CNN condemns Microsoft for publishing “false and bizarre” news stories on MSN.com, one of the most popular websites where millions of Americans consume news daily.
CNN has learned from insiders familiar with the site’s operations that Microsoft’s increased reliance on automation and artificial intelligence (AI) instead of human editors to curate its homepage is the reason behind the recent surge in false and bizarre stories.
MSN.com, the default start page on Microsoft-powered devices including the “Edge” browser, employed over 800 editors in 2018 to curate news stories for millions of readers globally. However, in recent years, Microsoft has laid off editors, replacing them with what they refer to as “automation,” which many believe to be AI.
CNN points out the contradiction in Microsoft’s president publicly advocating for the responsible use of AI while the apparent role of AI in amplifying fake stories raises concerns about the company’s adoption of this emerging technology and its implications for the journalism industry as a whole. CNN also highlights that Microsoft’s AI-generated poll on the cause of a swimmer’s death was not its first blunder caused by AI.
In September, Microsoft mistakenly republished an article about Brandon Hunter, a former NBA player who unexpectedly passed away at the age of 42, with the headline, “Brandon Hunter useless at 42.” The following month, Microsoft republished a false article claiming that San Francisco Supervisor Dean Preston had resigned due to criticism from Elon Musk.
Some of the articles Microsoft features were originally published by obscure websites, which would have gone unnoticed amidst the daily influx of online misinformation. However, Microsoft’s decision to republish stories from fringe outlets exposes them to potentially millions of additional readers, giving these false claims credibility. Former editors at Microsoft revealed that without the use of AI, such false stories or articles from low-quality websites would not receive prominent placement on Microsoft’s platform. Ryn Pfeuffer, a contractor who worked intermittently for Microsoft, received news in May 2020 that her entire team was being laid off. In a statement, Microsoft confirmed that 2020 marked the beginning of their transition to a “personalized feed” tailored to user interests using an algorithm.
MSN has also published other junk content, including fabricated stories about mermaid-catching fishermen and Bigfoot sightings, following the replacement of human editors with automation, as reported by the tech news site Futurism.
“Are you noticing a pattern here? The company pushes out low-quality AI content and only takes action once it’s publicly exposed, before moving on to the next disaster.”
We’ve been aware of Microsoft’s MSN news portal circulating AI-generated gibberish for more than a year now. The website has been distributing misleading and often incomprehensible content to hundreds of millions of readers monthly. If MSN sets an example of the tech industry’s obsession with AI in the information ecosystem, we’re in for a bumpy ride.
One user, whose default browser switched from Chrome to Microsoft Edge after a software update, described their experience changing their homepage to MSN.com as resembling reading a sensational tabloid at the grocery store checkout counter.
A company spokesperson assured CNN that Microsoft is “committed to addressing the recent issue of low-quality articles.”
