Fight back against flood of fake news and AI content on tech platforms, media leaders urge PM

Keir Starmer must give more support to trusted UK journalism in the face of soaring levels of fake news on tech platforms, the media industry urges in a new campaign. In a letter to the Prime Minister, leading figures from newspapers and broadcasting urge him to take steps to address the misinformation flourishing online. And warning him of the risk of artificial intelligence (AI) to the future of journalism, they urge him to give the Competition and Markets Authority the tools to address anti-competitive behaviour by tech giants, such as favouring unverifiable online content in search results over real news sources. Launching the Journalism Matters campaign, the News Media Association (NMA) – representing publishers – and BBC, ITN and Sky bosses call for action. The NMA's chief executive Owen Meredith said: 'In today's uncertain world, trusted sources of information matter more than ever. 'Yet the tech platforms – the main gatekeepers to news – are downgrading the visibility of trusted journalism in favour of AI-generated slop, all while using journalistic content to train AI products with no transparency or oversight. 'This situation is unsustainable, and urgent action is required. 'The Prime Minister must give his full backing to trusted journalism, otherwise we risk creating an information ecosystem that is filled entirely with mis and dis information.' Deborah Turness, the chief executive of BBC News, said: 'AI can bring endless opportunities. However, our research has shown the dangers of distortion from AI assistants which could undermine people's trust in facts. It's vital we take steps to address these dangers.' ITN chief executive Rachel Corp said: 'We're beginning to see real benefits from combining human expertise with AI – from fact-checking President Trump's election speeches to analysing vast datasets. 'But there's also a sharp rise in misleading content. ITN will always uphold high standards – the challenge now is ensuring people can access and recognise reliable information. 'To achieve this, we need Government support – to promote the responsible use of AI.' Sky News Group executive chairman David Rhodes said: The public's trust is at the heart of what we do, which is why Sky News is supporting clear, fair rules.