Utilisation, Effects, and Challenges of Artificial Intelligence in Journalism Among Practitioners in North-East , Nigeria
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.32350/mcr.61.02Keywords:
Artificial Intelligence, Journalism, Nigeria, North-East, PractitionersAbstract
Artificial Intelligence represents the climax of the invention and deployment of digital technologies in journalism across the globe. There is no doubt that AI has contributed to the automation of journalism, thereby boosting efficiency and productivity in the process. The focus of this research is on the uses and gratifications of AI in journalism amongst journalists in select states of North-East, Nigeria. The three select states were: Adamawa, Borno, and Gombe. The research design used was survey, while the population of the study was a cumulative of all the registered journalists in the three select states- 1, 642. The sample size was 286, while the sampling techniques were multi-stage and simple random sampling techniques. A major finding of the research, amongst others was that there were several uses of AI amongst the journalists in the three select states in North-East, such as fact-checking, data analysis, newswriting and reporting, and interview transcription, amongst others. The author recommended, amongst others also, that Nigerian software developers should be encouraged to develop AI software by the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), in partnership with Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ), so as to take care of the peculiarities of journalism.
Downloads
References
Babbie, E. R. (2020). The practice of social research (15th ed.). Cengage Learning.
Calvo-Rubio, L. M., & Ufarte-Ruiz, M. J. (2020). Artificial intelligence and journalism: Current situation and expectations in the Portuguese sports media. Journalism and Media, 1(3), 510–520. https://doi.org/10.3390/journalmedia1030035
Casswell, J., Gurevych, I., Fink, K., & Dörr, K. N. (2021). Automated journalism and professional identity: A professional analysis of news writers and news consumers. Digital Journalism, 9(7), 850–869. https://doi.org/10.1080/21670811.2021.1912621
Davenport, T., & Kalakota, R. (2019). The potential for artificial intelligence in healthcare. Future Healthcare Journal, 6(2), 94–98. https://doi.org/10.7861/futurehosp.6-2-94
Davis, F. D., Bagozzi, R. P., & Warshaw, P. R. (1989). User acceptance of computer technology: A comparison of two theoretical models. Management Science, 35(8), 982–1003. https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.35.8.982
Deuze, M. (2005). What is journalism? Professional identity and ideology of journalists reconsidered. Journalism, 6(4), 442–464. https://doi.org/10.1177/1464884905056815
Dubai Future Foundation. (2023). 100 practical applications and use cases of generative AI in media. https://www.dubaifuture.ae/reports/100-practical-applications-and-use-cases-of-generative-ai/
Fidler, R. (2003). Mediamorphosis: Understanding new media. Pine Forge Press.
Gondwe, G. (2023). ChatGPT and the Global South: How are journalists in sub-Saharan Africa engaging with generative AI? Online Media and Global Communication, 2(2), 228–249. https://doi.org/10.1515/omgc-2023-0023
Guanah, J. S., Agbanu, V. N., & Obi, I. (2020). Artificial intelligence and journalism practice in Nigeria: Perception of journalists in Benin City, Edo State. International Review of Humanities Studies, 5(2), 698–715. https://doi.org/10.7454/irhs.v5i2.268
Gutierrez-Caneda, B., Vazquez-Herrero, J., & Lopez-Garcia, X. (2023). AI application in journalism: ChatGPT and the uses and risks of an emergent technology. Profesional de la Información, 32(5), 1–16. https://doi.org/10.3145/epi.2023.sep.14
Hong, C., & Tewksbury, D. (2024). Can AI become Walter Cronkite? Testing the machine heuristic, the hostile media effect, and political news written by artificial intelligence. Digital Journalism, 12(4), 1–24. https://doi.org/10.1080/21670811.2024.2323000
Ignatidou, S. (2019). AI-driven personalization in the digital media. Chatham House.
Kioko, P. M., Booker, N., Chege, N., & Kimweli, P. (2022). The adoption of artificial intelligence in newsrooms in Kenya: A multi-case study. European Scientific Journal, 18(22), 278–296. https://doi.org/10.19044/esj.2022.v18n22p278
Kovach, B., & Rosenstiel, T. (2021). The elements of journalism (4th ed.). Crown.
Labaran, M. A. (2025). Artificial intelligence and its implication on the ethical practice of journalism in Nigeria. Nasarawa Journal of Multimedia and Communication Studies, 7(2), 159–172.
Lan, C., & Zhou, R. (2023). Artificial intelligence technology in the field of broadcasting and hosting. In G. Grigoras & P. Lorenz (Eds.), Advances in artificial intelligence, big data and algorithms (pp. 41–47). IOS Press. https://doi.org/10.3233/FAIA230790
Martinez-Martinez, I., Aguado-Terrón, J., & Sánchez-Cobarro, P. (2022). Smart advertising: Innovative disruptions and artificial intelligence. Revista Latina de Comunicación Social, 80, 69–90. https://doi.org/10.4185/RLCS-2022-1693
Noain-Sánchez, A. (2022). Addressing the Impact of Artificial Intelligence on Journalism: the perception of experts, journalists and academics. Communication & Society, 35(3), 105–121.
Newman, N. (2020). Journalism, media and technology: Trends and predictions 2020. Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism.
Nishal, S., & Diakopoulos, N. (2024). Envisioning the applications and implications of generative AI for news media (arXiv No. 2402.18835). ArXiv. https://arxiv.org/abs/2402.18835
Onwe, E. C., Nworie, C. S., & Ajibo, C. B. (2023). Luddite hysteria: How journalists in Enugu perceive automated journalism and job insecurity. Nigerian Journal of Social Psychology, 6(2), 82–92.
Pinto, B. (2024). Artificial intelligence (AI) in Brazilian digital journalism: Historical context and innovative processes. Journalism and Media, 5(1), 325–341. https://doi.org/10.3390/journalmedia5010022
Radcliffe, D. (2023). Unlocking the power of AI: Six lessons from AP for publishers. SSRN. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4376372
Shin, Y., & Sun, L. (2024). How generative AI is transforming journalism: Development, application and ethics. Journalism and Media, 5(2), 582–594. https://doi.org/10.3390/journalmedia5020039
Singh, A. S., & Masuku, M. B. (2013). Fundamentals of applied research and sampling techniques. International Journal of Medical and Applied Sciences, 2(4), 124–132.
Túñez-López, J. M., Toural-Bran, C., & Vaz-Álvarez, M. (2021). Impact of artificial intelligence on journalism: Transformations in the company, products, contents and professional profile. Communication & Society, 34(1), 177–193. https://doi.org/10.15581/003.34.1.177-193
Udoh, W. A., Nsude, I., & Oyeleke, A. S. (2021). Awareness of artificial intelligence for news production among journalists in Ebonyi State, Nigeria. International Journal of Network and Communication Research, 7(1), 33–45. https://doi.org/10.37745/ijncr.16/vol7n13345
Umeora, C. C. (2025). Artificial intelligence and journalistic practices in Nigeria: Navigating awareness, adoption, and structural challenges. Multidisciplinary Research and Development Journal International, 7(1), 136–152.
Wang, S., Menon, S., Long, T., Henderson, K., Li, D., Crowston, K., Hansen, M., Nickerson, J. V., & Chilton, L. B. (2023). Co-creating news reels on social media with generative AI (arXiv No. 2304.09653). ArXiv. https://arxiv.org/abs/2304.09653
Yu, Y., Huang, K., & Jones, B. (2020). Artificial intelligence in media: Journalists' perceptions and organizational talk. Communication, Technologies and Development, 8(2), 334–346. https://doi.org/10.4000/ctd.3262
Zelizer, B. (2015). Definitions of journalism. In G. Overholser & K. H. Jamieson (Eds.), Institutions of American democracy: The press (pp. 66–80). Oxford University Press.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Barikui Nnaane

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
