Chicago Sun-Times apologizes for publishing AI-generated summer reading list with fake books

The Chicago Sun-Times has apologized for publishing an AI-generated summer reading recommendation list with fake books on it.

The list was published online and in print on Sunday, and readers pointed out the fake books on social media, according to The Hill newspaper. The Sun-Times circulation department created the list, which was published as part of a special section, and licensed from King Features, a unit of Hearst, which is one of the paper's national content partners.

"To our great disappointment, that list was created through the use of an AI tool and recommended books that do not exist," the newspaper said in a statement on Tuesday. "We are actively investigating the accuracy of other content in the special section. We will provide more information on that investigation when we have more details."

"King Features worked with a freelancer who used an AI agent to help build out this special section," the Sun-Times added. "It was inserted into our paper without review from our editorial team, and we presented the section without any acknowledgement that it was from a third-party organization."

The content partner told Chicago Public Media in a statement that it has "a strict policy with our staff, cartoonists, columnists, and freelance writers against the use of AI to create content.

"The Heat Index summer supplement was created by a freelance content creator who used AI in its story development without disclosing the use of AI. We are terminating our relationship with this individual. We regret this incident and are working with the handful of publishing partners who acquired this supplement."