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Manila Bulletin devider Business devider The Economy devider AI offers opportunities, but poses risks for Philippine news media—PIDS

AI offers opportunities, but poses risks for Philippine news media—PIDS

Published Dec 22, 2025 12:00 am  |  Updated Dec 20, 2025 12:02 pm
State-run policy think tank Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) has warned that while artificial intelligence (AI) offers significant opportunities for the Philippine news media, it also presents major challenges that must be carefully managed.
In a Dec. 16 discussion paper titled “AI Use in Philippine News Media: Adoption, Impacts, and Challenges,” PIDS consultant Sheila V. Siar, senior research fellow Ramonette B. Serafica, and research specialist Queen Cel A. Oren said the growing use of AI offers both opportunities and challenges for Philippine news industry. They added that adoption began in the early 2020s and is more widespread among privately owned media than state-run outlets.
The think tank emphasized that AI adoption in newsrooms is largely driven by young, tech-savvy staff seeking innovation, cost efficiency, faster content production, and greater digital competitiveness. However, adoption remains limited due to concerns over inaccuracies, job displacement, subscription costs, and resistance from traditional staff.
According to PIDS, AI tools are increasingly used across various newsroom tasks, from pre-production to post-production, but warned that their use also carries risks such as bias, misinformation, cybersecurity threats, environmental impacts from AI data centers, and potential job displacement.
It noted that news organizations view AI as a tool to support journalists, not replace them, and emphasized that human oversight and transparency are essential to maintaining accuracy and journalistic integrity.
PIDS added that as digital technologies become more common in newsrooms, journalists need to combine traditional reporting skills with new multimedia abilities, including video editing, graphic design, content creation for digital platforms, and working with AI tools.
While AI boosts efficiency in news production, the think tank warned that it also threatens media organizations’ survival, credibility, and intellectual property (IP). Content scraping, platform algorithm changes, audience fragmentation, and the actions of some content creators—such as impersonation and the spread of false information—have reduced revenues and undermined trust. Small and community media, with limited resources, are particularly at risk in the digital age.
To address these challenges, the PIDS paper called for measures to ensure media sustainability, promote ethical AI use, and reduce risks, including policies requiring tech companies to compensate media organizations for content used in AI training and platforms.
The think tank also recommended exploring paywalls, public funding, and public service media models, while urging the adoption of frameworks to hold digital platforms accountable for content moderation and fact-checking.
It further advocated updating laws to address AI-related challenges and providing subsidies, tax incentives, and training to support the digital transformation of small media organizations.
PIDS additionally highlighted the need to invest in open-source AI tools tailored to the Philippines, including support for local languages and culture. It also urged the updating of media codes of conduct for ethical AI use, requiring content creators to establish their own guidelines, and pushing for the creation of a Digital Media Standards Coalition.
The PIDS paper also called for updating journalism education to include the ethical and effective use of AI, with a focus on critical thinking, human oversight, and adherence to professional standards.
It also emphasized the need to strengthen media and information literacy (MIL) by teaching digital skills responsibly from early childhood to senior high school and expanding programs to reach disadvantaged groups outside formal education.
Finally, PIDS underscored the importance of bridging digital and AI gaps by improving internet connectivity and launching a national upskilling program to prepare the workforce for AI adoption.
The think tank concluded that while AI offers significant opportunities for the Philippine news media, careful management and collaboration among stakeholders are essential to ensure sustainability, integrity, and continued public trust.
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