AFP has appointed Sophie Huet, one of its top journalists, to a new role driving its strategy on Artificial Intelligence, reflecting the Agency’s desire to bolster its competitiveness in this key domain.

Sophie Huet, currently Global Editor-in-Chief, has been appointed to the newly created position of Deputy Global News Director for Editorial Innovation and Artificial Intelligence.

During a meeting on April 25, 2024, the AFP Board of Directors approved the accounts for the 2023 financial year, which confirm that the Agency’s financial recovery is continuing.

Total turnover was stable (+0,1%), at 320.1 million euros.

Operating expenses were 297 million euros, a decrease of 0.4 percent (- 1.2 million euros) compared to 2022 at comparable exchange rates.

From June 6th to June 9th, more than 400 million European citizens will elect a new five-year parliament. On this occasion, the European Data News Hub (EDNH) is releasing ‘‘European Elections: A How-To Guide’’, an interactive guide available in 9 languages compiled by AFP and the other 5 European press agencies partnering with the EDNH.

AFP photographer Christina Assi, who was severely injured on assignment last October in Lebanon, will carry the Olympic Flame on Sunday, 21 July, in Vincennes, France, "to pay tribute to those who have fallen" while doing their job as journalists, she explained.

Christina Assi, 29, was struck by a tank shell on October 13, 2023 while reporting on cross-border clashes between the Israeli army and armed groups in southern Lebanon, alongside six other colleagues.

As part of its continuous effort to tackle disinformation, Agence France-Presse (AFP) is pleased to announce the launch of the ‘MediaNumeric Academy’ – a training programme in data journalism and fact-checking created for the future generation of journalists. The initiative aims to foster the development of a European media ecosystem that prioritises audiences and users, emphasising fairness, economic sustainability, and technological progress.

AFP’s Fact Check video playlists, “How to Verify Information Online” have been awarded the 2024 Digital Media Awards Worldwide in the ‘Best Fact Checking Project’ category.

Today, AFP and other leading global news and publishing organizations signed onto an open letter to policymakers and industry leaders globally, laying out proposed principles for the regulated and responsible growth of generative AI models.

In addition to outlining consequences for the media industry and the public should the global regulatory landscape not evolve as quickly as AI innovation, the letter also voices support for the creation of an appropriate legal framework around the technology.• The disclosure of training sets used to create generative AI models.

The Spéos International Photography School and Agence France-Presse are pleased to announce their partnership to create a unique training program in photojournalism, starting in September 2024. This course, taught in English, will welcome around 15 students. It runs from mid-September 2024 to the end of June 2025.

A unique course in photojournalism

The European Newsroom (enr) is pleased to welcome seven new members. Now, a total of 23 news agencies from Europe are involved in the new round of the cooperation project. The European Newsroom, initiated in 2022, aims to strengthen collaboration among agency journalists across Europe and to enhance coverage of EU-related subjects. The new additions are AMNA (Greece), ANP (Netherlands), CTK (Czech Republic), PAP (Poland), Lusa (Portugal), Ritzau (Denmark) and TT (Sweden).

AFP, in association with the European Fact-Checking Standards network (EFCSN) and other European stakeholders, announces the launch of a project to improve the capacities of European fact-checking organisations to tackle crisis situations. It is called FactCRICIS (European Fact-Checking Response in Climate Crises), co-funded by the European Union.