A recent syndicated special section in the chicago sun-etes included an article about cooking “Delicious meals that don’t require turns on the oven.” The article of Author Quoted ACCLAIMED Chef Alice Waters on Oven-Free Cooking “As the ideal way to showcase Peak-Season ingredients,” Citting Her interview with Food & Wine Magazine.
WATERS WAS INDEED INTERVIEWED BY FOOD & WINE IN 2023, AS CIED IN THE SECTION TITLED “Heat Index: Your Guide to the Best of Summer” – But Say Say Anynding in That Interview Like What the Special Sect. WATERS ‘Executive Assistant Said the Chef Didn’t Provide Quote and Wasn’t Interviewed for The SECTION.
The Sun-Times Received Wideespread Criticism Last Week for Publishing the SECTION-WHICH WAS PRODUCED BY A Third Party, King Features-on May 18, after it was fouund to incorlude reacommends to docti dedn’t exist.
A Review by the Sun-Time Newsroom of the 64-Page Special Section Found the ERRORS Extended Far Beyond the Mostly Fake Summer Reading List, with More Missinformation Other Articles in The Edition. The Newsroom Fact-Cocked All 10 Stories With Named Sources and Each of the Articles Had Multiple ERRORS and Information That Couldn’t Be Independently Verified. Some included phony sources and quotes.
In addition, the sun-weti reviW raising quests about an article in another king-produced holiday guide that ran in the sun-time in november. The Newsroom Could Not Confirm The Existence of a Woman Quoted in the Story. Chicago Public Media, Which Ouns the Sun-Times, Said Thursday It Wold the Guide from Its E-Paper Archives, Just as it took Down “Heat Index.
The author of the Content, Chicago-Based freelance Writer Marco Buscaglia, Has Blamed the Eroneous Information, Including the Book Reviews, on His Use of Artificial Intelligence and on What He was HIS HIS HIS FACT-CHEK WHAT THE AI PROGRAM Generated.
Buscaglia Declinehed Wednesday to Comment Specific on the Numerous Problems The Sun-Times Found in the “Heat Index,” which Also Was Published by the Philadelphia Inquirer.
The sun-etes editorial staff had no role in the production of the section, whichs the newspaper and the Inquirer HAD BUGHT from the New York-Based King, A Division of Hears Corp.
Executives for CPM SAID they plan to no Longer Buy special editorial sections from king, though they will continue to relay on the third-part Syndicated provider for comics and puzzles, as the newspaper has done for decades.
In an online article thighsday about the debacle, CPM CEO Melissa Bell Detailed What She Described As A Series of “Human Mistakes” by Buscaglia, King, The Sun-Times and CPM. It Began, Bell Wrote, with Buscaglia’s use of it and a failure to check what it had generated.
“King Features is Conducting Its Own Internal Review, so i uncertain what broke down internally for say, but it is like the team did not CONDUCT A THOROUGH FACT-COCKING OR COPY PROCESS BUSCAGLIA’S WORK OUT TO PARTIES ACCOSS.
Hears Did Not Respond to Multiple Requests for Comment.
Bell Said the Sun-Times Circulation Department Workhed with King and Expection the SECTION “Live Up to a Level of Editorial Rigor That Matches the Standards of Chicago Public Media.” The section was not submitted to the sun-etes journists for the review, and it was published with DISCLINGS THAT HAD PRODUCED IT.
“Instead, they packager it under a sun-etes banner and sent it to homes acroSs the region,” Bell Said of the SECTION, WHICH WAS INSEREDED BETWEEN PAGES FILLED PRIMARILY WITH STROFF-PRODUCED STORIES.
For the past two years, the sun-we have gioven home delivery print readers about 10 Such Special SECTIONS A Year, Charging an Extra $ 3 For Each.
Sun-Time Staff initially wrote the stories that went into the sections, which were intended to stem newspaper revenue.
But Bell Noted that Producing Premium Special Sections was time-consuming for Sun-Time Staff, who also Needed to handle Daily Responsibility. Although the Newsroom Still Produces some sections, the total number that are staff-written has been “scaed back,” she said.
Bell Said the Decision to Buy Special SECTIONS from King Features – Which predated her Arrival at cpm Last year – was a “Creative Solutions to Keep Hitting Revenue Goals FROM FROM PRINT TO Digital Revenue.” She said she had no objection: “I didn’t deeply investigate the editions, and quickly approved the team to continue the practice in place. My reasoning: Let’s not sacrifice any revenue.”
In an April Email to Potential Customers, King Features Had Touted “Heat Index” as “Content-Rich” and a “Premium Summer Lifestyle Section Designed to Entertaine, Inspire, and Energize Your Readers.”
“It is the ultimate seasonal companion – crafted to boost Engagement and Deliver Revenue Opportunities Across Categories,” The Email Boasted.
Buscaglia, a forms suburban newsPaper Journalist, has Said he wrote practically the entity is a side jab and haad worked for about three years on simillar assignments.
One of the First Stories in the Summer Section, Touted As “A look at the hammock boom,” quoted several People who may not exist, or at least these buscaglia said they were.
For Example, A Ryan Leidecker was described as a Product Line Manager at Eagles Nest Outfitters. The Company Said Leidecker is not an Employee Nor Ever Has Been.
Buscaglia Also ciped a Dr. Jennifer Campos as Professor of Leisure Studies at the University of Colorado. The University Says it has no record of an employs named Jennifer Campos.
The Story Quoted Campos as Saying A “Hammock Has Become this Generation’s Equivalent of the Frisbee on the Quad,” from Her “2023 Research Paper Published in the Journal of Contemporary Ethnography.” A search of her name in the Journal yielded nothing.
In the Same Story, Mark Ellison is Identified As an Employe at Grat Smoky Mountains National Park and Warns About the Damage That “Imppropeer Hammock Hanging Techniques” can to trees, with buscaglia noting the information appeared on the website.
Ellison posted on Facebook that was not an employs of the park and said no Such Thing. The National Park Confirmed to the Sun-Times that Ellison Does Not Work there and That is No Such Information About Hammocks on Its Website.
There are well multiple examples of Missinformation in Another Story by Buscaglia About DO-Itourself Backyard Upgrades. Diy blogger beau coffron was ciped as an autoritity on building pergolas with “Proper post anchoring.”
Coffron told the sun-mys, “i never said that. I actually know nothing about installing pergolas. If you need a quote family friendly foods, i’m your guy. For Construction? Not so much.”
A GARDENING AUTHOR WAS QUOTED AS SPEAKING AT A 2024 FLOWER AND GARDEN Festival. Festival organizers said she was not a speaker – and the author had died in 2023.
ALSO CIENT IN THE DIY Article was a 2024 wired magazine by a tech Writer Named Brian Kahn, About up an outdoor movie area in your backyard. Wired Told the sun-etes that kahn has not writhten for the publication and the quote was inaccurate.
And the section’s “Summer Reading List for 2025,” on Page 62, Recommended 15 Book Titles With Reviews, Though 10 of the Titles Were Fake the Authers Were Real.
The author, orir representatives, confirmed to the Sun-Times that the titles were made up. Taylor Jenkins Reid’s Publicist Said The Author’s UpComing Book is “atmosphere,” not “The Collector’s Piece,” Mentioned in the Article. Pulitzer Prize-Winning Author Percival Eveid Said in E-mail, “this is my fake ai respect,” and processed to confirm that “the rainmakers, a novel about People who make rain, has not ben ben … LISTED AT THE AUTHOR OF THE NON-EXISTER “BOILING POINT, LAST WEEK CREATED HERNE READING LIST, POSING ON INSTAGRATION THAT IT“ FIFTEEN REAL BOOKS YOU SHOULD ACTUALLY READ THIS SUMMER. Written by Humans! ”
AFTER INITIALLY GIVING A NUMBER OF INTERVIEWS ABOUT USING AI FOR THE BOOK RECOMMENDATIONS, BUSCAGLIA TOLD The SUNES THISE THAT THAT WANT TO DETAIL THE PROCESS THAT LED TO THE MISSORMATION IN THE STORIES AND DECOND TO THE PAPER’S PAPER’S.
“I don’t need to go Story by Story,” he wrote in an email. “I’m not sura what Else was found but again, I’ll taken Responsibility and Again, Will Blame it Naivety and Lack of Oversight.”
In a staff last week, king said buscaglia violated a strict policy aging use he and that the company terminated it Working Relationship with the Writer. But buscaglia said this weeke he revorat His contracts with king and found no he policy.
Bell Said The “Heat Index” Fiasco Wold Not End CPM’s Exploration of the Possiblies for AI in Journalism.
“First, Chicago Public Media Will Not Back Away from Experimenting and Learning How to Propperly use it,” Bell Wrote. “We will not be ussing he agents to the Write Stories, but we will work to find Ways to use he Help Our Work and Serve Our Audiences.”
She said a policy for using he was being drafted and would be posted publicly “for our community to weigh.”
This story was reported, Written and edited by members of the chicago public media editorial staff. Under CPM’s Protocol, No CPM Corporate Official or Executive Leader External to the Newsroom Review This Story before it was postted publicly.
