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AI and the Future of Journalism: Embracing Innovation While Upholding Ethics
Gerald Kombo
February 18, 2025
As Africa’s media landscape undergoes rapid transformation, Artificial Intelligence (AI) is emerging as both a powerful tool and a disruptive force. The Media Council of Kenya (MCK), alongside key industry stakeholders, has been actively discussing how AI can enhance journalism while maintaining ethical standards.
This conversation took center stage at a recent high-level media roundtable hosted by Baraza Media Lab in collaboration with the Africa Media Festival under the theme “Innovation: AI for Sustainable Media Futures.”
The discussion brought together journalists, regulators, and AI experts to explore AI’s potential in content creation, newsroom automation, audience engagement, and fact-checking.
AI as a Tool for Journalists, Not a Replacement
During the roundtable, Karanja Jackson, Regional Coordinator of the Media Council of Kenya (MCK), emphasized that AI should be seen as a complementary tool rather than a threat to journalism.
AI has not come to replace the working of journalists. It has come to complement the working of journalists. It is now down to us as the media to understand how to use AI to improve our content creation, dissemination of information, and curation of content.
Jackson stressed that journalistic ethics must remain central to AI adoption, urging journalists to familiarize themselves with MCK’s ethical AI guidelines, which are available on its website. These guidelines focus on fact-checking, responsible reporting, and avoiding the spread of misinformation.
Before you relay information, ensure that this information is accurate, collected responsibly, and does not contribute to misinformation.
MCK has been organizing sensitization forums to equip journalists with AI literacy and best practices. Jackson reiterated that journalists who embrace AI responsibly will have a competitive edge in the evolving media industry.
AI is not replacing journalists; rather, those who understand AI will replace those who do not.
Industry Leaders on AI Adoption in Africa
Other media leaders at the roundtable echoed similar sentiments:
AI is too perfect—where do we draw the line? As African journalists, we cannot remain passive; we must actively participate in shaping AI’s role.
Creativity and human intuition remain crucial, even in an AI-driven media world. Africa lags in AI adoption due to limited exposure, making us consumers rather than creators. Addressing this gap is essential to remain competitive.
Education must adapt to AI’s rise, especially in multimedia journalism. It has become easier to detect AI-generated content, but the key question remains: how do we work smartly with AI rather than fear it?
According to Reuters research, over 50% of global media organizations use AI tools, but Africa’s adoption remains slow due to limited access to technology, training, and regulatory concerns. However, some African media houses are now using AI for newsroom automation, audience analytics, and content verification.
AI and Ethical Journalism: Striking a Balance
As AI adoption rises, the panelists agreed that Africa must invest in digital literacy, AI training, and regulatory frameworks to ensure responsible AI use in journalism.
The Media Council of Kenya (MCK) has taken a proactive role in this process by:
Developing AI usage guidelines for journalists
Raising awareness through training programs
Advocating for fact-checking and ethical AI integration
We should look at AI as an enabler, not an animal that has come to take away what we are doing as journalists.
While AI enhances efficiency in newsrooms, human oversight remains critical to maintaining credibility, storytelling integrity, and editorial judgment.
The Road Ahead: Africa Media Festival 2024
The roundtable discussion also served as a prelude to the Africa Media Festival, scheduled for February 26–27, 2024, at the National Museums of Kenya. This event will further explore AI’s evolving role in African media and foster deeper industry collaboration.
With the Media Council of Kenya, Baraza Media Lab, and other stakeholders championing responsible AI adoption, the future of journalism in Africa lies in leveraging AI to enhance storytelling, uphold ethical journalism, and keep the public well-informed.