--- title: "New York Times Issues Stern Warning to Its Freelance Writers About AI Use" description: "On the heels of another AI scandal, The New York Times emailed a \"periodic reminder\" to freelancers reminding them of the paper's AI policy." date: "2026-05-12" modified: "2026-05-12" authors: - name: "Maggie Harrison Dupré" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/mharrison" url: "https://futurism.com/artificial-intelligence/new-york-times-freelancers-ai-rules" categories: - "Artificial Intelligence" - "Ethics" tags: - "ai journalism" --- # New York Times Issues Stern Warning to Its Freelance Writers About AI Use ![The illuminated sign of "The New York Times" displayed on the glass facade of a building, with reflections visible in the windows. The image has a yellowish tint.]() *Illustration by Tag Hartman-Simkins / Futurism. Source: Angela Weiss / AFP via Getty Images* After a string of AI controversies, *The New York Times* emailed a "periodic reminder" to freelancers on Tuesday reminding them of the paper's AI policy. "To be clear on AI: All writing and visuals that freelancers submit to *The Times* must be the product of human creativity and craft, and all submissions must consist solely of their original reporting, writing and other work," reads the email, reviewed by *Futurism*. "Freelance contributors must not submit any material for publication that contains content generated, modified or enhanced by \[generative AI\] tools, or that has been input into these tools." The email pointed its contributors to a detailed document on its "policy on freelancers' use of generative AI tools," which forbids the inclusion of AI-generated or AI-modified text and images in any reporting contributed to the paper. While AI tools are acceptable for "high-level" brainstorming, the notice warns, freelancers "may not use \[generative AI\] tools to help you write any part of a story." "Using \[generative AI\] tools to create, draft, guide, clean up, edit, improve, or rephrase your writing is strictly prohibited," it continues. As for what specific tools the company's actually speaking to, the document forbids "chatbots like Gemini, Claude, ChatGPT and Perplexity; AI-powered search products like Google AI Overviews; and image generators like Adobe Firefly, DALL-E and MidJourney." The reminder comes as the paper of record [continues to grapple]() with AI-generated content, including preventable AI-spun errors, making its way into its pages. Back in March, the *NYT* faced scrutiny after a contributor to its competitive "Modern Love" column was publicly accused of using AI to generate an emotional personal essay; that writer [later told *Futurism*]() that she'd used chatbots to conceptualize and edit the piece. Then, in April, the paper [cut ties]() with a freelancer who admitted to using AI to cook up a book review that was found to be [riddled with plagiarism]() after its publication. And while these controversies indeed stemmed from the work of freelancers, the institution found itself in hot water yet again last week, when a [substantial correction]() revealed that an article bylined by the *NYT'*s Canada Bureau chief contained an AI-fabricated quote weeks after publication. (As [*Futurism* reported in March](), a writer at Condé Nast's *Ars Technica* was fired for a similar error.) "An article on April 15 about the success that Mark Carney, the Liberal prime minister of Canada, has had in building cross-party alliances was updated after *The Times* learned that a remark attributed to Pierre Poilievre, the Conservative leader, was in fact an AI-generated summary of his views about Canadian politics that AI rendered as a quotation," reads the update. "The reporter should have checked the accuracy of what the AI tool returned." *Futurism* reached out to the *NYT* to ask whether this kind of reminder is normal, and whether the notice has anything to do with its recent flurry of AI scandals. In response, the paper shared a statement saying that "we regularly provide updated guidance to freelancers and in this case we wanted to be clear about our policies regarding the use of AI." "In-house journalists have [separate guidelines]() for using AI and approved GenAI tools," the paper added. **Updated with a statement from The New York Times.** **More on the *New York Times*:** *[We Talked to a Writer Accused of Publishing An AI-Generated Essay in The New York Times]()* ## Author At Futurism, I've reported extensively on the rise of AI as a cultural and business force shaping the media industry, and more broadly how those dynamics are changing how we all consume and share information and relate to one another. I'm also fascinated by public health policy and ethics, the role of emerging tech in politics and governance — and the powerful people and forces at those intersections — climate change, and the environment. My investigation on Sports Illustrated's use of AI-generated authors with fictional biographies won a 2024 Mirror Award for "Best Story on Media Coverage of Artificial Intelligence in Journalism and the Media" from Syracuse University's SI Newhouse School, I contributed to Niemen Lab's 2025 Predictions for Journalism series, and I've discussed my work for Futurism during appearances on NPR, CNN, the BBC, the CBC, and more. I grew up in rural Pennsylvania and attended the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where I played Division I field hockey for the Minutewomen as a midfielder. Since then, I've lived in New Orleans, Louisiana and Manhattan, New York. I spend my free time running, reading, perusing archival fashion, and searching for the world’s best negroni. I also have a debonair tuxedo cat, Westley, who's named after "The Princess Bride." ### Author social links [Bluesky]()