Ohio Newspaper Removes Writing From Reporters' Jobs, Hands It To an 'AI Rewrite Specialist'

Source: Slashdot

AI Rewrite Specialist Initiative

Cleveland.com, the digital arm of Ohio’s Plain Dealer newspaper, has removed writing from the workloads of certain reporters and handed that job to what editor Chris Quinn calls an “AI rewrite specialist.” The specialist turns reporter‑gathered material into article drafts.

The reporters on these beats—covering Lorain, Lake, Geauga, and most recently Medina County—are assigned entirely to reporting. They spend their time on in‑person interviews and meeting sources for coffee. Editors review the AI‑produced drafts, and reporters have the final say before publication.

Quinn says the arrangement has effectively freed up an extra workday per week for each reporter. The newsroom adopted this model last year to expand local coverage into counties it could no longer staff with full teams. Quinn described the setup in a February 14 letter after a college journalism student withdrew from a reporting role over the newsroom’s use of AI. In that letter, Quinn blamed journalism schools for the student’s reaction, saying professors have repeatedly told students that AI is bad.

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