By Tadiwa Shunje
MASVINGO- Media organizations have been urged to develop clear policies governing the use
of AI in newsrooms during a TellZim news AI and Journalism workshop in partner with Content
Creators Network held in Masvingo on June 16, 2026 as the technology becomes increasingly
integrated into journalistic practice.
The call comes amid growing concerns over the rapid adoption of artificial intelligence in
journalism, with speakers stressing the need for structured guidelines to ensure responsible and
ethical use in newsrooms.
Addressing participants at the workshop, facilitator Media Lecturer Dr Golden Maunganidze said
AI should be used to support journalism but not replace human editorial judgment.
He described AI as 10,000 imperfect interns saying it can efficiently handle routine newsroom
tasks but still requires human supervision for accuracy, judgment and editorial decision making.
“Think of AI as 10,000 interns who are also a little dumb, it removes fear. Interns don’t take
your job but they take your grunt work.
“It is really good at doing boring stuff and doesn’t mind doing it, also it does not place
judgment.” said Dr Maunganidze.
Dr Maunganidze emphasized the need for balance between efficiency and human editorial
control, saying AI should remain a tool for routine work while journalists retain final judgment
over content.
He warned that despite its benefits, AI presents risks such as erosion of trust, hallucination,
overdependence, and threats to source confidentiality, risks which he said make newsroom
guidelines and policies essential.
MISA Zimbabwe national chairperson, Passmore Kuzipa, also highlighted concerns over AI
bias, saying it lacks sufficient African content and often reflects a Eurocentric perspective,
limiting diversity in news production.
“The risk of artificial intelligence is that it lacks African content and tends to be Eurocentric,”
said Kuzipa.
He said such challenges further strengthen the need for media houses to develop policies that
safeguard balanced and representative reporting when using AI tools.
Content Creators Network Organizer, Kudzayi Zvinavashe, said journalists and content creators
need strong prompting skills to effectively guide AI tools, ensuring accurate and relevant outputs
for news production.
“The quality of AI output depends on how well you instruct it,” said Zvinavashe.
He dismissed misconceptions that AI is replacing journalism, saying it does not take over
journalists’ roles but instead supports them in improving efficiency and output quality.
Zvinavashe added that journalists need to be equipped with AI skills, while media houses must
also establish clear policies to regulate and guide the use of AI in order to remain relevant in the
evolving digital era.
Participants were encouraged to view AI as a supportive tool that enhances productivity, but one
that must be used within clear ethical and professional guidelines to ensure credible and
contextual journalism.
The workshop focused on the integration of AI in newsroom workflow, balancing efficiency ,
