TLDR: East Carolina University (ECU) communication researchers, supported by a $10,000 award, are embarking on a pioneering study to examine how artificial intelligence, particularly generative AI, in entertainment influences audience perceptions and understanding. The project focuses on a reality TV show scenario where viewers are aware of an AI chatbot’s participation, but the human contestants are not, aiming to gauge reactions to this novel use of AI.
East Carolina University (ECU) is at the forefront of understanding the evolving relationship between artificial intelligence and human perception, with a new research project launched by its School of Communication faculty. Three distinguished communication researchers – Drew Ashby-King, Erika Johnson, and Rachel Son – are undertaking a study to investigate the profound impact of AI, including generative AI, within the entertainment industry and how it shapes audience understanding and views of the technology.
The initiative has been bolstered by a $10,000 College of Fine Arts and Communication Research and Creative Activity Award, an annual recognition that supports innovative research and creative endeavors by college faculty members.
At the heart of their project is a unique social experiment centered around a reality television program. In this show, participants reside in separate apartments and communicate exclusively through a social media application, crafting their online personas as they see fit. This setup often leads to ‘catfishing,’ where individuals present themselves differently from reality. The research introduces a new layer to this dynamic: in one season of the show, a new participant is an AI chatbot. Crucially, the audience is made aware of the AI’s presence, while the other human participants remain oblivious.
Ashby-King, Johnson, and Son are keen to analyze how viewers react to this knowledge. Their primary objective is to determine how the audience’s perceptions and understanding of AI are affected, or not affected, by witnessing AI deployed in such a context.
Dr. Rachel Son, who has dedicated years to researching various facets of AI and entertainment, highlighted the groundbreaking nature of this study. To her knowledge, this is the first program to explore this specific application of AI, especially one where the chatbot reportedly developed itself to fit the program’s narrative and reacts in real-time. “I focus a lot on the entertainment experience and how it affects your well-being,” Son stated. “That’s where it started, trying to understand how this alters your entertainment experience. But then it extends beyond that to understand how exposure to AI in this way has an effect on how we understand AI or our perceptions of AI.”
Previous research conducted by Dr. Son has indicated a negative audience response to AI-generated content. Her studies found that audiences often ‘were done’ and disengaged when they discovered a piece of content, such as written stories, was created by AI. This new project aims to see if these reactions translate to the audio-visual format of a TV program.
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The implications of this research extend beyond entertainment. Drew Ashby-King suggested that the insights gained could be instrumental in guiding educational institutions, including ECU, to develop and integrate AI literacy modules into their curricula. Such modules would be vital in preparing students for a world increasingly influenced and shaped by artificial intelligence. The findings are expected to provide valuable data for broader educational strategies, ensuring that future generations are equipped to navigate a tech-driven landscape responsibly and critically.
