Poynter and Hacks/Hackers partner to keep fast AI adoption aligned with journalism ethics
Poynter will lead year-round AI ethics and literacy programming, with tracks at Hacks/Hackers’ 2026 AI x Journalism Summit and AI Real Talk Series
By: Alex Mahadevan
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (January 8, 2026) — Since the 2022 launch of ChatGPT and the rise of generative artificial intelligence, the news industry has struggled to adapt — with a series of AI blunders that have frayed audience trust.
As AI rapidly reshapes the media landscape, Poynter is helping people understand how the technology works and how it should be used responsibly. Through practical AI training, ethical guidance and media literacy programs, Poynter’s work supports transparent, trustworthy adoption as the technology continues to evolve. The Poynter Institute has hosted two summits on AI, ethics and journalism that have established guidelines to encourage responsible innovation and minimize risk of damage to newsrooms’ reputations. This year, instead of a single convening, Poynter and its digital media literacy initiative MediaWise will partner with independent journalism and technology nonprofit Hacks/Hackers — a crucial partner on both summits — to build AI ethics, literacy and programming into AI and journalism events throughout the year as its ethics, governance and literacy partner.
“AI isn’t standing still, and neither can our approach to ethics and AI literacy,” said Alex Mahadevan, director of MediaWise and Poynter faculty member overseeing its AI Innovation Lab. “We’ve learned from our summits that a single event isn’t enough, because the technology changes almost weekly. This partnership lets us turn a two-day conversation into a yearlong one, meeting journalists where they are as new tools and challenges emerge.”
Poynter will design and deliver AI ethics and literacy workshops, seminars and public conversations at Hacks/Hackers in-person events in 2026 — including the AI x Journalism Summit in Baltimore in May — as well as the organization’s virtual AI Real Talk Series throughout the year.
Hacks/Hackers, founded in 2009, has become one of the most influential organizations convening journalists and technologists around emerging technology. Its 2025 AI x Journalism Summit drew more than 200 leaders from major newsrooms, local news outlets and tech companies for hands-on workshops and collaborative sessions. The 2026 Summit, scheduled for May 13 and 14 in Baltimore, will expand to 300 participants.
“With the massive sums of money going into AI investments, society can’t afford to lose sight of ethics when using AI and the values that must be built into these systems to keep them aligned with humanity,” said Burt Herman, co-founder and principal of Hacks/Hackers. “We need strong independent actors to hold the platforms accountable, and we’re excited to partner with Poynter to strengthen both of our organizations’ impact.”
As AI reshapes how news is gathered, produced and consumed, journalists face urgent questions about transparency, bias, accuracy and audience trust. Poynter’s work in this space includes its AI course for journalists and content creators, AI ethics starter kit for newsrooms, the Talking About AI Newsroom Toolkit developed with The Associated Press and Microsoft and the alt+Ignite AI literacy initiative, supported by the Patrick J. McGovern Foundation, which has trained thousands of educators, journalists and library workers worldwide.
The partnership reflects a shared commitment to ensuring that AI adoption in journalism upholds public trust, editorial standards and democratic accountability.
“Journalists are already using AI under real deadline pressure, whether the field feels ready or not,” said Paul Cheung, strategic adviser to Hacks/Hackers. “This partnership moves ethics out of white papers and into daily newsroom decisions, building shared norms and durable capacity so newsrooms are not forced into reactive fixes every time the technology shifts.”
About The Poynter Institute
The Poynter Institute is a global nonprofit working to address society’s most pressing issues by teaching journalists and journalism, covering the media and the complexities facing the industry, convening and community building, improving the capacity and sustainability of news organizations and fostering trust and reliability of information. The Institute is the gold standard in journalistic excellence and dedicated to the preservation and advancement of press freedom in democracies worldwide. Through Poynter, journalists, newsrooms, businesses, big tech corporations and citizens convene to find solutions that promote trust and transparency in news and stoke meaningful public discourse. The world’s top journalists and emerging media leaders rely on the Institute to learn new skills, adopt best practices, better serve audiences, scale operations and improve the quality of the universally shared information ecosystem.
The Craig Newmark Center for Ethics and Leadership, the International Fact-Checking Network (IFCN), MediaWise and PolitiFact are all members of the Poynter organization.
Support for Poynter and our entities upholds the integrity of the free press and the U.S. First Amendment and builds public confidence in journalism and media — an essential for healthy democracies. Learn more at poynter.org.
About MediaWise
MediaWise is a social-first digital media literacy initiative of the nonprofit Poynter Institute. The program teaches people of all ages and backgrounds how to responsibly engage with online content in the age of information overload. MediaWise was created in 2018 to empower citizens to find trusted sources and make sense of the vast amount of information at their fingertips. MediaWise brings simple, yet effective, digital media literacy tools to people where they are — whether they’re on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, X, TikTok, or in one of the 10 countries where MediaWise operates — and walk them through every step to determine what’s real and what’s not on the internet. Through MediaWise, everyone can do their part to reduce the spread of misinformation and elevate the facts.
Follow MediaWise on social media to learn how to debunk viral claims and be more critical consumers of online information. Explore programs and be part of the solution at poynter.org/mediawise.
