Reporting isn’t espionage — but throughout history, journalists have been accused of being spies

[Nieman Lab: The Daily Digest] Thursday, April 6, 2023 [Reporting isn’t espionage — but throughout history, journalists have been accused of being spies]( “The detention of Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich in Russia on espionage charges marks an unusual throwback to the old Soviet tactics for handling foreign correspondents.” By Bill Kovarik. [“Article gifting” proves surprisingly successful for Hearst Newspapers]( What We’re Reading The New York Times / Benjamin Mullin [No more hush money at the National Enquirer, its new owner says →]( “Look, it’s a new day.” Axios / Eleanor Hawkins [Oh good, an AI tool that generates press releases and suggests specific journalists to send them to →]( “PressPal’s pitch recommendations are pulled from Muck Rack’s database, but the platform will not disclose how many active journalists are in the database.” Reuters / Byron Kaye [Australian mayor readies what may be world’s first defamation lawsuit over ChatGPT content →]( “A regional Australian mayor said he may sue OpenAI if it does not correct ChatGPT’s false claims that he had served time in prison for bribery.” Journalism & Women Symposium / Michele Weldon [Alicia Shepard, an advocate for ethical journalism, dies at 69 →]( “That was journalism as I saw Lisa do it — leaning in to listen to everyone’s voice.” Bloomberg / Tara Patel and Benoit Berthelot [Billionaires are throwing money at Brut, a streaming video outlet for young people →]( Brut, based in Paris, “has now raised about $153 million since it was founded.” Substack / Richard J. Tofel [Making sense of “supersizing NewsMatch” →]( “The fact that NewsMatch is a good thing generally shouldn’t tempt us into making too much of its effectiveness.” Columbia Journalism Review / Andrew McCormick [Floodlight’s Amal Ahmed covers Texas communities on the climate story’s front lines →]( “Energy might be the biggest story in Texas, but it’s not just a story about companies or the economy. It’s about the people who live here and their quality of life.” Jezebel / Laura Bassett [Gender-fluid teen pushes back against “false” viral story their mom gave to Bari Weiss’s news outlet →]( “Casey, now 16, strongly refuted the story in a Twitter thread Tuesday, saying it’s full of outright ‘false perceptions’ by her mother and that Yoffe did not seem interested in hearing her side of the story.” The Guardian / Chris Moran [“ChatGPT is making up fake Guardian articles. Here’s how we’re responding” →]( “In the next few weeks we’ll be publishing a clear and concise explanation of how we plan to employ generative AI.” The New York Times Magazine / Jim Rutenberg [How Fox chased its audience down the rabbit hole →]( “What will happen when everything is on the line again and that audience wants Trump on Trump’s terms again?” Semafor / Louise Matsakis and Bradley Saacks [Twitter is no longer policing Russian and Chinese state-backed media →]( “Twitter is no longer taking steps to limit the reach of Chinese and Russian state-controlled media outlets, violating the social media platform’s own [stated policies]( [Nieman Lab]( / [Fuego]( [Twitter]( / [Facebook]( [View email in browser]( [Unsubscribe]( You are receiving this daily newsletter because you signed up for for it at www.niemanlab.org. Nieman Journalism Lab Harvard University 1 Francis Ave.Cambridge, MA 02138 [Add us to your address book](