Sports Illustrated's Removal of Articles from Fake Authors and AI-Generated Proofs
Sports Illustrated removes articles published with fictitious author identities and AI-generated profile pictures, following revelations of the renowned magazine's involvement in the matter
Sports Illustrated revealed on Monday that it had removed multiple articles from its website after a report discovered that the magazine had featured these articles under fake author names and profile pictures created by artificial intelligence. The report, released by Futurism, revealed that the magazine had published several articles with authors that could not be identified outside of Sports Illustrated's website. These articles were paired with AI-generated profile photos that Futurism found being sold on digital platforms specializing in AI-produced headshots.
Some of the Sports Illustrated writers disappeared from the website and their articles started showing up under different names of authors who couldn't be found online. The likenesses of these authors were also being sold on AI headshot marketplaces. The Arena Group, which has owned and licensed Sports Illustrated since 2019, stated that the missing product review articles were actually created by a third-party company, AdVon Commerce, after the report was published.
"We have discovered that some writers at AdVon used a pen name or pseudonym in certain articles to protect their privacy, actions that we do not condone. We are removing the content while our internal investigation continues and we have officially ended the partnership," stated the spokesperson.
According to the Arena Group spokesperson, writers, editors, and researchers at AdVon adhere to a policy that includes the use of counter-plagiarism and counter-AI software when creating content.
"We are constantly monitoring our partners and were in the process of reviewing when these allegations surfaced," the spokesperson told CNN. "AdVon has confirmed that all the articles in question were authored and edited by humans."
AdVon did not respond to a CNN request for comment. However, the questions raised on Monday marked the second instance in as many months that AdVon has been embroiled in an AI publishing controversy.
In October, Gannett-owned Reviewed faced scrutiny over reports that AI was used to create stories. Upon investigation, it was found that the website contained multiple articles attributed to authors who could not be located online and whose existence could not be verified by their colleagues. Despite this, Gannett denied that AI was used to write the articles. In response to a report by Futurism on Monday, the Sports Illustrated Union, representing magazine staff writers, expressed shock and concern over the allegations.
"The union condemned these practices as a violation of our journalistic principles," said a statement. "We vehemently oppose being linked to something that is so disrespectful to our readers."
Writers from Sports Illustrated also expressed their disgust in social media posts.
Emma Baccellieri, a staff writer for the magazine, emphasized the importance of integrity and credibility in journalism, especially in a publication like Sports Illustrated. She expressed her distress after reading a report that she found troubling.
Mitch Goldich, another writer and editor at the magazine, echoed Baccellieri's concerns and emphasized the damage that unethical practices can do to the credibility of their hardworking colleagues.
The Arena Group is just one of many publishing companies that have been affected by the rapid integration of AI technology. Over the past year, numerous news organizations have embraced AI to partially automate and accelerate the publication of specific types of stories, resulting in varied outcomes. For example, the Online News Association has released a practical guide to help newsrooms navigate this technology.
However, news organizations generally remain hesitant to rely entirely on AI for story production. This was evident during Gannett's experiment with the technology this summer, during which the platform produced multiple poorly executed high school sports articles.
