Helpful or Hurtful: Legacy Magazine Journalism Wrestles with the Advent of AI Technology in Newsrooms

As legacy media continues to adapt in the ever-evolving digital age, this research examines the intersection of generative artificial intelligence (AI) and legacy magazine journalism through the theoretical lens of new media theory. While traditional print magazines increasingly expand their modality within the digital landscape, AI technologies have become progressively enticing and present in non-journalistic content creation, distribution, and audience engagement. Drawing on concepts from New Media Theory, this research explores the contradiction of AI reshaping the practices and norms of literary content creation while legacy magazine newsrooms balk and reject its presence in their pages. This research also explores the implications for media ethics, audience relationships, and the future of legacy magazine journalism vis-à-vis generative AI. Through in-depth semi-structured interviews with legacy magazine editors and section editors at the top of their mastheads, this research provides insights into the refusal of generative AI integration in legacy magazine journalism.