Editor’s note: What impact can AI and machine learning have on journalism? That is a question the Google News Initiative is exploring through a partnership with Polis, the international journalism think tank at the London School of Economics and Political Science. The following post is written by Mattia Peretti, who manages the program, called JournalismAI.

In the global survey we conducted last year about the use of artificial intelligence (AI) by news organizations, most respondents highlighted the urgent need to educate and train their newsroom on the potential offered by machine learning and other AI-powered technologies. Improving AI literacy was seen as vital to change culture and improve understanding of new tools and systems:

The message from newsrooms was loud and clear. So we decided to do something about it. That’s why we’re announcing a free training course produced by JournalismAI in collaboration with VRT News and the Google News Initiative. 

This Introduction to Machine Learning is built by journalists, for journalists, and it will help answer questions such as: What is machine learning? How do you train a machine learning model? What can journalists and news organizations do with it and why is it important to use it responsibly?

The course is available in 17 different languages on the Google News Initiative Training Center. By logging in, you can track your progress and get a certificate when you complete the course. The Training Center also has a variety of other courses to help you find, verify and tell news stories online.

It’s a tough time for journalists and news organizations worldwide, as they try to assess the impact that COVID-19 will have on the business and editorial side of the industry. With JournalismAI, we want to play our role in helping to minimize costs and enhance opportunities for the industry through these new technologies. This course complements our recently launched collaborative experiment, as well as our effort to highlight profiles and experiments that show the transformative potential of AI and machine learning in shaping the journalist, and the journalism, of the future.

At the end of the course, you’ll find a list of recommended resources, produced by journalism and technology experts across the world, that have been instrumental in designing our Introduction to Machine Learning and will help you dive even deeper in the world of AI and automation. 

And we are not done. After this course, and the previous training module with strategic suggestions on AI adoption, we are planning to design more training resources on AI and machine learning for journalists later this year. Sign up for the JournalismAI newsletter to stay updated.

Like many others, news organizations are navigating new ways of working remotely. This month, we’re looking at how technology can support and elevate the efforts of journalists who are delivering essential information to their readers.

Supporting fact checking efforts around the world 

Our fact check information panel on YouTube is now available in the United States. The information panel, which launched last year in India and Brazil, highlights fact check results from third-parties in search results for relevant queries, so viewers can make their own informed decision about claims made in the news. In addition, YouTube committed $1 million through the Google News Initiative to the International Fact-Checking Network (IFCN) to bolster fact-checking and verification efforts across the world. 

Additionally, we worked with the designers at Polygraph to help create a visual database of COVID-19 fact-checking efforts led by the IFCN. This global collaborative project brought fact-checkers together to jointly combat misinformation about the pandemic, collecting a dataset of more than 4000 fact checks (and counting).

Supporting a more diverse global media industry

The Racial Equity in Journalism fund, created in partnership with Borealis Philanthropy, has awarded $2.3 million in grants to 16 news organizations serving communities of color across the U.S. The Fund’s inaugural grantee cohort all serve audiences who have been historically underserved by mainstream media. 

In partnership with the GNI, Chicas Poderosas launched the Ambassador Leadership Training, a global program to strengthen and promote a more diverse media industry. The training will focus on tools and leadership skills to build, support, and sustainably run organizations and foster women's leadership in the media. The program will involve women from 17 countries throughout Latin America, Spain, Portugal, and the U.S.

Using StoryShare to collaborate on local COVID-19 reporting

AP StoryShare, a project supported by the Google News Initiative, allows newsrooms to share content and coverage plans. Editorsin Colorado and Oregon are using StoryShare to collaborate on coronavirus reporting, assuring greater breadth of coverage and less duplication of effort at a time of dwindling resources. About 75 news organizations are participating in initial pilots throughout Colorado, Oregon, and New York.

Online trainings to help journalists find, verify and tell news stories

As journalists around the world adjust to new ways of working, we’re making more training resources available online. We held 27 livestream training sessions in nine languages to help journalists find, verify and tell news stories during the pandemic, with additional tools added to the Google News Initiative Training Center.

In partnership with journalism network Outriders, we’re also offering free tools, training, and support for journalists across Central and Eastern Europe. Live online workshops are offered on a range of topics, from Verification to Geo Tools and Environmental Reporting. An overview of upcoming sessions can be found here, and new sessions will be added on a regular basis.

Insights from Asia Pacific case studies

News organizations in Asia Pacific are using GNI data tools like Realtime Content Insights and News Consumer Insights to grow their audience and build loyalty. In the Philippines, Rappler empowered its news organization with better user data to help achieve digital sustainability. In India, Dainik Jagran improved engagement during India’s General Election by taking advantage of a cultural moment.

The power of words

In Japan, we launched “The Power of Words,” a collaborative reporting project with 24 national and local news organizations. Through the words of athletes, the website delivers uplifting messages, creating an immersive storytelling experience. The website is also accessible, optimized for visual readability, and text voiceover thanks to a screen reader. 

That’s all for April. Stay in touch with @GoogleNewsInit on social, and sign up for the GNI newsletter for more updates.

Augmented reality (AR) in Search lets you bring 3D objects and animals into your space so you can turn your living room into a virtual zoo, explore the Apollo 11spacecraft up close, or take a picture with Santa. I love seeing how much fun families are having with this experience at home. AR in Search can also help you discover and explore new concepts. Here are a few new ways you can use AR (and a little imagination) to learn at home.

Take a virtual trip through the human body

Get a magnified view of our microscopic world

Turn your home into a museum

Easily explore, record and share 

To help you quickly explore related content, we’re rolling out a new carousel format on Android, as well as a recording option to share social-worthy AR videos with friends and family.

We hope that you enjoy exploring all of these 3D and AR experiences on Google. Tag us on social with #Google3Dand let us know how you’re using AR to learn and explore new things in your home. We can’t wait to hear where your imagination takes you next!

Tech Exchange is a student exchange program between Google and 11 Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs). During the program, students spend a semester at Google’s Mountain View Campus, taking computer science courses and learning about professional development. With Tech Exchange students now learning from home, we brought in a speaker who has made a name for himself by engaging with people online: Hank Green, author and YouTube creator. 

Hank began his journey as a YouTube Creator in 2007 when he and his brother John decided to communicate with each other through video blogs every day for a year. As more people started watching the Vlogbrothers, Hank and John went on to create 32 YouTube channels including Crash Course and SciShow. In a virtual Q&A with Tech Exchange students, Hank shared his insights on how to build community online. Here’s what we learned.

Understand the problem that you’re trying to solve

Hank is often asked, “How does one become a YouTuber?” He says the first step is to understand the question you’re actually trying to solve. “Is it that I want to have a job where I get to be creative all day? Is it that I want to make a specific kind of content that I know is going to be high impact ? Is it that I want to have an audience or that I want to have influence?”

Once you actually know that answer, think about the first step on that path (this applies to content creation but also in everything in life!). It’s important to understand what tools you bring to the table. Put the problem that you’re trying to solve in a bucket with your tools and see what falls out. 

There are other people like you in the world, create for them.

Hank shared three strategies that he and John learned when building the Vlogbrothers community. The first is to find common values and interests. “You just have to say, ‘What is the stuff that I would like to see made in the world?’ There are other people who, it turns out, are somewhat like you in the world, and they will be there for it.” The second is to build a feeling of actual connection and the third piece is what I call the "touchstone," which is the YouTube creator building a relationship with the viewer. You have to make people feel like this person is worthy of being the nexus of a community.

Create content that represents various perspectives

Through Hank’s channels, he hopes to put out more content that is representative of a variety of voices and perspectives. To do this, he says you have to find hosts who don’t all look the same. But you have to go beyond that too, and give them full ownership of the creative process. The writing, the editing, the style need to be informed culturally all the way through. 

For more tips on building community, check out YouTube Creator Academy and Hank’s YouTube Channel, Vlogbrothers.