How newsrooms really think about AI: A Q&A with The Media Copilot Founder Pete Pachal
AI isn't a side story anymore. It sits at the center of how newsrooms operate and how PR teams earn coverage that actually lands.
Pete Pachal, founder of The Media Copilot and former editorial leader at Mashable and CoinDesk, spends his days helping newsrooms and comms teams use generative AI with rigor and measurable outcomes. His view is blunt: the media system is shifting, and the winners will adapt their strategy, not just their tools.
What gets a "yes" from Pete right now
- Strategic responses to disintermediation: Audiences are getting information through AI search, chatbots, and portals. Pitch ideas, products, and platforms that help media operators rethink distribution, relationships, and revenue in that reality.
- Tools that speed or augment real work: Journalists, PR pros, and creators need workflow gains they can trust. Show clear use cases and outcomes, not feature lists.
- Ethics, privacy, and copyright: Concrete solutions that reduce risk are in demand-especially around rights and provenance.
And one more thing: Pachal welcomes AI use in pitching, but says, "AI is OK, but slop isn't." Add a human touch. Make it specific. Make it useful.
Promising vs. risky newsroom experiments
Promising: AI that accelerates investigations. Let models parse massive document sets while humans make the calls. Impact stays high, risk stays contained because final copy is still human-filtered.
Risky: AI-generated copy or media at scale without a human in the loop. Examples include public-facing chatbots like The Washington Post's Ask the Post AI or auto-generated research reports. Hallucinations happen. Risk can be reduced with smart product design and radical transparency about limits, but it never goes to zero.
Where AI is helping journalism quality
Agents turn any reporter into a first-pass researcher-no law degree required to find and scan court filings. AI-powered analysis makes data work accessible to more journalists.
"Vibe coding" lets reporters build visual or interactive elements without waiting on product teams. If AI helps explain the story better, ship faster, and distribute further, that's a win.
What moved the media industry in 2025
Pachal's most viral post covered The New York Times embracing AI tools in the newsroom. People care not just what the Times reports, but how it works. The reaction spanned curiosity to concern.
There's also serious demand for GEO-generative engine optimization. Media teams want their work summarized accurately by large models and surfaced in AI-driven experiences.
Community highlights from The Media Copilot
In six-week programs, final capstones keep surprising. PR and comms students are building agentic systems for media monitoring that replace a lot of manual work.
On the journalism side, one standout was a detailed dashboard for image authentication-using content credentials to verify an image's history. If you care about provenance, you should know content credentials and the work of the C2PA.
The pitch that landed
The Time AI Agent. It wasn't just another chatbot-it hinted at a new model where publishers "agentify" archives and keep more control over the experience. The pitch offered access to the COO and a clear angle on the outlet's broader AI strategy. Easy yes.
Why pitches fall flat
Two issues: poor fit and bad timing. The space moves fast, and a solid idea can feel stale overnight. A large free-image service pitched its own take on generative imagery; then Gemini's Nano Banana Pro dropped and made it feel yesterday.
How to pitch newsrooms in 2026
Outlets are narrower in focus. Niche is getting even more niche. Local is getting even more local. Everyone is building deeper, direct relationships with their audience.
Your pitch should help a reporter tell a richer story that keeps readers coming back. Depth and impact are in. Reach and quick hits are out.
What Pachal is watching in 2026
- GEO: practical tactics and tools for being summarized accurately by AI systems.
- Copyright: movement on licensing, provenance, and fair use.
- The "bot internet": useful activity, measurable value, and whether it can be monetized.
Practical checklist for PR and comms teams
- Study the outlet's focus and audience. Bring a story that deepens their relationship with readers.
- Lead with strategy, not features. Explain the problem your idea solves for media operators.
- Show workflow impact: time saved, quality improved, or reach expanded with specifics.
- Address ethics, privacy, and copyright directly. Include provenance and source details.
- Be transparent about AI limits. Offer guardrails and human oversight in the workflow.
- Add the human touch: context, access, data, and an angle that feels fresh right now.
- Offer artifacts: demo access, sample outputs, annotated docs, and references.
- Check timing against major model updates and platform shifts before you hit send.
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