AI decides what we see online. It’s time digital platforms tell us exactly how they do it
AI decides what we see online. It’s time digital platforms tell us exactly how they do it
Publish Date: 2026-04-28 16:09:00
Source Domain: theconversation.com
If you suffer from information overload, or are unsure what to trust online, you’re not alone. Australians are increasingly disengaging from traditional news, turning instead to social media, influencers and – more recently – generative artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots and summaries.
It’s a murky, polluted world where opaque algorithms decide what you see. They’re known to have little regard for accuracy, quality or the evidence-based reporting we need for a safe and thriving community.
At the same time, local journalism is disappearing. Distrust in mainstream news is growing. This issue has escalated rapidly with “zero-click” AI search results. Instead of serving links, they show the information upfront. This decreases traffic to news websites, further reducing audience, subscription opportunities and revenue. The rapid spread of AI has pushed an already fragile news ecosystem closer to breaking point.
Earlier this year, a News Futures: Media Policy Roundtable brought together 45 leaders from industry, government, not-for-profit organisations, digital platforms and academia.
The attendees agreed that the opacity of algorithms on social media, search and AI platforms – which decide what is shown, ranked or omitted with little accountability – has become a core threat to journalism and audience trust. Published today, the resulting report proposes a paradigm shift in how we support and define journalism in Australia.
Misinformation is flourishing
Misinformation flourishes when there is high demand for information but insufficient verified evidence. A healthy (and prominent) supply of quality news and information can counterbalance misinformation. Our research shows a strong link between news consumption and people’s ability to verify misinformation.
For consumers, laws and civic education have not kept pace with AI content, such as deepfakes. There are no clear standards for showing where online content comes from or…
