In recent years, the phrase “print is dead” has been used in reference to publications making the switch from print to digital. In lieu of printing monthly magazines, many news sources are concentrating on their web-based platforms as they typically reach more people in a shorter amount of time while maximizing profit.
Apparently the Associated Press has found an even faster and cheaper method.
The AP has announced that it will soon switch to an automatic version of writing and reporting for its corporate earnings stories. A computer program that will be able to take a company’s numbers and produce a 150-300-word article about it will soon be tasked with penning the quarterly corporate earnings reports.
The switch will be made in part because the program is now able to take the “by the numbers” information and produce a readable format suitable for its users. The AP's Managing Editor, Lour Ferrara, ensures people that the switch will not result in the termination of any employees.
Ferrara states, “Instead, our journalists will focus on reporting and writing stories about what the numbers mean and what gets said in earnings calls on the day of the release, identifying trends and finding exclusive stories we can publish at the time of the earnings reports.”
The new equipment combines technology from Automated Insights and Zacks Investment Research. The automated system will allow the AP to create more than 10 times the number of earnings reports in comparison to past quarters.
Guess we probably should've listened to Bill Gates when he told us how quickly the machines would take our jobs.
[via Mashable]
