The Walkley Foundation said today that it is misleading and inaccurate to suggest that the Foundation itself funded Cosmos Magazine for a project that utilised AI and machine learning to assist in repurposing some of their existing science stories into text, video and audio explainers.
Walkley Foundation CEO Shona Martyn said, “No Walkley Foundation funds are involved in the payment of grants in the Digital Innovation category of the Meta Australian News Fund. Ours is an arms-length administrative arrangement. The Walkley Foundation, its staff, directors and judging board play no part in its funding or judging.
“The Walkley Foundation requires strict adherence to legal and ethical standards. If grant recipients breach their contractual responsibilities, we act accordingly and seek repayment.”
A number of journalists who have written for Cosmos Magazine have raised concerns that their material may be used by the AI tool without their consent or appropriate reimbursement and have questioned the Walkley Foundation’s involvement.
Cosmos magazine received a grant in the Digital Innovation category, one of two strands in the 2023 Meta Australian News Fund for a project that said it would use AI and machine learning to assist in the repurposing of some of their existing science stories into text, video and audio explainers with the aim of driving audience engagement and knowledge.
Since the grants were announced in February this year, Cosmos Magazine changed ownership, and since June has been published by the national science agency, CSIRO.
The nature of the project, submitted in September 2023, was fully explained in the entry statement which outlined that the majority of funding would be used to pay freelance writers, content editors, video producers, fact-checkers, a podcaster, and other related professionals.
Judging was carried out in December 2023 by six highly experienced Australian journalists, including Hal Crawford, Founder at Crawford Media Consulting; Elise Holman, Head of Sky News; Stephen Hutcheon, editor and reporter, formerly Sydney Morning Herald and ABC Digital Story Innovation team; Sashka Koloff, Managing Editor, Standards & Compliance, Content Division, ABC, Lisa Muxworthy, former Editor in Chief of News.com.au; and award-winning journalist Steve Pennells.
The Walkley Foundation is in an ongoing conversation with the CSIRO which is considering next steps in this project. The Foundation will continue detailed compliance monitoring of this grant and will remain vigilant until its projected conclusion in February 2025.
“This is particularly important as the ownership has changed hands,” Ms Martyn said. “Any variations to the project must be advised and approved.
“Contractually, the Walkley Foundation has the right to demand repayment by grant recipients if a project does not complete or breaches its contractual agreement. A small number of recipients of grants of previous rounds of the Meta Australian News Fund have been obliged to repay and this money has been reallocated in subsequent grant rounds.”
Ms Martyn said that the Walkley Foundation requires all recipients of grants to honour and pay journalists and copyright holders as appropriate and fulfil all legal responsibilities.
“The CSIRO has assured the Walkley Foundation that this will be the case,” she said.
The Walkley Foundation maintains a strict policy on the use of AI in the Australian media sector, as stated in its terms and conditions for the Mid-Year and Walkley Awards. All entrants must declare any and all use of AI in producing submissions. This includes but is not limited to the use of generative AI technology to create text, artwork, photography, data visualisation, and other graphics.
Where the Foundation determines, in its absolute discretion, that the use of AI has rendered a story unsuitable for entry into the Awards, the Foundation reserves the right to disqualify any application and/or revoke any nomination or award given to the relevant entrants.