A.I Use in Radio: How Will it Still Impact Radio DJs?

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Artificial Intelligence (A.I.) has found ways to seep into many entertainment industries as of late, including radio broadcasting. As A.I is proven to replicate the duties of a traditional radio DJ, employees in the radio business are concerned about how far A.I is willing to go.

Today marks the one-year anniversary since Futuri Media’s release of RadioGPT, a radio content solution powered by artificial intelligence. Taken from a 2023 radio.co article from Lucy Rowe, the A.I system can “identify what’s trending by scanning social media, write scripts using GPT [generative pre-trained transformer] technology,” and “be trained to impersonate a radio station’s host.”

Since the release of RadioGPT, there have been mixed feelings from on-air radio talent. Out of 442 employed radio DJs and 60 unemployed radio personalities in a July 2023 web survey from Inside Radio, 22 percent say that AI’s impact on radio is “very negative”. Another 43 percent say that AI’s impact is “slightly negative”. Based off these results, about two-thirds of radio talent involved in the survey have a negative connotation towards the use of artificial intelligence in radio stations.

The same 2023 radio.co article from Lucy Rowe also lists some pros and cons for the usage of A.I. in radio stations. Since A.I can scan through thousands of entertainment sources, radio hosts could have an easier time staying up to date with the latest trends. However, the cons say that A.I. “reduces opportunities for radio hosts, leaves voices at risk of being pirated, and uses technology that doesn’t incorporate its own fact-checking.”

In my eyes, the negatives outweigh the positives. On one hand, artificial intelligence’s ability to scan through thousands of online sites can work wonders for radio show prep. On the other hand, the fact that A.I. can replicate a human voice kills the charm of radio. Listeners come for the warmth and personality of a radio host, and stripping them with A.I for budget cuts would make people take radio less seriously.

To prevent backlash, there could be a compromise between artificial intelligence and radio. Instead of using A.I to replicate on-air voices, stations can allow on-air talent to use it solely for show prep. This can allow DJs to find ideas for talk breaks much easier, but they must report on the stories found in their own words. Through this method, A.I is used in a way that does not harm employment for radio talent.

It is likely that A.I will find a place in the radio industry at some point. However, artificial intelligence must be used carefully in order to avoid employment loss for on-air talent.