Want to use AI? Take a journalism class.

Spoiler alert: This letter was NOT written with AI. That’s been done so many times, and frankly, we find it insulting when, halfway through, the editor admits they “tricked you,” when really, they didn’t. This letter was written by us—two humans who have embraced AI, but not as a replacement for independent thought and creativity. And every article in this issue was also written by a human.

More importantly, this issue was written by professional journalists, which brings us to the point of this letter: We believe that everyone—whether you use AI or not—should take a journalism course. Actually, we will go one step further and say it should be required for high school graduation.

It’s not because we think everybody should become a journalist. We don’t. But the skills we learned in our journalism classes are essential for successfully navigating this new AI world, whether you are an intentional AI user or not.

Journalism teaches you to always ask questions, challenge everything you hear and read,  consider what information is missing and find it, and, most importantly, verify everything.

These skills are essential when using AI, scrolling through social media or even just browsing the internet.

Large language models (LLMs) are amazing; they can answer your most pressing questions in seconds. But that doesn’t mean the answer they give you is correct. In fact, they can provide inaccurate information with surprising confidence, create believable false images and even mimic your voice. And it’s up to you to determine what is and is not real.

This is where journalism training becomes essential.