Canadian news publishers and experts are expressing growing concerns regarding the accuracy and implications of AI-generated summaries in search results. RECOMMENDED READS Talks have been reignited following a complaint made by independent publishers to the U.K.’s Competition and Markets Authority. In fact, they argue that generative AI summaries are already doing a severe negative impact on their businesses. Background to the controversy The controversy comes after the enactment of Canada’s Online News Act in 2023. Under this legislation, Meta and Google would be required to pay local news publishers for displaying their content.
Clifton van der Linden Associate Professor & Director, Digital Society Lab at McMaster University He emphasized that while most AI summaries are correct, they’re wrong sometimes. Misinformation has become perhaps the greatest hazard to the credibility of these user-friendly synopses. Users are counting on them more than ever for their news. These concerns must be addressed.
Chirag Shah, a professor at the University of Washington’s information school, highlighted a fundamental flaw in how AI systems operate. In doing so, he brought attention to a very important concern. The systems do not check any information after pulling it from files before generating output. This lack of oversight has resulted in a massive error rate that is not only incorrect but intentionally deceives users.
“What if some of them have wrong information, outdated information, satire, sarcasm?” – Chirag Shah
The impact on publishers is palpable. Paul Deegan, CEO of News Media Canada, articulated the financial consequences of the decline in user engagement with news links that accompany AI summaries. And according to our data, users clicked the link 15 percent of the time when shown traditional search results. That percentage falls significantly to eight percent if there’s an AI-aided summary.
“Zero clicks is zero revenue for the publisher.” – Paul Deegan
As competition issues go, that’s part of the story as well, said Keldon Bester, executive director of the Canadian Anti-Monopoly Project. He laid out the possible legal ramifications under Canadian law. Wonderful as they are, the dangers of monopoly power are magnified by one particular company’s stranglehold on access to online content.
“We have a single company which is and has been the front door to the internet.” – Keldon Bester
Jessica Johnson, a senior fellow at McGill University’s Centre for Media, Technology and Democracy, described the current situation as a “one-two punch” for Canadian media. This situation began with Meta’s decision to pull news links and has now escalated with the rise of AI search engines. In her testimony, Johnson lamented the lack of discussion by the public over these massive technological changes.
“It’s one of those very sweeping technological changes that has changed the way we … search, and therefore live our lives, without really much of a big public discussion.” – Jessica Johnson
Despite these concerns, Google continues to insist that its AI features are truly beneficial to users. Liz Reid, Google’s head of search, introduced a look back at search trends. She explained that “organic click volume” from searches to site has continued to be “relatively consistent year-over-year.” Additionally, she argued that arguments claiming enormous reductions in traffic are usually built on exaggerated methodologies.
“Third-party reports that inaccurately suggest dramatic declines in aggregate traffic — often based on flawed methodologies, isolated examples, or traffic changes that occurred prior to the rollout of AI features in Search.” – Liz Reid
Van der Linden emphasized how convoluted this issue is. For example, AI-generated highlights may be appealing, but they do not automatically guarantee accuracy or credibility.
“Useful does not necessarily equate to credible, authoritative, or correct.” – Clifton van der Linden
The current battle reveals an important moment in the way information is shared, created, and communicated in our contemporary news ecosystem. As search engines evolve from helping users navigate information to keeping them within their ecosystems, concerns surrounding transparency and accuracy continue to mount.
Unfortunately, industry experts note that no matter how advanced technology becomes, problems with the reliability of AI outputs will likely continue. The blistering pace of AI development demands a sober analysis of its impact on journalism, democracy, and the production and consumption of information.
