Has there ever been a positive outcome from AI use in sports media?

Credit: Tom Pelissero, Columbus Dispatch, Sportsnet This originally appeared in the Thursday edition of The A Block, Awful Announcing’s daily newsletter with the latest sports media news, commentary, and analysis. Sign up here and be the first to know everything you need to know about the sports media world. For all the hype and excitement tech bros and C-suite execs have about artificial intelligence, can you actually point to one instance where its use in sports media was applauded or led to a positive outcome?

We’re scratching our heads trying to think of just one. It’s top of mind as Sports Illustrated wades through the latest AI-related controversy after being called out for a writer who used it to plagiarize writing and data from Sportico (and presumably other outlets). SI was forced to take down the offending articles , cut ties with the writer, and endure the embarrassing slings and arrows that come with being caught allowing AI content on your platform.

In a perfect summation of the modern sports media landscape, SI editor-in-chief Steve Cannella focused his explanation on the fact that the writer works for “On SI” and shouldn’t be seen as a “real” SI writer, even though the company relies on “On SI” content to power its ad revenue. Meanwhile, the public doesn’t see a difference between the two kinds of contributors, and the brand’s reputation sinks further into the toilet . This is, of course, simply the latest in a long line of controversies involving AI-generated content that was poorly received by its intended audience, if not outright rejected.

Cleveland. com has been bashed for going all-in on AI slop to promote sports podcasts, radio stations have been clowned for using AI to write incorrect social media posts , notable NFL insiders have been called out for using AI slop imagery , Fox Sports has been criticized over its unnecessary AI-generated videos , Yahoo got burned for AI fantasy sports content , Sportsnet’s AI video of baby analysts didn’t make anyone happy, ESPN’s AI-generated recaps of soccer matches failed to note history , Wondery’s attempt to create an AI sports podcast host was rejected, Gannett’s AI sports writing program is a disaster , Google’s AI even got a fact wrong in a Super Bowl commercial , and of course, this isn’t even the first time Sports Illustrated published AI content, though last time it even made up fake writers . I write these days after multiple instances in which mentions of AI were met with boos at college graduations , and after AI ruined another school’s graduation ceremony by messing up a simple task that didn’t require its help.