“What impact will AI-generated summaries have on the landscape of news media?” I queried Google, opting for the search engine’s innovative AI mode.
In mere moments, I received a succinct summary, accompanied by bullet points categorized under “Benefit, Risk, Challenge, and Opportunity,” as well as an overview of “the strategic outlook for news media.”
The volume of information was sufficient for an entire slide presentation, should that be required.
Additionally, I was provided with links to 18 sources utilized in its composition, along with a cautionary note stating, “AI responses may contain inaccuracies.”
Indeed, a report from February 2025 highlighted that over fifty percent of AI chatbot summaries exhibited issues with accuracy. However, this shortcoming is not the only concern surrounding Google’s AI functionalities.
The Financial Times has revealed that publishers are scrambling to mitigate the “Google Zero” phenomenon following a drastic decline in website traffic.
Since the inception of AI Overviews in May 2024, an adjunct to traditional search, users exposed to it exhibit a significantly reduced likelihood of clicking through to source articles by as much as fifty percent.
According to a Pew Research study, the engagement rate plummeted from 15% to 8% upon encountering AI summaries. Members of the Digital Content Next (DCN) organization reported a staggering 16% decrease in site visits via Google searches in the week following the rollout of Google AI Overviews.
This trend poses significant challenges for media organizations that produce the content upon which Google’s AI relies. If audiences fail to engage with the articles, they forgo the necessary revenue derived from subscriptions and advertisements.
Such financial strain threatens journalists’ livelihoods and the sustainability of their sources. It is hardly surprising, then, that the proprietor of the Daily Mail has called for regulatory interventions against the tech behemoth.
While Google is not the sole entity employing generative AI summaries, its stature as a formidable player in search and advertising bestows it with strategic market status.
The Professional Publishers Association (PPA) has submitted evidence regarding the decline in traffic to the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), demanding corrective measures to inhibit this troubling trend.
This scenario is not the first instance wherein media entities have accused digital platforms of exploiting their original content. When Facebook launched Instant Articles in 2015, designed to facilitate easier access to publishers’ content on mobile devices, many feared it concentrated more power—and consequently editorial oversight—in the hands of social media platforms. However, Facebook did provide a revenue-sharing model with original content creators.
Jason Kint, CEO of DCN, asserts that the current paradigm is distinctive; AI summaries effectively supplant the very content from which they derive, actively dissuading readers from pursuing the original works.
Much akin to AI-generated music or artwork, which emerge from human innovation, AI-generated news summaries consume original journalism only to occupy its space. Yet, the sustainability of AI-generated news is questionable without a steady influx of authentic journalistic content to summarize.
What recourse do media organizations possess? Prohibiting permission for their content to be featured in AI summaries would simply eliminate their links from search results, precipitating an even greater decline in website traffic.
A plausible solution lies in the establishment of licensing agreements, enabling AI platforms like Google to access original content in exchange for a share of the resultant revenue.
OpenAI has already forged licensing agreements with major media outlets, permitting its Generative AI systems to train on their content. Google is strategically positioned to negotiate similar arrangements, which would permit it to utilize publisher content as both foundational data and material for news summaries that retain audience engagement on its own platform.
Will such agreements ensure the autonomy and economic viability of news organizations? Undoubtedly, they will not. However, the options may be limited.
As Google AI mode indicated: “For the news media, AI summaries signify an ongoing power struggle with technological platforms regarding content distribution and audience engagement.”
Source link: Unherd.com.
