Human reporters write every story at Ars Technica. Editors hold the final say on all editorial decisions.
The Hard Rule: Humans Write the News
At Ars Technica, no AI generates headlines or images. Tools can suggest grammar fixes. They cannot write commentary.
Staff members debated the lines. They weighed speed against safety. The outcome was a hard line.
Strict Limits on Workflow Assistance
AI tools can suggest grammar improvements. Reporters must still read every line themselves.
Tools also cannot pull direct quotes from files. A system cannot verify who said those words.
That kind of mistake destroys credibility fast. The newsroom will never accept that risk.
Reporters may ask an AI to summarise long documents. Summarisation saves hours of reading time.
But the output is not truth. AI often misses nuance or invents details.
Every fact must come from the source itself. Human oversight remains the only safe option.
Editors will not approve any story relying on AI for core facts. If a writer used an AI tool, they must tell their editor.
Full disclosure happens before any article goes public. The policy stops generative AI from replacing the reporter’s mind. Only a human can take responsibility for a story.
Why Vague Promises Fail
Other outlets say "responsible use" but never explain the boundaries. One company might allow a draft with minor edits.
Another permits image generation for internal memos. Both phrases hide the rules that govern their tools.
Ars Technica treats "responsible" as a fixed line in the policy. A report is either human-written or it is not.
An image is either human-made or it is flagged. This binary system blocks hallucinations from slipping into the final copy.
Every author must tell an editor when they use a generative AI tool. That disclosure comes before the story goes to print.
The editorial team reviews each disclosure. No story runs without that human check.
The risk of relying on AI summaries for facts is high. A tool might pull a wrong number from a dataset.
It could misattribute a quote to the wrong politician. Even a well-designed prompt cannot guarantee perfect accuracy.
The human reader must verify every statistic. Transparency and Disclosure Requirements remain central to the process.
Editors demand proof of research before publication. This discipline keeps the newsroom honest when the technology evolves.
What Comes Next for Newsrooms
Other outlets will likely adopt similar strict rules soon. The tech journalism industry needs a clear line between assistance and authorship. Readers must know when a tool helps research versus when it writes the story.
