The recent AI in Media, Advertising and Public Relations Conference hosted by the University of South Carolina College of Information and Communications did not turn out as I expected.
It far exceeded what I thought I’d hear and learn (read the recap in The Gamecock).
I was expecting a day of technical insight around the topic of AI – what’s trending, what’s changing daily, how to make AI work in a communications industry context. And yes, I got all of that.
But the best part was the common theme that ran through the day – the business of communications is still the business of relationships. We heard that over and over in the sessions and panel discussions, during lunch table discussions and in hallway conversations.
Words like
— curiosity
— trust
— empathy
— human-centered
— listening
were used alongside words like
— ethics
— friction
— skepticism
All are appropriate to this exploration of how AI can and should be used in the communications profession – whether it’s corporate crisis management, news reporting, earned media pitches, social campaigns, or advertising.
The students I met and heard speak on the panels echoed so many of these themes expressing their concerns about AI taking over from human-centered reporting, critical thinking and empathic listening. While they have the mechanics of AI completely down, they also get it when considering how AI can, and likely will, impact the human-centered future of communications.
I left the conference having spent the day with several long-time professional friends I never get to see, learned a lot technically about AI and met some interesting new people – both professionals and students.
But most important, I left feeling very hopeful about the future of the communications profession where AI can be used for good … while at the same time not forgetting that communications must continue to be a human-centered field driven by curiosity and critical thinking.
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