Sports Illustrated CEO fired for publishing articles by non-existent authors using AI

Last night it became known that the American publishing house Arena Group fired Sports Illustrated CEO Ross Levinsohn. The reason for this decision is not stated, it is only mentioned that “measures will be taken to improve the company’s operating efficiency and increase revenue.” However, according to data American media, the dismissal of the general director of one of the most famous sports magazines in the world may be related to the scandal that erupted around this publication a month earlier.

At the end of November, the Internet resource Futurism published investigation, which stated that the magazine published notes by non-existent authors, and photographs of these authors were generated by artificial intelligence (AI). The investigation sparked an outcry from the journalists’ union, which includes Sports Illustrated reporters. At the beginning of December Arena Group fired two top managers of the magazine – President Rob Barrett and Chief Operating Officer Andrew Kraft, and now the General Director. Ross Levinsohn will be temporarily replaced at Sports Illustrated by a member of the board of directors and one of the shareholders of the Arena Group, an American businessman of Indian origin, Manoj Bhargava.

Evgeny Khvostik