In partnership with the MacArthur Foundation and the Ford Foundation, the Notre Dame-IBM Technology Ethics Lab is pleased to announce its support for the AI Spotlight Series, a program presented by the Pulitzer Center and “designed to equip reporters and editors—whether on the tech beat or any other—with the knowledge and skills to cover and shape coverage of AI worldwide.”

Designed to train 1,000 reporters and editors with an emphasis on journalists from the Global South and from communities underrepresented in media, the program consists of three tracks: an introductory class for reporters on any desk, an in-depth course for reporters focused on covering AI or deepening their knowledge of AI reporting; and a module for editors commissioning stories and thinking strategically about their team’s overall coverage. Noted technology journalists, including Karen Hao, Gabriel Sean Geiger, and Gideon Lichfield, will lead a series of online courses designed to provide journalists with the knowledge and tools they need to report on artificial intelligence and its potential societal, economic, and political impacts.

"As AI becomes increasingly pervasive, society must better understand its promise, challenges, and potential societal impacts,” says Nuno Moniz, managing director of the Notre Dame–IBM Technology Ethics Lab. "It's critical to provide training and tools to the journalists who will influence how the world understands artificial intelligence, and the AI Spotlight Series is a significant step in that urgent direction."

“The rapid expansion of AI is unprecedented and magnifies the need for responsible reporting on its profound influence on society and business,” said Catherine Quinlan, Vice President, AI Ethics at IBM.

The Pulitzer Center, founded in 2006 and based in Washington, D.C., supports journalists operating in more than 80 countries who cover international and systemic crises and under-reported stories across the world.

Formed in 2020 and funded by a 10-year, $20 million commitment from IBM, the Notre Dame-IBM Technology Ethics Lab’s mission is to promote human values in technology through applied projects that address core ethical challenges of the digital age. The Tech Ethics Lab is a part of the Notre Dame Ethics Initiative, a cross-campus effort to establish Notre Dame as a premier university for research in ethics that guides and strengthens public understanding of the most significant ethical issues of our time, including ethical challenges related to emerging technologies.

Originally published by Tech Ethics Lab at techethicslab.nd.edu on April 11, 2024.