A transformative programme in Prague equips European media executives with AI-driven insights and tools to navigate the future of journalism
The Executive Learning Series successfully concluded with the fourth and final event for 2024. Twenty-four representatives of European media participated in the AI in Media masterclass, organised in Prague from 5-6 December. The programme targeted media professionals in managerial and executive roles, as well as those aspiring to such positions.
Carried out by Thomson Foundation, the masterclass offered tailored learning experiences focused on AI-driven solutions implemented by leading global newsrooms. The primary goal was to create agents of change across the region and equip decision-makers with the knowledge needed to bring these changes to life in their media organisations.
The masterclass began with the introductory session by David Caswell, the founder of StoryFlow Ltd. and a force behind news product innovation at the BBC, Tribune Publishing & Yahoo! He emphasised the importance of understanding the context of AI – its models, tools, and applications. Underlining that theoretical knowledge alone is insufficient, Caswell insisted that real-life implementation is key.
“I think the future is determined not only by what the news industry and publishers do, but by what external players do, and that’s not just the tech companies or the platforms, although it’s definitely them, but I think there’s a lot of startups that are now starting to do things in the kind of news or news-adjacent space”, Caswell concluded.
The second expert that shared her experience with participants was Phoebe Connelly, a senior editor for AI and innovation at The Washington Post. She highlighted the dual challenges and opportunities faced by the media industry as it strives to understand and leverage new technologies like AI.
“AI can be a very powerful tool for speeding the process of how we can report and deliver the news, and no matter what the age or demographic says of an audience, they want to know now what’s happening,” Connely said.
On the second day, the participants got the opportunity to hear from the guest lecturer Liz Lohn from the Financial Times. Her session explored the ethical dilemmas surrounding AI usage. Lohn stressed the importance of trust in an ethical approach to AI implementation.
“I think people can think about AI either as electricity or an atomic bomb, I kind of prefer to think about it as electricity, it can be everywhere enabling things but because of how much agency it can have in itself and make its own decisions. I think it may actually be more on the side of atomic bombs and people are not quite ready to accept those threats and just mitigate them constructively,” Lohn explained.
Participants, who came from diverse backgrounds and levels of knowledge about AI tools, shared their impressions of the workshop, noting that it provided valuable theoretical and practical insights to significantly enhance their future work.
“Great about this programme is it is a really practical learning experience. We get strategic solutions we can implement into the workflows of our company,” said Patryk Stanik, Head of Digital Expansion at Tygodnik Powszechny.
The masterclass emphasized the importance of preserving the core values and principles of journalism while embracing technological transformation.
“This masterclass was very transformative. Now I have the information on AI and I am happy to share it with my colleagues too. Without AI, there is not a way you can be part of digital and transformative media in the region and everywhere in the world,” said Muhamet Hajrullahu, Editor-in-Chief at Telegrafi in Kosovo.
Summarising impressions from the fourth masterclass Thomson Foundation is organising, Asya Metodieva, Media Support Coordinator at Thomson Foundation, pointed to the mission of creating a bridge between the Western Balkans and Central Europe.
“Our main goal is to create agents of change across the region, a network of professionals who are able to create change in their media outlets. We aim to inspire strategic solutions, solutions that can be applied to mid -sized and small sized organisations and help this media, especially those who are under threat in countries like Hungary or Slovakia survive and have long -term business models”, Metodieva added.
The Executive Learning Series offers innovative and practical learning experiences that shape critical skills for strategy-driven media professionals in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) and the Western Balkans (WB). Tailored to encourage an “out-of-the-box” mindset in the media industry, the programme equips participants with the knowledge and tools to implement strategic solutions, fostering growth and sustainability within their organisations.
