This column represents the views of the members of the Executive Board of the Old Gold & Black.

Barring AI’s so-far inevitable mistakes, from bad grammar to false facts, writers using AI sacrifice a paramount part of their journalistic identity — their humanity. 

Journalism requires compassion for the people you write about, and uniquely human appeals to transmit one’s experiences to others. When journalists use AI, they cannot appreciate the gravity of the source and the community’s experiences that they write about. Instead, using AI to practice journalism deprives a source or subject of the humanity to which they are entitled. 

Even then, there is something cathartic and beautiful about writing down or typing out another person’s experience for the world to read. When students plug something into an LLM like ChatGPT, their words are calculated too. They disengage with the uniquely human appeals that only a writer with a heart and pen can wholly bring to life. 

Beyond this, all journalism should be based on the truth. We, as student journalists, have committed to honor the ethical code of journalism — this means reporting on the facts, not generated by AI. The baseline of every good story is a journalist with a strong moral code and an impeccable work ethic. When students use AI, they not only violate ethical codes but they deprive themselves of an invaluable learning experience. 

Wake Forest’s community members each come from a unique background and have their own story to share. While The Old Gold & Black cannot speak with every individual affiliated with the University, using AI and falsifying sources robs even more people of the opportunity to use their voice. Our community has so much passion; it would be a shame to ignore that and use AI instead.

We understand it is a big ask to ditch ChatGPT entirely, and we understand how it may be tempting to rely on its power. But to our Old Gold & Black community, we want to make it clear that AI has no place in student journalism. 

We hope that reporting allows writers to attend an event they would not have otherwise, speak with students, staff or faculty they have not previously met and write an article that informs others on what is happening in the Wake Forest community. There is real value in journalism, and the Old Gold & Black has the privilege of giving a voice to aspiring writers. Using AI undermines this opportunity and the very principles journalism stands for.