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When Binghamton University digital and data studies scholar Francesco Agnellini encountered a study showing that 50% of new articles on the internet were being generated by AI, he didn’t panic. Instead, he thought of novelist and cultural critic Umberto Eco.
In the 1960s, Eco cautioned against applying black-or-white thinking to new media technologies. Back then, the proliferation of television was eliciting widespread predictions of cultural decay. But Eco suggested looking instead at how this technology was being used, and what risks and opportunities it created.
So Agnellini decided to parse the recent study and examine the types of articles that were actually being written by AI.
AI, he explains, “appears to be most useful when the writing in question is low-stakes and formulaic: the weekend-in-Rome listicle, the standard cover letter, the text produced to market a business.”
The outcomes of summits, whether they’re bilateral or multilateral, are always difficult to judge. That’s because they are couched in language that’s neutral enough for all to bear. After all, the parties to these agreements still need to return home to have the outcomes factored into their domestic governance processes.
As president of the G20 in 2025 South Africa had to navigate these difficult tradeoffs as well as manage a politically charged environment - Washington’s hostility, including its boycott of the summit. That’s why Danny Bradlow concludes that the outcome was a diplomatic victory for South Africa, but one that came at a cost - long on promises but short on commitment to action.
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