Florent Latrive (Deputy Director of News, RADIO FRANCE) took the stage at AI Summit III to tackle one of the biggest questions in media today: Is AI a tool for journalists, or a threat to them?
At RADIO FRANCE, they’re leaning into AI—not to replace journalists, but to make their work sharper and more efficient.
One key project aims to turn their 44 local radio stations into a kind of national feedback loop, capturing real-time discussions and public sentiment across France. Every morning, between 9 and 10 AM, these stations air interactive shows on unique topics, and AI helps transcribe and analyze what’s being said, revealing common themes, contrasting viewpoints, and shifts in public discourse.
But AI isn’t just an eavesdropper—it’s a newsroom assistant. ATLAS, one of their biggest AI tools, helps journalists sift through hours of content, identify key quotes, and even generate SEO-friendly headlines and summaries. Then there’s Jay the Bot, which listens to political broadcasts and fact-checks claims against official datasets. And for tackling misinformation on a larger scale? Arlequin AI, a system that scans massive datasets from social media, mapping speech patterns and identifying how narratives spread.
Latrive didn’t sugarcoat things. AI isn’t magic, and it’s not a replacement for real journalism. But it is changing the industry. “Trust and authenticity: we are real, our audience is real.” AI can empower journalists, but it also brings risks—blind automation, over-reliance, and the illusion of objectivity. The challenge now? Keeping AI as a tool for truth, not just another black box shaping the news.
