--- title: "Should Big Tech credit the news sources it uses in AI?" description: "Plus, how Americans view technology companies" date: "2024-05-02" authors: - name: "lwang" url: "https://www.pewresearch.org/newsletter/the-briefing/should-big-tech-credit-the-news-sources-it-uses-in-ai/" --- # Should Big Tech credit the news sources it uses in AI? ![](https://www.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/prc-logo.png){.aligncenter width=409} --- May 2, 2024 # The Briefing **☀️ Happy Thursday!** *The Briefing is your guide to the world of news and information*.* [**Sign up here!**](https://www.pewresearch.org/sign-up-for-the-briefing/)* **In today*’*s email:** - **Featured story:** Should Big Tech credit the news sources it uses in AI? - **New from Pew Research Center:** How Americans view technology companies - **In other news:** A look at Columbia University’s radio station during the student protests - **Looking ahead:** EU officials to investigate Meta over disinformation concerns - **Chart of the week:** Protecting press freedom versus preventing false information 🔥 **Featured story** This week, **several newspapers controlled by Alden Global Capital filed a lawsuit against Microsoft and OpenAI** for [allegedly using millions of copyrighted articles](https://www.nytimes.com/2024/04/30/business/media/newspapers-sued-microsoft-openai.html?unlocked_article_code=1.oU0.rw13.BUd-iupR_iNx&smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare) without permission to train their AI chatbots. Another recently announced app, Rio, plans to [use AI to aggregate news headlines](https://techcrunch.com/2024/04/26/curio-raises-funds-for-rio-an-ai-news-anchor-in-an-app/) into a daily news briefing – but only with news articles that it has explicit consent to use. A [Pew Research Center survey](https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2024/03/26/many-americans-think-generative-ai-programs-should-credit-the-sources-they-rely-on/) from earlier this year found that **54% of Americans say AI programs** that generate text and images **need to credit sources** they rely on to produce their responses, compared with just 14% who say the programs don’t need to credit sources. About a third of Americans (32%) say they are not sure. 🚨 **New from Pew Research Center** Most Americans are wary of social media’s role in politics and its overall impact on the country, and these concerns are ticking up among Democrats, according to a [new Pew Research Center survey](https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2024/04/29/americans-views-of-technology-companies-2/). Still, Republicans stand out on several measures, with majorities believing major technology companies are biased toward liberals. Key findings include: - Since 2020, more Americans believe social media companies wield **too much political power**. - Most Americans think social media sites **actively censor political viewpoints** they disagree with. - Overall, Americans are more likely to think Big Tech companies **support the views of liberals over conservatives** than the other way around. - Americans favor **more rather than less regulation** of Big Tech companies. [Read more about the findings](https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2024/04/29/americans-views-of-technology-companies-2/). 📌 **In other news** - [Columbia University’s radio station](https://www.businessinsider.com/columbia-university-protests-hamilton-hall-wkcr-student-radio-2024-5) becomes an essential news source during the **student protests** - How a **NYC museum** used [Black newspaper archives](https://www.niemanlab.org/2024/04/the-new-york-city-tenement-museum-used-historic-black-newspapers-to-create-its-latest-exhibit/) for its latest exhibit - **China** tightens internet rules [requiring social media giants to monitor sensitive posts](https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cxe8dzz4jdpo) - A look back at the first [abolitionist newspaper](https://theemancipator.org/2024/04/30/generations/abolitionist-newspaper-emancipator-enslaved-family/) in** **America - **Political parties in India** are spending millions on [AI-generated election content](https://restofworld.org/2024/india-elections-ai-content/) - A **true crime podcast's** success reflects the [evolving journalism landscape](https://www.courthousenews.com/true-crime-podcasts-offer-new-possibilities-for-in-depth-journalism-just-read-the-labels-first/) - **Republic of Georgia’s** controversial media law sparks [massive protests](https://apnews.com/article/georgia-media-legislation-foreign-influence-protest-tbilisi-0136e0b01eb73c44a43bd0fe6c4ef447) 📅 **Looking ahead** **European Union officials** are set to [investigate Meta](https://www.cnn.com/2024/04/29/tech/eu-investigates-meta-election-interference-foreign-disinformation/index.html) over concerns that the company has **not done enough to combat disinformation** on the platform ahead of upcoming elections. Concern over Russian interference in EU elections is one of the key factors in the investigation. In the U.S., six-in-ten Americans said in 2020 that made-up news and information that was intended to mislead the public had a “major impact” on the **presidential election that year**, according to a [Pew Research Center study](https://www.pewresearch.org/journalism/2020/12/15/concerns-about-made-up-election-news-are-high-and-both-parties-think-it-is-mostly-intended-to-hurt-their-side/). And about half (48%) said the same about social media companies’ decisions on election content on their platforms. 📊 **Chart of the week** The chart of the week comes from [our new analysis](https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2024/04/23/most-americans-say-a-free-press-is-highly-important-to-society/) on views of press freedom in the U.S. While Americans largely value the concept of press freedom, they are more evenly divided when it comes to the tension between protecting a free press and preventing the spread of false information. Certain groups are more likely to say press freedom should always be protected, including men, White Americans and Republicans. [![A horizontal stacked bar chart showing that White Americans, Republicans are more likely to favor protecting press freedom over curbing misinformation.](https://www.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2024/05/SR_24.04.23_press-freedom_4.png?w=420){.aligncenter width=400}](https://www.pewresearch.org/?attachment_id=165155) --- *👋 That's all for this week. * The Briefing is compiled by Pew Research Center staff, including Naomi Forman-Katz, Jacob Liedke, Sarah Naseer, Christopher St. Aubin, Luxuan Wang and Emily Tomasik. It is edited by Katerina Eva Matsa, Michael Lipka and Mark Jurkowitz, and copy edited by Rebecca Leppert. *Do you like this newsletter? 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