AI-Mediated Communication: Public Perceptions and Attitudes Toward AI Generative Content in Journalism

Main Article Content

Ziyang Cheng
Teachers College, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027, USA

DOI: https://doi.org/10.70267/ms.20250202.0111

Keywords

AI, AIGC, AI-mediated communication , computer-mediated communication

Abstract

This study explored public perceptions and attitudes toward AI-mediated communication (AI-MC), with a special focus on AI-generated content (AIGC) in journalism. As AI technologies become more embedded in current news production, understanding societal responses is crucial for guiding AI development and regulation. By reviewing selected empirical studies, this paper identified three major trends: (1) widespread public awareness of AIGC, (2) optimism about its capacity to enhance journalism, and (3) fear of AIGC from both the public and journalists’ perspectives. This study also illustrated a significant trust gap among the public due to the opaque nature of AI systems and limited public knowledge. This study contributed to the dynamic discourse on AI-MC and suggested a more ethical algorithm design and timely legislation to promote responsible AI-MC.

Abstract 50 | PDF Downloads 19

References

  • Beckett, C. (2019, November 18). New powers, new responsibilities. A global survey of journalism and artificial intelligence. Polis. https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/polis/2019/11/18/new-powers-new-responsibilities/
  • Brauner, P., Hick, A., Philipsen, R., & Ziefle, M. (2023). What does the public think about artificial intelligence?—a criticality map to understand bias in the public perception of AI. Frontiers in Computer Science, 5, Article 1113903. https://doi.org/10.3389/FCOMP.2023.1113903
  • Fast, E., & Horvitz, E. (2017). Long-term trends in the public perception of artificial intelligence [Paper presentation]. 31st AAAI Conference on Artificial Intelligence, AAAI 2017, San Francisco, California USA.
  • Fetzer, J. H. (1990). Artificial intelligence: Its scope and limits. Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-1900-6
  • Goldenthal, E., Park, J., Liu, S. X., Mieczkowski, H., & Hancock, J. T. (2021). Not all AI are equal: Exploring the accessibility of AI-mediated communication technology. Computers in Human Behavior, 125, Article 106975. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.CHB.2021.106975
  • Hancock, J. T., Naaman, M., & Levy, K. (2020). AI-mediated communication: Definition, research agenda, and ethical considerations. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 25(1), 89-100. https://doi.org/10.1093/JCMC/ZMZ022
  • Hohenstein, J., & Jung, M. (2020). AI as a moral crumple zone: The effects of AI-mediated communication on attribution and trust. Computers in Human Behavior, 106, Article 106190. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.CHB.2019.106190
  • Holmes, F. (2019, February 25). AI will add $15 trillion to the world economy by 2030. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/greatspeculations/2019/02/25/ai-will-add-15-trillion-to-the-world-economy-by-2030/
  • Jakesch, M., French, M., Ma, X., Hancock, J. T., & Naaman, M. (2019). AI-mediated communication: How the perception that profile text was written by AI affects trustworthiness [Paper presentation]. Proceedings of the 2019 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, New York, NY, USA.
  • Jones, S. G. (1998). Information, internet, and community: Notes toward an understanding of community in the information age. In S. Jones (Ed.), Cybersociety 2.0: Revisiting computer-mediated communication and community (pp. 1-34). SAGE Publications. https://doi.org/10.4135/9781452243689.N1
  • Kaplan, A., & Haenlein, M. (2019). Siri, siri, in my hand: Who’s the fairest in the land? On the interpretations, illustrations, and implications of artificial intelligence. Business Horizons, 62(1), 15-25. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.BUSHOR.2018.08.004
  • Karaaslan, İ. A., Baha Ahmet, Y., & Yağmur, K. (2024). Investigation of the awareness of automated news in terms of public opinion: Artificial intelligence journalism. Evolutionary Studies in Imaginative Culture, 8(7), 1658-1671. https://doi.org/10.70082/ESICULTURE.VI.1491
  • Kelley, P. G., Yang, Y., Heldreth, C., Moessner, C., Sedley, A., Kramm, A., Newman, D. T., & Woodruff, A. (2021). Exciting, useful, worrying, futuristic: Public perception of artificial intelligence in 8 countries [Paper presentation]. Proceedings of the 2021 AAAI/ACM Conference on AI, Ethics, and Society, New York, NY, USA.
  • Kennedy, B., Tyson, A., & Saks, E. (2023, February 15). Public awareness of artificial intelligence in everyday activities. Pew Research Center Science & Society. https://www.pewresearch.org/science/2023/02/15/public-awareness-of-artificial-intelligence-in-everyday-activities/
  • Li, Y. L., & Ma, N. Y. (2019). Research on communication transformation and media transition in the wave of artificial intelligence. China Radio & TV Academic Journal, (1), 6-9.
  • Mieczkowski, H., & Hancock, J. (2022). Examining agency, expertise, and roles of AI systems in AI-mediated communication [Paper presentation]. CSCW ’23, Minneapolis, MN, USA.
  • Moravec, V., Hynek, N., Skare, M., Gavurova, B., & Kubak, M. (2024). Human or machine? The perception of artificial intelligence in journalism, its socio-economic conditions, and technological developments toward the digital future. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 200, Article 123162. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.TECHFORE.2023.123162
  • Nah, F. F.-H., Zheng, R., Cai, J., Siau, K., & Chen, L. (2023). Generative AI and ChatGPT: Applications, challenges, and AI-human collaboration. Journal of Information Technology Case and Application Research, 25(3), 277-304. https://doi.org/10.1080/15228053.2023.2233814
  • Noain-Sánchez, A. (2022). Addressing the impact of artificial intelligence on journalism: The perception of experts, journalists and academics. Communication & Society, 35(3), 105-121. https://doi.org/10.15581/003.35.3.105-121
  • Owsley, C. S., & Greenwood, K. (2024). Awareness and perception of artificial intelligence operationalized integration in news media industry and society. AI & SOCIETY, 39(1), 417-431. https://doi.org/10.1007/S00146-022-01386-2
  • Paes, J. L. (2024). Artificial intelligence AND news consumption: A study of trust, credibility AND transparency in automated journalism University of South Dakota]. USD RED. https://red.library.usd.edu/diss-thesis/255/
  • Peng, L. (2023). New survival characteristics brought by AIGC in the intelligent era. Nanjing Journal of Social Sciences, (5), 104-111. https://doi.org/10.15937/j.cnki.issn 1001-8263.2023.05.011
  • Rankin, J. L. (2019). A people’s history of computing in the United States. Harvard University Press. https://doi.org/10.4159/9780674988538
  • Romiszowski, A., & Mason, R. (2004). Computer-mediated communication. In D. Jonassen & M. Driscoll (Eds.), Handbook of research on educational communications and technology (pp. 402-436). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781410609519-23
  • Sharadga, T. M. A., Tahat, Z., & Safori, A. O. (2022). Journalists' perceptions towards employing artificial intelligence techniques in Jordan TV's newsrooms. Studies in Media and Communication, 10(2), 239-248. https://doi.org/10.11114/SMC.V10I2.5749
  • Stein, J.-P., & Ohler, P. (2017). Venturing into the uncanny valley of mind—the influence of mind attribution on the acceptance of human-like characters in a virtual reality setting. Cognition, 160, 43-50. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.COGNITION.2016.12.010
  • Sun, M., Hu, W., & Wu, Y. (2024). Public perceptions and attitudes towards the application of artificial intelligence in journalism: From a China-based survey. Journalism Practice, 18(3), 548-570. https://doi.org/10.1080/17512786.2022.2055621
  • Thorne, S. L. (2008). Computer‐mediated communication. In N. H. Hornberger (Ed.), Encyclopedia of language and education (Vol. 4, pp. 1415-1426). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-30424-3_108
  • University of Washington. (2024). Computer-mediated communication.
  • Wu, J., Gan, W., Chen, Z., Wan, S., & Lin, H. (2023). AI-generated content (AIGC): A survey. arXiv preprint, arXiv:2304.06632. https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2304.06632
  • Yang, D. X. (2021). Research on the transformation and governance of information communication patterns in the age of artificial intelligence. Chuanbo Yu Banquan, (1), 55-59. https://doi.org/10.16852/j.cnki.45-1390/g2.2021.01.019
  • Yang, N., & Sun, H. (2019). Transformation and perseverance: Journalism and communication education in the era of artificial intelligence. Chuban Guangjiao, (1), 40-42. https://doi.org/10.16491/j.cnki.cn45-1216/g2.2019.01.010
  • Yao, M. Z., & Ling, R. (2020). “What is computer-mediated communication?”—an introduction to the special issue. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 25(1), 4-8. https://doi.org/10.1093/JCMC/ZMZ027

Article Sidebar

PDF
Published
Jun 16, 2025
Issue
Vol. 2 No. 2 (2025)
Section
Research Articles
Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

How to Cite

Cheng, Z. (2025). AI-Mediated Communication: Public Perceptions and Attitudes Toward AI Generative Content in Journalism. Media Studies, 2(2), 1-11. https://doi.org/10.70267/ms.20250202.0111