Explain your journalism: this is how we used AI to build trust

Today’s audiences don’t just ask why we published a story, they increasingly ask why we didn’t. This growing scrutiny forces newsrooms not only to produce quality journalism but also to explain the reasoning behind editorial choices clearly and consistently. At Aftonbladet, together with IN/LAB, we tested a new way of doing just that; short, transparent explanations embedded directly in articles. The impact was clear; reader trust in the content increased measurably (and yes, we have the data). But there was a problem; creating these notes was too time-consuming for busy editors. Our solution? An AI assistant trained on press ethics guidelines and previous decisions that generates concise justifications in seconds. In this interactive workshop, we’ll take participants through the experiment, share our results, and then co-create. Together we’ll prototype a simple generative AI “transparency assistant.” We’ll also discuss when automation is not suitable as regards press ethics. You’ll leave with prompts, templates, and a practical roadmap to bring explainability into your own newsroom. Organised in association with Aftonbladet and IN/LAB. Con: Martin Schori (director AI and innovation Aftonbladet), Agnes Stenbom (founder and head of IN/LAB)