Assessment of Taraba Broadcast Journalists Knowledge, Adoption and Usage of Artificial Intelligence in Journalistic Practices

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has become an essential tool in various fields, including journalism. However, the extent to which broadcast journalists in Taraba State, Nigeria embraced and utilized AI in their practices remains a subject of debate. It is on the above premise that this research examined Taraba State broadcast journalists' knowledge and usage of AI in journalistic practices. The paper was built on the technology acceptance model, diffusion of innovation theory, and social learning theory. The study adopted a qualitative approach where in-depth interviews were used. The in-depth interviews were conducted until the results reached saturation point. Findings of the study revealed that in journalists in Taraba State, Nigeria are slowly beginning to embrace AI for journalistic practice. However, there knowledge of AI usage for journalistic practices is low hence there is a significant knowledge gap that needs to be bridged. Therefore, the study recommends among other things that journalists in Taraba State need to gain more knowledge about AI and its potential applications in journalistic practices. The paper concludes that with proper training and guidance, journalists in Taraba State can harness the power of this AI technology to improve their reporting practices while ensuring ethical standards are upheld.