We’re proud to debut our new podcast series, Tech for Non-Techies, where we unpack complex tech trends and their real-world impact, all in plain English. Episode one dives straight into one of the most unsettling developments in journalism: the rise of AI-generated avatar news presenters.

And we may be making podcast history, this could be the first time an avatar news anchor has been interviewed on air.

Whether you find it fascinating or downright dystopian, avatar journalism is no longer fringe or futuristic. It’s already here, disrupting the news landscape at a time when trust in information is under pressure, and the boundaries between fact and fiction are increasingly blurred.

A tool for transparency or a Trojan Horse?

When Albania unveiled the world’s first AI-powered “avatar minister”; Diella, it was only a matter of time before avatars made their way into newsrooms. In some cases, this technology is being used transparently to boost efficiency in cash-strapped newsrooms, freeing up human reporters to do real journalism while avatars present pre-scripted bulletins. That’s the claim, at least.

In other contexts, it’s more sinister. We’re seeing avatars with fake biographies, social media accounts, and even entire websites, posing as real investigative journalists. These synthetic personas are being used to push propaganda, sow confusion, and manipulate audiences, often without any disclosure of their artificial origins. It’s not just misleading; it’s deception by design.

Inside the Avatar Newsroom

In this episode, I speak to Zenzele Ndebele, founder of Zimbabwe-based Centre for Innovation and Technology (CITE), which is experimenting with avatar journalism to promote civic accountability. We also meet Alice, Africa’s first AI avatar news presenter, and hear directly from her – or rather, from the humans behind her voice and programming.

Rounding out the conversation is Caroline Vuillemin, Director General of Fondation Hirondelle, a Swiss-based organisation supporting independent media in crisis zones. She raises important concerns about whether avatars undermine the credibility of journalism and erode the human connection that lies at its core.

Our take on Avatar Journalism

I’m still uneasy. In an age of algorithmic amplification and influence operations, introducing synthetic avatars into journalism risks pushing us further into an environment of mistrust. While deepfakes grab headlines, it’s the “spreader effect” that truly worries me: unverified, AI-generated content disguised as truth, disseminated at speed and scale, and near-impossible to rebut in real-time.

This isn’t a tech debate, it’s a democracy debate. And it’s time we all joined the conversation.

Listen to Episode 1 of Tech for Non-Techies:

Let us know, would you trust an avatar to tell you the news?

Written by Karen Allen