Fostering Artificial Intelligence to Face Misinformation: Discourses and Practices of Automated Fact-Checking in Brazil

Abstract

This article examines the advancement of automated fact-checking in Brazil and investigates how artificial intelligence (AI) products shape publishers’ discourses and practices. First, it maps the field to identify how it has evolved throughout the years. Next, it draws on 30 official statements published by journalists and their tech partners, and seven semi-structured interviews with representatives from five websites. This article shows an emerging automation landscape in the Brazilian fact-checking venture supported by the tech industry. Nonetheless, AI has challenged fact-checkers’ authority and increased the technologists’ influence over journalism.