Or is it? To see for myself if ChatGPT is as OP as social media is suggesting I had a chat with it.
Here's what I think. No. ChatGPT in it's current state is not the end of writers. It's simply the end of unoriginal writers. Let me explain.
ChatGPT can't create original content, currently it's 'mind' is only filled with the swirling regurgitated noise that any google search will tell you. As a freshly minted and published columnist I'm now personally invested enough to care about Ai influence on journalism, it's how you all think, don't lie. As a quick experiment to gauge the threat that Ai posed to my career and to judge how much of a luddite I need to become, I asked ChatGPT some journalism based prompts.
I'm currently writing a series of investigative long form articles for Cinegirl magazine that are removing the obfuscation surrounding the film industry one department at a time. The article I'm currently working on concerns Directors.
I asked the Ai, "What question would you ask a director to find out about their career?"
It's response was depressing and reassuring in equal measure.
Ai: "There are many questions that you could ask a director to find out about their career. Some examples might include:
What inspired you to become a director?
What was your first big break as a director?
What do you enjoy most about directing?
What challenges do you face as a director?
How do you approach casting actors for your projects?
How do you work with your cinematographer to create the visual style of a film?
How do you work with your editor to shape the final cut of a film?
What has been your favorite project to work on and why?
What do you hope to achieve in your career as a director?
These questions can help you get a sense of the director's background, influences, and artistic vision, as well as their experience and perspective on the film industry."
What an incredibly boring series of cookie cutter questions. Where's the conversation? Where's the scratching beneath the surface for the 'whys'? What are you hoping to learn by asking these questions that have been asked in every interview, in every industry by every blog. There is no curiosity there at all, just a played out script.
So I asked it a different question. "Can you generate new information ?"
Ai: "As a large language model, I am able to generate new text based on the input that I receive. However, I do not have the ability to generate new information that is not based on the data that I have been trained on. I can only provide responses and generate text based on the information that I have been programmed to understand. Is there something specific you would like me to help you with?"
Well if that doesn't sum up some thoughts I have about society I don't know what else does...
I followed up with another question, hoping for a hint of creativity.
"Can you give me a question to ask a director about their career that hasn't been asked before?"
Ai: "Here is a question that you could ask a director about their career that might be a bit unusual or unexpected:
"If you could go back in time and give yourself one piece of advice when you were just starting out as a director, what would it be and why?"
This question could give the director an opportunity to reflect on their career and share any wisdom or insights that they have gained over the years. It could also provide you with a unique perspective on the director's experiences and challenges as they built their career."
My brain recoiled from the image of a smiling face in front of a completely empty mind, basking in the profound nature of saying something that sounds very clever but could also be on a motivational poster hanging next to a 'Live Laugh Love' sign etched in drift wood. There couldn't be a more basic response to that question and you just know they feel smug about their answer. Bollocks to that, I want to know which Dinosaur gave them nightmares the first time they saw Jurassic park when then were too young to watch it. No, you're projecting!
Being neurodiverse, I'm always a step removed from society and view it as some sort of bizarre theatre that everyone is performing and I'm not entirely sure if they know they're in the production or not. Don't even get me started on the insane performance of 'haggling'. What I see from this Ai is that social theatre distilled into a chat bot. It's more of the same.
Which is a good thing, if writing is under threat from this, good. It means writing is stale and needs to get it's shit together. Currently if this Ai can only imitate, then everyone is going to have to get creative or be replaced, which I am 100% OK with. However, I have no doubt that this Ai will eventually be able to generate new thoughts and ideas, after all, creativity is just being good at hiding your sources.
