Wired, Business Insider Remove AI-Generated Freelance Articles Across US, UK

Several reputable news organizations, including Wired, Business Insider, and Index on Censorship, have removed multiple articles written under the byline Margaux Blanchard after investigations revealed the content was likely generated by artificial intelligence and contained fabricated information. The articles, published since April, included unverifiable sources and fictional case studies, raising doubts about their authenticity. The discovery was prompted by Jacob Furedi, editor of Dispatch, who received a suspicious pitch about a secretive death investigation training site in Colorado that he found to be fictitious. Wired and Business Insider issued editor's notes explaining the removals were due to the articles not meeting their editorial standards and announced improvements in their verification processes. This incident highlights the growing challenge in journalism of detecting AI-generated content and the risks of deceptive submissions exploiting human editorial oversight. The episode underscores broader concerns about the increasing presence of AI-generated misinformation in media outlets.