Inclusive journalism cultivates a more equitable society by elevating the voices of individuals who are often under-represented or marginalised in mainstream traditional media. This commitment involves actively engaging people with disabilities in the storytelling process, recognising them as a marginalised community.
Notably, individuals with disabilities are seldom seen reporting news on television, both in Nigeria and abroad, likely due to the inherent challenges associated with training them in journalism or limited access to assistive technologies. Specialised facilities are typically necessary for such training activities.
However, with the emergence of AI technology, the prospect of training individuals with disabilities in journalism has become increasingly feasible and accessible. This advancement opens doors for greater inclusivity within the media landscape, offering opportunities for the voices of people with disabilities to contribute meaningfully to news reporting.
Journalists with speech impairments now have access to a groundbreaking mind-reading non-invasive device capable of interpreting their thoughts or thinking. Using this device, the speech impairment journalists can mentally compose their reports, then utilise the mind-reading technology to convert the brain EEG signals into text and displayed on a computer screen. With the readAloud function activated, the report can audibly be broadcast via mass media platforms, allowing for seamless communication of news content.
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Journalists facing speech difficulties, particularly those speaking in non-standard patterns, may struggle to effectively communicate news or information to the public from the newsroom. However, an innovative AI-powered tool offers a solution by standardizing the speech for clear comprehension by all audiences. Take the Talkitt app, for instance: it excels in translating non-standard speech patterns into easily understandable standard speech patterns, thus bridging communication gaps and enhancing accessibility.
AI researchers have developed a method for “uploading” knowledge directly into the human brain, enabling individuals to acquire new skills rapidly without the necessity of prolonged learning. This breakthrough offers significant potential for journalists facing cognitive, learning, or dementia-related disabilities. For instance, a journalist affected by such conditions can utilise this technology to gain journalism expertise by seamlessly “uploading” journalism instructional content directly into their brain via an implanted invasive device.
A rising trend in AI technology involves the creation of videos from text, showcasing notable advancements in video quality. While still in its early stages, this technology shows promising evolution. In the near future, it is anticipated to approach near-perfection. This innovation holds transformative potential, particularly for journalists with speech impairments.
With the capability to generate videos automatically from written news content, this technology could enable journalists with speech impairment to participate in news broadcasting without the need for spoken communication, revolutionising accessibility in the newsroom.
Similarly, in the realm of journalism, the Smart Prosthetic emerges as an AI-driven solution, offering amputee journalists the means to reclaim their autonomy in interacting with objects. This empowers them to create and compose news articles using different devices. Operating through the interpretation of muscle signals, this cutting-edge technology allows for mind-controlled manipulation of computers or mobile phones. A quintessential illustration of such AI assistive technology is exemplified by the DEKA arm.
Journalists who are hearing-impaired can be empowered by AI tools like the “Google Translator for the Deaf and Mute” which swiftly translates sign language or gestures into text and speech. This enables journalists with hearing disabilities to utilise the “Google Translator for the Deaf and Mute” to report breaking news to the public effectively via mass media or print media.
An AI tool designed for lip-reading has the ability to interpret the movements of lips, whether it’s from a person on TV or during face-to-face communication. This technology can be invaluable for hearing-impaired journalists, enabling them to comprehend the content of live press conferences, television programmes, interviews, and other conversations successfully.
Individuals with visual impairments or dyslexia can utilise AI-driven speech-to-text conversion technology, enabling them to verbally articulate news content which is then transcribed into written form. For instance, a journalist facing visual challenges can verbally dictate stories, leveraging this technology to convert their spoken words into written text. Afterwards, they can transmit these written stories through email, WhatsApp, or other platforms to the media house for publication or reporting purposes.
Journalists having difficulty in typing can utilise AI-driven speech-to-text conversion technology for composing news content and communicate with powerful AI tools verbally for browsing web pages to search for information regarding news item.
Journalists with limited vision can improve the vision using Seeing AI, a vision improvement AI tool developed by Microsoft. Numerous AI assistive technologies are available, but due to space constraints, only a few have been represented in this article.
Microsoft has highlighted a concerning statistics: only one out of every ten people with disabilities worldwide has access to assistive technologies. This underscores a significant issue regarding the lack of accessibility to these crucial tools.
The recent proliferation of AI technologies presents an opportunity to break down barriers and improve access to assistive technologies for people with disabilities globally. In Nigeria, this issue is particularly pronounced due to low living standards, leading to the marginalization of people with disabilities in the journalism profession.
Urgent action is needed from government entities, civil society organisations, and private individuals to address this situation. One crucial step is to sponsor training programs for people with disabilities in journalism through enrolment in mass communication and other journalism programmes.
Secondly, collaboration among key stakeholders such as the National University Commission, the National Board for Technical Education, Joint National Association of Persons with Disabilities, and the Nigeria Union of Journalists is essential. Together, they can develop a framework mandating the establishment of specialised journalism laboratories equipped with advanced AI-powered assistive technologies in all mass communication departments across Nigerian universities, polytechnics, and other journalism institutions. Such facilities should be a prerequisite for running any journalism course or programme, ensuring inclusivity and accessibility in the field of journalism.
Haruna Chiroma, Ph.D. Artificial Intelligence
University of Hafr Al Batin, Saudi Arabia, [email protected]