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28 September 2026 Would you like your news with or without hallucinations? To mark World News Day 2026, AFP's Global News Director Phil Chetwynd is publishing an opinion piece on t
Developing
In Short: On World News Day 2026, Phil Chetwynd, Global News Director at AFP, is publishing an opinion piece reflecting on the current state of the media landscape.
Chetwynd notes that traditional news agencies like AFP, Reuters, and AP were once seen as slow compared to social media platforms like Twitter, with some suggesting that citizen journalism could replace professional reporting.
He points out that AI tools such as ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, and Grok can now quickly summarize global news, raising questions about the value of traditional journalism.
Chetwynd emphasizes that reliable news agencies like AFP provide content that adheres to ethical standards and transparent charters, ensuring that their clients can trust the information.
He also highlights the resilience of news agencies in challenging environments, asking who documents events in places like Iran, Egypt, or Syria when internet access is restricted or journalists are jailed.
Chetwynd notes that social media algorithms were not designed to prioritize truth, suggesting that traditional news agencies still play a crucial role in providing accurate and reliable information.
Despite numerous predictions of its demise, Chetwynd argues that the news agency model remains vital in today's complex media ecosystem.
Background
Apple has officially launched pre-orders for the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max, with orders shipping out starting September 18. T-Mobile is offering a free iPhone 18 Pro phone with eligible carrier switches or trades.
Starting tomorrow, NASA's Astronomy Picture of the Day will be available at science.nasa.gov/apod.
What's still developing
- To mark World News Day 2026 this Monday, 28 September, Phil Chetwynd is publishing an opinion piece on the current state of the media.
- First we were told we were slower than Twitter and that our global network of salaried journalists was redundant because every citizen was a journalist now.
- ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini or Grok can scan the world’s journalism output in seconds and spit out five juicy paragraphs to tell you about anything going on in the world.
- Our clients use the content without hesitation because they know it has been gathered in an ethically correct way according to the transparent charters and trust principles which guide the work of all our journalists.
- The obituaries of news agencies have been written on many occasions over the past two decades.
- What happens when the autocrats shut down the internet or throw your citizens in jail?
- Who continues to document the story in Iran or Egypt or Syria for the outside world?