Lessons from Chatbot Experiments

The surprising places AI helps journalists, and the places it really doesn’t.

AI in journalism can feel abstract until you talk to the people actually shipping products inside newsrooms. In this episode of The Media Copilot podcast, host Pete Pachal talks with Darla Cameron, Chief Product Officer at The Texas Tribune, about what happens when AI meets real reporting, real audiences, and real constraints.

Darla comes from a background in data journalism and visual storytelling at places like the Washington Post and now leads product at a nonprofit newsroom that has been experimenting with custom tools, data explorers, and audience-driven experiences for more than a decade. In the wide-ranging discussion, she shares how the Tribune defines product as the interface between content and audience, and how AI and automation are starting to reshape that work without replacing journalists or eroding trust.

From transcription tools and meeting analysis to tightly scoped chatbots and AI-narrated stories, Darla walks through what is actually working inside the Tribune, what quietly failed, and the principles that guide every experiment.

Why This Matters

News organizations are being squeezed from all sides. Reporters are expected to cover more with fewer resources. Audiences are drifting into AI-powered interfaces that sit between publishers and their readers. At the same time, trust in institutions is fragile and any perceived shortcut can damage a brand that took years to build.

Darla offers a grounded reality check from inside a newsroom that is embracing experimentation while drawing clear lines. The Tribune has an AI policy that explicitly says AI will not replace journalists. They do not use AI to generate news stories or images. They are very deliberate about where automation helps and where human judgment is non negotiable.

For anyone working in media, product, or audience strategy, this conversation is a practical guide to using AI as an assistive layer rather than a replacement. It is about how to adapt to new tools without losing the thing that makes your journalism worth trusting in the first place.

What We Cover

• Why “product” matters in a newsroom and how it links journalism, design, and audience engagement.

• Real-world examples: using AI to transcribe interviews or analyze podcasts for reporting.

• What The Texas Tribune’s AI policy looks like: when automation helps, and when human verification is essential.

• Why the Tribune refuses AI-generated images and prefers real photography for accountability and trust.

• Lessons from building chatbots and interactive tools — including what worked, what didn’t, and what the team learned.

• How audience feedback guides when and how to use AI, especially in a nonprofit news model.

About the Guest

Official bio: Texas Tribune – Darla Cameron The Texas Tribune 

Professional profile: LinkedIn – Darla Cameron

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Produced by Pete Pachal and Executive Producer Michele Musso
Edited by the Musso Media Team 

Music: “Favorite” by Alexander Nakarada, licensed under CC BY 4.0

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