Sports Illustrated magazine is the subject of controversy after publishing and then deleting articles that included photos of authors who do not exist.
“We learned [qu’une tierce partie] “We have asked authors to use a pseudonym in certain articles to protect the authors’ privacy – actions we do not condone – and we are removing the content while our internal investigation continues,” an Arena Group spokesperson said. which the “Arena Group” operated. According to CNN, in “Sports Illustrated” magazine since 2019.
The company announced on Monday that it had ended its partnership with the company AdVon Commerce, which created content for its platforms, after an investigation by media outlet Futurism found that certain articles were published under the name and photo of a non-existent author .
The fake authors even came with a description that described them as, for example, someone who grew up on a farm or a “fitness guru who loves trying different foods and drinks.”
This Sports Illustrated story is wild.
The TLDR is that they purchased AI-generated headshots and created fake author profiles so they could post AI-generated content and make it look real.
When asked about it, they deleted the content.
Super sad. SI used to be the best. https://t.co/xgDDtxP9PD pic.twitter.com/Wkq618VFxQ
— Joe Pompliano (@JoePompliano) November 27, 2023
“We continually monitor our partners and were in the midst of an investigation when these allegations were made. AdVon assured us that all the articles in question were written and edited by people,” the spokesman told American media.
For the magazine’s employees, the publication of the investigation would have seemed like a slap in the face, while several employees were “appalled” by the allegations, which could undermine the journalistic credibility of the publication, the Union of “Sports Illustrated” said, according to CNN.
“If true, these practices go against everything we believe in journalism. We regret being associated with something that is so disrespectful to our readers,” the Union stressed.
“In addition to the basic principles of honesty, trust, journalistic ethics, etc., I take the weight of a Sports Illustrated line seriously […] “It was shocking to read this report,” said Emma Baccellieri, editor of the magazine, on X.
AdVon Commerce was contacted by CNN and did not comment. According to American media, the company had already gotten into trouble last October because of similar allegations, this time on the website Reviewed, which is part of USA Today.