The question of when AI should and shouldn't be used in journalism is ultimately an ethical and accountability question, not a capability question. An AI tool may be technically capable of writing an opinion column — but the ethical question is whether a bylined human should take accountability for that opinion. In journalism, accountability is as important as capability.
AI: Yes
Routine research and archive search; grammar and style checking; metadata and SEO optimisation; first-draft structuring from reporter's notes; translation (with human expert review); claim verification against primary sources; monitoring and alert generation; image caption suggestions.
Humans: Always
Story selection and editorial priority decisions; source cultivation and protection; interview conduct; editorial framing of contested social and political issues; accountability for published claims; correction decisions; decisions involving vulnerable sources or communities; publication sign-off. The dividing line is accountability: wherever a human must stand behind a decision and accept responsibility, that decision must remain human.