The US News App, NewsBreak, Is Criticized For False Articles From AI

Illustration of the NewsBreak application (photo: x @newsbreakApp)

JAKARTA - NewsBreak news application, which is downloaded mostly in the United States and has its roots in China, faces criticism for publishing false articles about an incident in badminton, New Jersey, which never happened. On Christmas Eve last year, NewsBreak published an article entitled "Trage on Christmas Day Occurs in koron, New Jersey in the Midst of Increasing Weapons Violence in Small Cities," which describes a shooting that didn't actually exist.

Criticism poured into NewsBreak after the police departmentORDically stated that the article was "completely false" and that no similar events had occurred around Christmas Day or even in their latest memory. NewsBreak removed the article on December 28, four days after publication, but did not provide a satisfactory explanation of how such a mistake could have occurred.

In addition, in a Reuters review of court documents, termination emails, and company memos in 2022, it was revealed that NewsBreak has often made similar mistakes since 2021. In at least 40 cases, the app has published false stories, created fake stories from local news sites using fictitious pen names, and raised content from its competitors.

The use of artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms by NewsBreak has become the focus of criticism, where former employees reveal that most algorithm development work is carried out at company offices in China. This raises concerns about how US user data can be accessed in China.

Similar problems also occur with several charities who fall victim to misinformation published by NewsBreak. For example, a food bank in Colorado says they should reject people because NewsBreak mentions the time of the distribution of the wrong food. Similarly, a charity in Pennsylvania was experiencing difficulties when NewsBreak misinformed the event they were organizing to help the homeless.

NewsBreak has reached a settlement agreement in several lawsuits related to copyright infringement of republished content without permission. However, the lack of clarity about the existence of a headquarters in the US while most technical work carried out in China raises questions about the company's commitment to privacy and legal compliance in the United States.

Leaders on Capitol Hill and in the media industry have highlighted this issue, in which some have called for further investigations into NewsBreak's practices and their impact on local news and the security of US user data. Although NewsBreak has been working to correct those mistakes, questions about transparency and integrity of the app remain hanging.