Give me journalistic expertise over data scraping

AI will never replace journalism [READER]( The Daily Reader July 7, 2023 Last week, WGN’s website published [a story about barbecue restaurants in Chicago](. “Story” is a stretch. It’s a listicle that ranks local barbecue joints by their ratings on Yelp, the crowdsourced restaurant reviews site [whose influence has arguably been on the decline for at least five years.]( News and culture outlets regularly dispatch experts to consider how foodstuffs such as barbecue change in a locale as restaurants open, beloved staples close, trends shift, and tastes change; [the Tribune]( and [Eater Chicago]( published pieces on the best and essential barbecue joints in town earlier this year. The WGN piece is credited to Stacker, a newswire service that, [according to its website]( “combines rigorous data analysis with rich editorial insights.” Stacker’s barbecue insights read like they’ve been ripped from Wikipedia. I’m still mystified with the lede (which begins with, “Barbecue, also known as BBQ for short . . .”), since it appears to be written for someone who doesn’t have a passing familiarity with eating. I’m still not sure who this WGN barbecue story is for, since Stacker offers no details about the ranked restaurants besides their respective addresses, ratings (on Yelp), price level (again, as determined by Yelp), and, uh, the category of food they’re listed under on Yelp (in case you didn’t realize these were barbecue places). The WGN story does offer a twinge of insight, but that comes down to generalizations about Yelp users. Anyone with a passing notion of eating barbecue in the city should be shocked to learn the WGN story doesn’t list a single restaurant south of Chinatown. I’ve also gained some insight into Stacker. The WGN story has shown me that the newswire doesn’t let good news judgment get in the way of crass data-mining made to answer a question no one asked. I wonder, what was the rationale behind WGN running this story? I reflected on that earlier this week as [G/O Media outlets began publishing stories by AI bots]( that are counter to what made those sites essential. G/O Media management has done exceptional work torpedoing its properties before now—[I’ll never forget the myriad of lethal decisions management made in undoing the A.V. Club](. But publishing a chronological listicle of Star Wars movies by “Gizmodo Bot” that fails to rank the films in the correct chronological order and makes Star Wars seem as thrilling as reading about tax law is to witness G/O Media smelting its properties for a few pennies. I have no new perspective on this media trend. It’s destabilizing to watch news institutions prized for their commitment to bringing nuanced, irreplaceable journalism get downsized. It’s depressing to consider the labor, care, dedication, and time that went into building up an outlet like the A.V. Club when it now publishes articles by a bot with no sense of editorial direction or urgency. I mostly feel a mixture of resentment and sadness, which does little to change the direction at any of these outlets. I just hope it motivates anyone with a desire to improve our understanding of our world through journalism to ensure the industry can exist tomorrow. Sincerely, [Caboose 14: My Canadian Boyfriend]( by Liz Mason “[GQ pulls article slamming Warner Bros. Discovery CEO Zaslav after complaint]( by Will Sommer (Washington Post) “[The way their hands could mutate the strings,]( by David Anthony (Welcome to Hell World) “[Scary Cool Sad Goodbye 39]( by Meaghan Garvey (Scary Cool Sad Goodbye) Babyxsosa, [Bling Bling]( Man on Man, [Provincetown]( Welcome to Berlin, [… And It’s Blinding]( 💥 Leor’s “[After the 4th]( playlist [Punky Chicago four-piece Rotundos deliver a fast-acting shot of DIY rock energy]( by [Leor Galil]( | [Read more]( → [Square Roots showcases local artists and sounds from around the world]( by [Jamie Ludwig]( | [Read more]( [Fifth-wave emo band Home Is Where offer catharsis to a burning world]( by [Leor Galil]( | [Read more]( → [Disco for abortion access, soul yoga, and more]( The To-Do: a curated list of things to do and events to check out in Chicago by [Micco Caporale]( | [Read more]( → The best of Chicago's arts and culture. Our bi-weekly arts and culture newsletter has what's now and what's next in Chicago's visual and performing arts scene. [SIGN UP FOR SECOND & FOURTH]( [Issue of June 29 – July 12, 2023 Vol. 52, No. 19]( [VIEW/DOWNLOAD [PDF]]( [View this e-mail as a web page]( [@chicago_reader]( [/chicagoreader]( [@chicago_reader]( [Chicago Reader on LinkedIn]( [/chicagoreader]( [chicagoreader.com]( [Forward this e-mail to a friend](. Want to change how you receive these e-mails? You can [update your preferences]( or [unsubscribe from this list](. Copyright © 2023 Chicago Reader, All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: Chicago Reader, 2930 S. Michigan Ave., Suite 102, Chicago, IL 60616