Virtual Journalist Visit Opportunities to Explore Artificial Intelligence

When you think of artificial intelligence (AI), what are some of your first thoughts? Robots? Computers that have achieved sentience? Amazing technologies with the power to transform our world?

Artificial intelligence has taken the world by storm. To go beyond the headlines and shed light on what AI is and its potential to benefit and harm communities, the Pulitzer Center has developed an AI Accountability network. Journalists in this network pursue in-depth reporting projects that interrogate how AI technologies are funded, built, and deployed by corporations, governments, and other powerful actors.

Bring this conversation into your classroom by inviting one of our featured journalists who have reported on AI and technology issues to speak with your students! Take a look at our featured guest speakers below, and click here to connect your class with a guest speaker. This opportunity is open to classroom and afterschool educators, as well as educators working with students in carceral facilities.

Journalist Guest Speakers for Artificial Intelligence/Technology Issues

• Arijit Douglas Sen, a computational journalist who reported on how colleges used AI to monitor student protests and how to report better on artificial intelligence.
• David Leins, a podcast producer and editor for Detroit's WDET who put together a 10-episode podcast about the ever-growing impact of surveillance technology on our lives. Each episode explores a different aspect of surveillance through interviews with leading experts and firsthand stories. 
• Garance Burke, a global investigative journalist whose accountability reporting at the intersection of government, immigration, and technology has sparked federal investigations, congressional hearings, and Cabinet-level resignations. She reported on the influence and abuse of algorithms and predictive technologies.
• Hilke Schellmann, a  journalism professor at New York University and a freelance reporter holding artificial intelligence accountable. She is writing a book on artificial intelligence and has reported on whether AI hiring tools are racist and ableist.
• Kumar Sambhav Shrivastava, a journalist based in India who reported on how technological systems are increasingly replacing traditional methodologies for deciding welfare entitlements of people with low incomes. In some states, hundreds of thousands of families are cut off from food, housing, or credit entitlements either due to glitches in technology or deliberate, opaque decisions by software.
• Lam Thuy Vo, a journalist and educator who marries data analysis with on-the-ground reporting to examine how systems and policies affect individuals. She has reported on the relationships that everyday citizens have with law enforcement and how technology platforms amplify some messaging over others, thus changing how we police, govern, and interact with one another in neighborhoods across the U.S.
• Lydia Emmanouilidou, an independent multimedia reporter based in Athens, Greece, and Boston, Massachusetts who investigated surveillance at the U.S.-Mexico Border
• Varsha Bansal, an independent tech reporter based in Bangalore, India who covers the intended and unintended consequences technology and the internet can have on people. She has reported on the Indian government's imposition of tech and the impact of algorithms and AI on gig workers in India.

NOTE: We cannot always guarantee a specific journalist due to availability, but we will work with you to suggest several options based on your goals and meeting times.

About the Virtual Journalist Visit Program

The Pulitzer Center offers free virtual journalist visits to K-12 schools worldwide. We have worked with over a thousand journalists over the years, covering diverse topics and geographic regions, and we will match you with a journalist based on your request. We use many different platforms to connect, including Zoom, Google Meet, and Teams, and we will work with you to identify the best technology for your learners. Virtual journalist visits are a great way to help students:

• Understand how what they're studying affects people's lives
• Learn how research, writing, critical thinking, multimedia, and more skills are used in journalism
• Practice preparing and asking questions of an expert
• Get excited about using the news to learn about the world
• And much more!