The New York Times has severed ties with freelance journalist Alex Preston after he admitted using artificial intelligence to help write a book review, which inadvertently incorporated unattributed material from a Guardian review. The decision came following an investigation prompted by a reader who flagged similarities between Preston's January review of Jean-Baptiste Andrea's Watching Over Her and a review of the same book by Christobel Kent published in the Guardian in August.
Preston confessed to using an AI tool that lifted language from the Guardian review without his knowledge. The New York Times added an editor's note to the review, stating that Preston's reliance on AI and use of unattributed work violated the paper's standards. The note also linked to the Guardian piece.
Examples of overlapping text include descriptions such as “lazy, Machiavellian Stefano” in the New York Times version, echoing the Guardian's “lazy Machiavellian Stefano.” The concluding assessments also bore striking similarities, with both reviews describing the novel as a love song to a contradictory Italy.
In a statement to the Guardian, Preston expressed embarrassment and apologised to the New York Times, Christobel Kent, and the Guardian. He said he had not used AI in any of his six previous reviews for the paper. Preston, a six-time author and head of advisory at Man Group, has written for the Observer, the FT, the Guardian, and the Economist.
