O papel do diploma jornalístico na era da desinformação e da inteligência artificial generativa

Abstract

This study analyzes the professional regulation of journalism, with an emphasis on the requirement of a higher education degree, as a strategy to address disinformation in an informational ecosystem marked by the expansion of generative artificial intelligence (GenAI). The research adopts a qualitative approach, combining a comparative analysis of journalistic codes of ethics in Brazil, the United States, and the United Kingdom with semi-structured interviews conducted with journalists, faculty members, and representatives of professional associations. The results indicate that university education is associated with the internalization of practices that sustain journalistic credibility, such as rigorous verification, methodological transparency, a culture of corrections, and editorial accountability. The degree does not operate as an isolated solution, but rather as a certification of ethical and professional competencies that distinguish journalism from other forms of informational content production. The comparative analysis of the codes reveals convergences among ethical traditions as well as differences in accountability mechanisms and in the incorporation of technological challenges. It is concluded that professional regulation contributes to the mitigation of disinformation when articulated with consistent ethical training and the responsible governance of GenAI systems.