Media commandments in the age of AI

The University of the Philippines Cebu opens the second semester this week. This semester, I will be handling Media Literacy for senior high school students and Journalism Principles and Practice for second-year college students.

As a lawyer, I see media literacy and journalism as neither a distraction nor a deviation from my discipline. These subjects are deeply intertwined with law and many other fields, precisely because of their real and immediate impact on society. And the most urgent topic in relation to media that fascinates me today is Artificial Intelligence (AI). The question is no longer whether we should use it. Many of us already do, sometimes unconsciously, shaped by its presence in ways we barely notice.

As a Gen-X, I was born into an analog world, yet lived through its transition into the digital age. I was fortunate to receive early training in computer and information technology. Our high school batch was the first to be offered formal computer courses: first year was the Disk Operating System (DOS), second year was basic programming, third year was Lotus 1-2-3, the spreadsheet predecessor of Microsoft Excel, and fourth year was database work. Perhaps, that position between eras has given my generation a particular vantage point.

In that sense, I feel a duty to bridge what is new with what must endure. As a teacher and influencer, I carry the responsibility of understanding new technologies and shaping their use around the enduring values that define human life and dignity.

Last semester, in my Media Law and Ethics class, I asked my students, as a final activity in media ethics, to write at least 10 personal “commandments” addressed to themselves as media users and communicators. These commandments, I told them, should be simple rules they promise to follow whenever they post, share, comment, or create content in any medium, including social media. After each commandment, they were to add, in parentheses, the main ethical idea or concept behind it that we discussed in class. Allow me to share a few of these commandments, selected from various students.

“I shall verify information from at least two credible sources and give proper credit to them before sharing any claim that could influence or mislead the public. (Truth and Verification, Respect for Sources)”

“I will consciously follow credible voices that disagree with my worldview to prevent my feed from becoming a radicalizing echo chamber that distorts my perception of reality. (Avoiding algorithmic bias; Media literacy)”

“I will recognize that today, the medium can become the mob, and I shall not post content driven purely by outrage or emotion. Instead, I will aim to add useful information or foster listening. (Avoiding the mob dynamic; Promoting considered response)”

“I will resist the pressure to compress complex issues into simple, confident, but incorrect answers for engagement, knowing this contributes to structural stupidity. (Avoiding the Theory of Dumb; Accuracy over speed)”

“I will use AI with honesty and responsibility. I shall disclose any use of AI in generating or polishing content, and I shall not use AI summaries of complex ethical or legal matters unless I verify them against original sources. I refuse to contribute to “model collapse” in Philippine public discourse. (Transparency; Intellectual honesty; accuracy and verification)”

And here’s mine: I shall not allow AI to atrophy my thinking skills. I may use it to assist me in my work and make me more productive, but I shall not let it replace the very mental muscles that make the work mine.