Solution Journalism Series – Artificial Intelligence
AI in Journalism
USAGM hosted a second round of sessions in its Solution Journalism series, this time focusing on the role of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in journalism.
The first workshop of this series focused on corruption, including fact-checking and multimedia verification, storytelling techniques, analytical and investigative skills, and best practices. The USAGM Media Development team worked with 20 journalists and bloggers from Ferghana, Namangan, and Andijan—the eastern regions of Uzbekistan—who represented leading local and national media outlets, including Kun.uz, the Farg’ona Haqiqati regional newspaper, and Sevimli TV, a private broadcaster. This second round of training was available to previous and new participants across major cities in Uzbekistan. Many Ferghana trainees were digital content creators who greatly appreciated learning from American best practices, including VOA’s approaches and how U.S. media produces solutions-focused stories.
The AI sessions were led by expert trainer Oleg Khomenok and Navbahor Imamova, the VOA Uzbek Service editor and guest instructors Khikmatulla Ubaydullayev, Uzbekistan’s top AI expert, as well as Andy Lehren, a Pulitzer-winning journalist with The New York Times and NBC. They conducted extensive in-person and virtual sessions.
Continuing USAGM’s tradition in Uzbekistan of facilitating candid, off-the-record policy discussions with key officials, Akhror Burkhanov, spokesperson for Uzbekistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, joined the session. His participation has provided an unprecedented opportunity for open exchanges on Tashkent’s international engagement and foreign policy priorities. Mr. Burkhanov demonstrated remarkable openness and flexibility in his responses. Since the ministry rarely holds press conferences, these sessions were crucial in building professional relationships between the journalists and the government.
Each part of the workshop underscored the value and relevance of the USAGM training. Guests, hosts, and others continued to emphasize USAGM/VOA’s contribution to media development in Uzbekistan and the importance of bridging the gap between the country’s media community and traditionally opaque parts of the system.
The Solution Journalism Series is an interagency agreement between USAGM and the U.S. State Department to provide media assistance to Uzbekistan.