Journalism students at Mount Kigali University were urged to embrace artificial intelligence as a tool to support their work while maintaining human judgment, verification and ethical responsibility. 

Speaking during a public lecture at the university at 10 a.m., Philbert Girinema, Chief Editor at IGIHE, discussed the growing role of AI in journalism and how future journalists can prepare for its increasing presence in newsrooms. 

Philbert highlighted several ways journalists and journalism students can use AI, including summarizing information, helping users understand complex topics, developing interview questions and saving time during different stages of news production. 

However  he cautioned students against relying entirely on AI, stressing that journalists must remain responsible for the information they publish.“Knowing AI is not a journalism skill by itself,” Philbert said emphasizing that journalists need broader reporting and professional skills alongside their ability to use AI tools. 

He also pointed out that AI does not always perform accurately particularly when translating information into some African languages. This he said, shows the importance of journalists checking AI-generated information before using it in their work. 

Philbert encouraged students to see AI as a tool that can help them become better journalists rather than as a replacement for journalism itself. 

Students attending the lecture also reflected on the importance of verification when using AI. 

Queen Kaluaki, one of the students, said AI could help journalists create drafts but should not be relied upon to produce the final story.“We can use AI to help us create a draft of an article, but we cannot rely on it to produce the final article for us,” Queen said. 

She also added that information generated by AI must be independently checked, including names, facts and other details. 

Queen also noted that while AI is likely to become part of journalists’ everyday professional lives, journalists still need to conduct field reporting and interact directly with people. 

Another student, Abijuru Vanitha, said journalists should remain the final decision-makers when working with AI.“I am the one who tells AI what to do; AI does not tell me what to do,” Vanitha said, stressing that at the end of the day journalists should determine what information is accurate and what ultimately appears in a story. 

The lecture highlighted the need for journalism students to prepare for newsrooms where AI is increasingly being used while maintaining the traditional foundations of journalism, including reporting, verification, critical thinking and human judgment. 

Phibert concluded by emphasizing that a good journalist should know how to use AI effectively without becoming dependent on it 

By Tumalo Noel