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The open launch of new artificial intelligence tools such as ChatGPT-3.5 (Generated Pre-trained Transformer) in November 2022 by the company OpenAI -and then its update to version GPT-4 in March 2023-poses new opportunities and challenges for journalism, and especially for professionals specifically focused on information verification. This research aims to understand and analyze the perceptions generated by the irruption of ChatGPT among fact-checking professionals in Spain with the aim of identifying disadvantages and advantages in its use, professional implications and desired functionalities. The study uses qualitative methodology with in-depth interviews with professionals from all Spanish fact-checking platforms belonging to the International Factchecking Network (IFCN) and the European Digital Media Observatory (EDMO). The results conclude that the use of ChatGPT presents notable ambivalences. On the one hand, there are perceived drawbacks in issues such as the transparency and reliability of sources, the scope of the data, and the format of the responses generated. However, fact-checkers also point to a possible auxiliary use of the chatbot in the tasks of gathering information, detecting falsehoods, and producing denials. The irruption of ChatGPT has a direct impact on the work routines of the fact-checkers, which can be made more difficult, reinforced or extended. Fact-checking professionals perceive themselves as "context agents" in a new ecosystem that also obliges them to further diversify their fields of action in the fight against disinformation and to accelerate the implementation of media education actions that empower citizens in the responsible use of artificial intelligence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Artificial intelligence (AI) is already integrated into news production strategies in some media outlets. Recently, generative AIs such as ChatGPT and others have demonstrated their ability to enhance productivity in content production tasks, raising the question of how journalism faculties can address this new technology. This paper presents an academic study on the application of AI in higher communication studies. The study involved 4 in-depth interviews and 28 semi-structured interviews with university lecturers and researchers. The findings confirm varying degrees of convergence and divergence on different aspects of the technology, including the integration of AI in communication faculties, student training in AI usage, the introduction of AI and journalism as a subject area, and the potential uses of AI in news production and consumption. Additionally, this paper proposes a comprehensive training program on AI and journalism, focusing on its foundations, technical competencies and ethical considerations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]