinhua agency, Mr. Fu Hua, emphasized in his speech at the summit that while artificial intelligence accelerates the work of the media, it simultaneously calls into question the quality and reliability of information. Therefore, as the leader of one of the largest news agencies in the world, the media industry must find a balance between leveraging new technologies and maintaining high standards of journalism.

— We must start from the premise that technology expands our capabilities but does not replace us, — said Fu Hua. — It is the human being who plays the central role. People are the foundation of news journalism, as well as its audience. The most vibrant and creative elements are also created by people.

Artificial intelligence serves as a tool that adds something valuable to materials but does not replace journalists. Platforms like the World Media Summit help deepen cooperation between national media and bridge the digital divide.

...According to the research, 66 per cent of journalists surveyed have a positive view of the impact of artificial intelligence on the media sphere, with more than half of them having already implemented AI in their work. At the same time, a vast majority (85.6%) of respondents believe that additional measures for further regulation are necessary for the proper use of AI in the media industry.

In his speech, Director General of TASS, Andrei Kondracshov, called on the world mass media to adhere to high professional standards and not to forget about ethics in the era of total creation of new artificial intelligence systems. In particular, Andrei Olegovich stated:

— In a certain sense, it is people who teach technology to do bad things. It is important to remember that AI, like any technology, is just a tool. No matter how technology develops, there must be a person and their soul behind AI. Therefore, given the technological theme of this summit, my call will be in contrast: let’s be more humane!

...In today's media industry, there is a growing sense of concern that artificial intelligence may completely replace human labor. There are fears that in the near future, AI will take over all creative and technical aspects of content creation - from writing texts and scripts to filming videos and processing images.

Moreover, AI-based algorithms will be able to predict audience interests so accurately that traditional media will be unable to compete with artificial content generated by machines.

One might wonder: Will journalism turn into a field where humans will become merely servants of machines that autonomously generate news?

The opinion of Pavel Negoitsa, General Director of “Rossiyskaya Gazeta”, on this issue sounds more optimistic:

— Such a future looks frightening, but we shouldn’t expect that it to be realized, — says Pavel Afanasyevich. — The integration of any technology into people's lives has its own logic and limits—both technological and psychological. Therefore, it is not excluded that the penetration of AI will also reach a certain point and will not go beyond that. At the very least, this is because artificial intelligence can not only create problems but also provide tools for solving those problems. It will increasingly be used for analyzing, organizing, and verifying vast amounts of information that humans and conventional information technologies cannot handle. But creation will remain in the hands of people.

The forum participants also discussed a number of other relevant issues related to the interaction and further development of the media in the era of artificial intelligence. There was an interesting and informative presentation on the technological achievements of the Xinhua News Agency in the field of AI.

Within the framework of the forum, the participants visited nearby settlements and natural sights of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. Thanks to this program, I was once again convinced that this region is developing quite rapidly. I would even say that it is progressing at a rapid pace.

But this will be discussed in the next publication, where I will try to describe and show through photos how the multinational people live in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region of the friendly People's Republic of China.

...Let me remind you that the VI World Media Summit gathered more than half a thousand media representatives from 106 countries and regions of the world in Urumqi, China.

Among the representatives were over two hundred leading media outlets, government agencies, and international organizations, including ORIENT - the website of the MEDIA TURKMEN news agency.

Thus, one of the priority issues of the World Media Summit-2024, held in Urumqi was the topic of journalists' ethical attitude towards artificial intelligence systems, which must be safe and protected from abuse. It also has a duty to serve all the people of our planet without undermining their human dignity. After all, how we interact with AI will determine our shared future.

...All corners of the Celestial Empire know about the teachings of the ancient Chinese philosopher Confucius, which had a strong influence on the development of Chinese civilization. His principles and values still serve as a source of moral guidance for the multinational Chinese people. The golden rule of Confucianism ethics is encapsulated in the thought of its founder:

“There is nothing higher than to respect every person as oneself and do unto others as you would have them do unto you”.

Bekdurdy AMANSARYEV

Photo: ORIENT news