Best Practices
Case studies and articles on AI in writing — real editorial workflows and content strategies
Nieman Lab: How AI is creeping into The New York Times
Laura Hazard Owen's detailed account of the AI tools and policies taking hold inside the NYT newsroom, from the Cheatsheet tool to AI detection practices.
Nieman Lab: AI is creeping into major newspapers through opinion pieces
Neel Dhanesha's Nieman Lab investigation finding AI-generated text in opinion sections of major US newspapers, attributed to named human contributors.
ProPublica newsroom strike over AI — Nieman Lab analysis
ProPublica's Guild voted to authorize a strike demanding a ban on AI-related layoffs, marking the first time a major U.S. newsroom has taken this step over AI protections.
Grammarly AI expert review controversy — Nieman Lab analysis
Grammarly's Expert Review feature attributes AI-generated editing advice to real writers and journalists without their permission, raising questions about consent and authenticity.
AI transforming freelance journalism — Nieman Lab case study
A Reuters Institute survey of 45 freelance journalists and editors on how AI has changed pitching, research, writing speed, and the expectations placed on freelancers.
SF Standard AI-powered news app — Nieman Lab case study
The Lenfest Institute grants The San Francisco Standard funding to develop a mobile app with an experimental AI-powered CMS that treats data chunks, not articles, as the atomic unit.
NYT AI tool for tracking the manosphere — Nieman Lab case study
Inside the NYT's custom AI tool that monitors 80 podcasts daily, generating summary reports for nearly 40 reporters to identify emerging narratives and rhetorical shifts.
Medium: Technical writing trends 2026 — lessons from a year of AI
A technical communicator at SoftServe examines six shifts in documentation work after a year of AI integration, contrasting predictions with what actually changed.
Medium: I used AI every day for 30 days in 2026 — the workflow that actually works
A writer documents a 30-day AI experiment, describing a five-step workflow that keeps human thinking central and identifying seven mistakes most likely to degrade quality.
How professionals use AI writing tools in 2026 — practical guide
A practitioner survey of how writers, designers, coders, and researchers use AI tools as assistive systems in daily workflows, with 15 tools reviewed by category.
JournalismAI Festival 2025 — Nieman Lab report
Key findings from the London conference where newsrooms shared AI reporting tools, article personalization experiments, and the shift from adding AI to journalism to becoming part of AI systems.
Star Tribune AI translation investigation — Poynter case study
The Minnesota Star Tribune's AI Lab used ChatGPT to translate 200 pages of Faux Cyrillic journal entries on deadline, generating leads that informed a three-day investigative profile.
AI strategies at NYT and Washington Post — Nieman Lab analysis
A paired look at how the two largest U.S. newspapers approach AI differently, from the NYT's research-first philosophy to the Post's AI-powered dynamic paywall.
CT Mirror AI for local journalism — Poynter case study
The Connecticut Mirror hired an AI data reporter to build tools that transcribe municipal meetings, generate story leads, and extend coverage across a state with limited staff.