Commentary
By Gary Kopycinski, ENEWSPF Editor & Publisher
A group of local publishers and I are forming a journalism organization for online news publishers. As a group rooted in technology, we are fascinated by the possibilities and drawbacks of Artificial Intelligence, AI.
We met through LION Publishers — that is Local Independent Online News Publishers.
LION for short. Roar.
While remaining members of LION, we decided that we could do more in the South Chicagoland area if we began to formally network and share ideas. Our first meetings have been awesome.
We are, so far:
- Amethyst Davis, publisher of the Harvey World Herald
- Eric Crump (publisher, Amy Crump, Marilyn Thomas, Randall Weissman of the Homewood-Flossmoor Chronicle
- Carole Sharwarko (publisher) of Southland Investigative Reporting Center
- Melanie Jongsma (publisher) and Josh Bootsma of The Lansing Journal
- Some Guy from Park Forest with eNews Park Forest
We have a lot on our plates. We decided on a name. So far, we are the Local News Alliance (LNA). We will pursue non-profit status, and work to strengthen our individual projects for our local coverage areas. To assuage possible fears given past news projects, one Star, for example, that originated in Park Forest, we are not interested in creating one massive publication that will, like whatever is left of the Star, cover all of our areas poorly.
This is a very exciting venture and I’m incredibly honored and properly proud of what we can do together.
More on that as it continues to develop.
On to AI
We spoke in our last two meetings about Artificial Intelligence, or AI. I’m putting Artificial Intelligence in capital letters because AI is not only coming, it is already here. At schools, we must watch our students. But, rather than forbid new technology, I suspect we will continue to teach students how to work in a world of technology, a world with AI.
In this world of online publishing, I am enthralled by the possibilities AI offers, but approach this with some hesitation. I cannot, ethically, use AI to write news articles and not be upfront with readers about my use of the tech. In our group, LNA, we decided this was among the most important things we must consider.
So far, I have used OpenAI for two pieces, both which present summaries of upcoming meetings of the Park Forest Board of Trustees: Audit and Sewer Replacement on the Docket at Monday’s Village Board Meeting, just published, and Monday in the Village of Park Forest Board Room, published earlier.
I made a mistake in the first one. OpenAI put in its own call at the end encouraging residents to attend the meeting. The problem? I didn’t include in my prompt to the system that this meeting would not be in person.
Not good on my part, and double “not good” that I didn’t catch it.
For the article I published tonight, Sunday, I gave OpenAI more to work with. The product produced was short. Next time I will specify a word count and see if that makes a difference.
I’m including here the prompt I gave the system and two versions of an article it produced.
My Prompt to OpenAI as it Appears
Write a news story summarizing the following agenda for the Village of Park Forest’s meeting of the Board of Trustees:
- 2021/2022 Audit Presentation
The Village’s annual audit reports for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2022 (FY 21-22) will be presented
at the Rules meeting on February 6, 2023. Representatives from the Village’s auditing firm, Lauterbach and Amen, will be in attendance to present the audit results.
The audit presentation will follow the same format as last year. There is a financial update that is the
start of the budget process that occurs in February each year and the audit presentation is a good primer for the budget process. Also, since the Board now receives monthly financial reports, staff believes the audit presentation does not need to take as much time as it has in the past.
The FY 21-22 audit has been submitted to the GFOA for the COA (Certificate of Achievement for
Excellence in Financial Reporting) award. Through FY 20-21, the Village has received the COA award
26 consecutive years in a row. - 2023 Sanitary Sewer replacement
In 2021, the Village contracted with National Power Rodding to inspect sanitary sewer lines on the south side of the Village. During this inspection, several lines were noticed that had deteriorated so severely that they could not be rehabilitated by traditional CIPP lining methods. Instead they need to be replaced. On Tuesday, January 24, 2023 at 2:00 p.m., the Department of Public Works opened 4 bids for the 2023 Sanitary Sewer Replacement Contract. Invitations to bid were published in the Daily Southtown and on our website.
Additionally, a notice was sent to the entire State Directory of Minority, Women-Owned, and Veteran owned businesses inviting them to bid. At the time of bid, 48 agencies had requested access to view the bid documents.
A total of 1,876 feet of sewer were bid to be replaced including:
A) Base Bid: 249-253 Minocqua; 236-380 Blackhawk; 380 Blackhawk-426 Huron (through Majestic Luxury Townhomes parking lot and rear yard easements).
B) Alternate #1: Minocqua Court
C) Alternate #2: 351-355 Miami
DPW was not confident in our bid estimate, given the volatility of the current construction market. Thus we made the decision to create a base bid with two alternates, allowing us to award the contract based on the available funding. M/J Underground, located in Monee, IL, was the lowest bidder with a base bid in the amount of $306,652.01, Alternate #1 in the amount of 58,405.00, and Alternate #2 in the amount of 52,966.00, for a total of $418,023.01. This was lower than the Engineer’s Estimate of $571,225.20 See attached Bid Tab.
RECOMMENDATION: Since M/J Underground’s total bid was under our funding in the Fiscal 2023 budget, we recommend awarding the entire contract, including the two alternates. We recommend awarding the 2023 Sanitary Sewer Replacement Contract to M/J Underground, located in Monee, IL, and authorize the Village Manager to enter into said contract in the amount of $418,023.01 with a 10% contingency for any additional work as determined by the Village Engineer for a total cost not to exceed $459,825.31.
- Resolution Accepting a Loan to a Grant from and Participating In the Illinois Housing Development Authority Capital Bill Preservation Program- Limited Rehabilitation
- An Ordinance Approving a Text Amendment to Article VII (Signs) of the Unified Development Ordinance to remove Auxiliary Yard Signs from Section VII-5.C Temporary Signs with Permit Requirement
The First Result Produced by AI
The Village of Park Forest will hold a meeting of the Board of Trustees on February 6, 2023, where representatives from the Village’s auditing firm, Lauterbach and Amen, will present the 2021/2022 audit results. The audit has been submitted for the COA (Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting) award, which the Village has received 26 consecutive years. The meeting will also discuss the 2023 Sanitary Sewer Replacement Contract, where M/J Underground was the lowest bidder at $418,023.01, lower than the Engineer’s Estimate of $571,225.20. The Board of Trustees will also consider a resolution to accept a loan to a grant from the Illinois Housing Development Authority Capital Bill Preservation Program- Limited Rehabilitation, and an ordinance to approve a text amendment to the Unified Development Ordinance to remove Auxiliary Yard Signs.
Second AI Result After Pushing “Regenerate response”
The Village of Park Forest’s Board of Trustees will hold a meeting on February 6, 2023 to discuss the 2021/2022 Audit Presentation and the 2023 Sanitary Sewer Replacement project. Representatives from the Village’s auditing firm, Lauterbach and Amen, will present the audit results, which have been submitted to the GFOA for the COA award. The Village has received the COA award 26 consecutive years in a row. The sanitary sewer replacement project will replace 1,876 feet of sewer and the contract will be awarded to M/J Underground, located in Monee, IL, for a total cost of $459,825.31. The meeting will also discuss a Resolution accepting a loan to a grant from and participating in the Illinois Housing Development Authority Capital Bill Preservation Program- Limited Rehabilitation and an Ordinance Approving a Text Amendment to Article VII (Signs) of the Unified Development Ordinance.
My Take?
OpenAI was helpful in producing both pieces. However, it was not accurate. OpenAI concluded, for example, that the board would in fact accept the proposed bid on the sanitary sewer replacement project.
I guess I’ll have to explain to the AI the difference between a Rules and Regular meeting.
With the editing and corrections involved, plus the one that I missed on the first piece, I saved no time.
Someday, someone will smile at my naiveté in even writing this piece, likening it to someone writing, “Sometime in the future, we’ll have computers that can fit in one room in a house! They might even fit on a desk!”
But here we are, meeting AI for real, for the first time.
You be the judge. Technology is here for you to use.
This is not where our world is going. We’re already there.
