To the editor:

In Mr. Vennie-Vollrath’s March 15 letter to the editor (“No place for plagiarism in newspapers”) he wrote: “Our local newspaper is no place for plagiarism.” Is he prepared to go to court with evidence that the accused letter-writer was using AI “to deceive”? Because technically, plagiarism isn’t illegal until a malicious intent can be proven (much like defamation). Nor do legal sources agree that passing AI generated ideas or words off as one’s own is plagiarism — since AI consists of mass compilation, not a direct quote from any particular person or publication.

And therein lies the rub for English teachers like me and newspaper editors who consider it unethical to take credit for someone else’s words by not using quotation marks or crediting the author/source. Purposeful plagiarism aside, I’m wondering if the old-fashioned method of footnoting is any protection from unmonitored social media, the internet and news feeds; all somewhat influenced and affected by AI?

I think the real danger is that AI is embedded in system-wide computer programming designed to maintain our attention. The computer tracks and reacts to what it perceives as our interests. (That’s the “algorithms” to which Mr. Vennie-Vollrath refers.) However, AI isn’t configured with ethics. If you click on child pornography, conspiracy theories, incendiary anti-government plots, scams — no problem. It will feed that to you non-stop.

While extremist right-wing pundits, conmen and internet profiteers continue to defend AI (despite the resulting harm from lies that spin “alternate realities”) I’m afraid AI-writing-apps are the least of our problems.

Martha Hodges

Massena