NewsBrands Ireland has issued a stark warning to the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Artificial Intelligence: without urgent government intervention, the unchecked rise of AI threatens to “quietly destroy” the democratic institutions of the State.

Read our AI & Irish Journalism Briefing Document for Joint Oireachtas AI Commitee

Speaking before the Committee today, Sammi Bourke and Deirdre Veldon, Chair and Vice Chair of NewsBrands Ireland, emphasised that news publishers’ business models are under unprecedented pressure from big tech platforms, evolving audience habits and, critically, the unlicensed use of original reporting in AI training.

“Gen AI is powered by journalism it refuses to pay for,” said Ms. Bourke. “By harvesting original reporting to feed Large Language Models (LLMs), the financial viability of quality journalism is under existential threat. If journalism becomes unsustainable, the consequences will be weaker scrutiny of power, greater exposure to disinformation, and declining public trust in democratic institutions.”

Key Demands for Government Action

To safeguard the future of the Irish media landscape, NewsBrands Ireland is calling for:

• Robust Government Action: Highlighting commitments in the current Programme for Government to support an independent media sector, NewsBrands is calling for the delivery of promises to ensure AI systems are transparent, accountable, and compliant with copyright and data protection law.
• Transparency & Accountability: Technology companies must be mandated to disclose exactly what content they use and how they use it. NewsBrands welcomes the proposed measure in the General Scheme of the Regulation of Artificial Intelligence Bill 2026, which provides for a significant increase in the powers afforded to regulators to monitor, inspect, and require information from big tech companies. This has the potential to allow for proper investigations into what copyrighted material is accessed and how it is used.
• Fair Remuneration: Implementation of robust frameworks to ensure publishers are compensated for the use of their intellectual property; fair payment is the “price of a sustainable information ecosystem.”
• Correction of Regulatory Gaps: Addressing the exclusion of media and creative voices from the National AI Advisory Council, which currently lacks representation from the journalism or arts sectors.
• EU Leadership: Leveraging Ireland’s upcoming EU Presidency to lead on the implementation of the EU AI Act and ensuring other EU regulations remain fit for purpose.

Innovation Without Exploitation

NewsBrands Ireland clarified that publishers are not “anti-innovation” and are already deploying AI tools responsibly within their own newsrooms. However, they insisted that technological progress must be lawful and accountable.

“We are living through the AI Gold Rush,” Ms. Bourke continued. “Ireland has a vital opportunity to shape the information marketplace and sustain responsible journalism. Is the Government doing enough to support media outlets, or is Ireland over-servicing the needs of Big Tech at the price of the media’s future?”

Preserving the Public Square

NewsBrands also highlighted the growing impact of deepfakes and AI-driven misinformation on social cohesion. “We have seen the degradation of the public square in the US under the current regime and we are starting to see the consequences of the targeting of media outlets and journalists and the impact of the growth of misinformation, disinformation and deepfakes on what was once the beacon for democracy right around the world” Ms. Bourke concluded. “AI governance must protect democracy, safeguard creativity, and sustain independent journalism.”