University Of Tübingen Expert Receives Hans Bausch Media Prize
The jury of the Hans Bausch Media Prize has decided: Felix M. Simon will be honored for his contribution “Uneasy Bedfellows: AI in the News, Platform Companies and the Issue of Journalistic Autonomy”, which was published in the journal Digital Journalism in 2022. A public debate about the opportunities and dangers of artificial intelligence (AI) has flared up. Simon’s contribution to this highly topical topic argues that the introduction of artificial intelligence (AI) in journalism, despite all the advantages, carries the risk that the media will become even more dependent on the big platform companies like Microsoft, Google or Amazon.
Article highlights possible risks of AI dependencies
Felix M. Simon illustrates how artificial intelligence is becoming more relevant in journalism and how this can result in new infrastructural dependencies. He describes the danger of a gradual undermining of the autonomy of the media if, for example, they move into technological “black boxes” or orient themselves even more closely to the values and logic of the platform companies. Simon also shows that increasing the power of platform companies through artificial intelligence in journalism could lead to media houses being further weakened in their position as important gatekeepers to the public sphere, making it increasingly difficult to fulfill their democratic function.
Statement of the jury
The jury praised Simon’s analytical sharpness and great expertise. The article makes it clear that the development and spread of artificial intelligence is redistributing social power.
SWR director Kai Gniffke summarizes the jury’s reasoning: “Artificial intelligence and the technologies associated with it will revolutionize our lives and our work. It is therefore becoming increasingly important to consider the social significance and societal effects of AI – this is exactly where Felix Simon’s essay comes in. It is a critical examination of the challenges and opportunities for research but also for the practical use of AI.”
The Rector of the University of Tübingen, Professor Karla Pollmann, congratulates:
“With his research, Felix Simon is making an important contribution to the debate that we now have to have: only if we understand the opportunities and risks that digitization entails for our society and democracy , we can deal with it appropriately. The University of Tübingen feels it has a responsibility not only to contribute to the further development of AI, but also to ethically critical reflection on its effects.”
About the Author
Felix M. Simon is a journalist, communications researcher, and PhD student at the Oxford Internet Institute (OII), a Knight News Innovation Fellow at Columbia University’s Tow Center for Digital Journalism, and an affiliate at the Center for Information, Technology, and Public Life (CITAP). from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He also works as a research assistant at the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism (RISJ) and regularly writes and comments on technology, media and politics for various international media outlets. As a member of the Leverhulme doctoral program “Publication beyond Print” and OII-Dieter Schwarz Scholar, he is currently researching the impact of AI on journalism and the news industry.
Background: The Hans Bausch Media Prize of the SWR
The non-profit foundation Hans Bausch Media Prize of the SWR serves to promote science, research and innovation in the media sector. This is achieved in particular by the awarding of the media prize of the same name in the amount of 5,000 euros, which is awarded once a year for scientific work in the German-speaking area. When awarding the prize, the SWR works closely with the Institute for Media Studies at the University of Tübingen.
Expert jury from media practice and research
Members of the board of the foundation and the jury are:
Professor Kai Gniffke, SWR director and chairman of the board and jury of the SWR Hans Bausch Media Prize
Stefanie Schneider, SWR State Broadcasting Director Baden-Württemberg
Thomas Dauser, SWR Director of Innovation Management and Digital Transformation
Professor Tanja Thomas, Chair of Media Studies at the University of Tübingen with a focus on the transformation of media culture
Professor Martina Thiele, Chair of Media Studies at the University of Tübingen with a focus on digitization and social responsibility
Professor Sascha Dickel, Department of Media Sociology and Social Theory at the Johannes Gutenberg University in Mainz