The story of journalism has been one of acceleration, marked by increasing expectations to do more with less. The rise of AI offers a constitutive moment: a junction where journalists are confronting existential questions about their roles and routines. AI is transforming how we create and access information, and challenging journalism's longstanding authority.

This book critically examines what AI means for journalists, audiences, and the future of news. Exploring questions about human labor and creativity, platform power and democratic accountability, and literacy and learning, the book grapples with concerns about the roles of humans and machines in media production, distribution, and consumption. The authors explore how this transformation also offers an opportunity to break away from tired routines and harness AI in ways that serve the public good.

Written for students, media professionals, and anyone interested in journalism, this book makes the case for why this moment is uniquely significant for understanding news and public life.

Seth C. Lewis is the Elcan Jefferson Scholars Foundation Distinguished Professor of Artificial Intelligence and Media Studies at the University of Virginia.

Rodrigo Zamith is Associate Professor of Journalism at the University of Massachusetts Amherst.

Tomás Dodds is Assistant Professor of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.