Journalists' Perspectives on Artificial Intelligence and Health and Science News Coverage in Ghana

In Ghana, evidence submits that coverage of science and health news is low due to inadequate access to contact information from scientific researchers. The Internet and ICTs have been identified as a powerful means through which coverage and dissemination of science and health news can be given a boost in the country. This aligns with the beneficial changes Artificial Intelligence (AI) brings to the journalism practice, including health and science journalism. News organisations, especially in the Global North, are now adopting and integrating AI into their practices due to the potential of AI tools to help journalists in a variety of tasks in the newsroom to enhance news creation and distribution. In this light, this paper examines the adoption and integration of AI into science and health journalism in Ghana. Specifically, it uses the qualitative approach and case study design to examine the extent to which journalists in Ghana are deploying AI in their production of science and health news. It also investigates how they are using AI to boost coverage of science and health news. Since concerns about the impact of AI on information accuracy, privacy, and ethics have been raised, the paper aims to explore some of the challenges science and health journalists encounter in their use of AI and how they navigate around such challenges. Through interviews with science and health journalists and editors from selected media organisations in Ghana, data is gathered and thematically analysed through the lens of the technology acceptance model to address the above objectives. In Ghana, evidence submits that coverage of science and health news is low due to inadequate access to contact information from scientific researchers. The Internet and ICTs have been identified as a powerful means through which coverage and dissemination of science and health news can be given a boost in the country. This aligns with the beneficial changes Artificial Intelligence (AI) brings to the journalism practice, including health and science journalism. News organisations, especially in the Global North, are now adopting and integrating AI into their practices due to the potential of AI tools to help journalists in a variety of tasks in the newsroom to enhance news creation and distribution. In this light, this paper examines the adoption and integration of AI into science and health journalism in Ghana. Specifically, it uses the qualitative approach and case study design to examine the extent to which journalists in Ghana are deploying AI in their production of science and health news. It also investigates how they are using AI to boost coverage of science and health news. Since concerns about the impact of AI on information accuracy, privacy, and ethics have been raised, the paper aims to explore some of the challenges science and health journalists encounter in their use of AI and how they navigate around such challenges. Through interviews with science and health journalists and editors from selected media organisations in Ghana, data is gathered and thematically analysed through the lens of the technology acceptance model to address the above objectives.