BEIJING, Nov. 9 (Xinhua) -- An international dialogue at the 7th World Media Summit (WMS) explored some of the most pressing questions: who really shapes the news agenda? Why do people trust one source over another, and what impact will artificial intelligence (AI) have on journalism?

"Newsrooms are no longer the only players deciding which stories reach the audience," Guo Wei, the event's moderator, said in her opening remarks for the event focusing on "influence, AI and trust" here Saturday.

"Content creators have built their own audiences, social media platforms influence what people see, and AI is changing almost every stage of news production," Guo said.

DIVERSIFIED MEDIA ECOSYSTEM

Speakers at the dialogue described a shift in which the gatekeepers of news dissemination have expanded from traditional media outlets to platforms, algorithms and individual creators.

Panelists said the more diversified ecosystem had not diminished the importance of professional standards, and several argued that authenticity, judgment and trust had become more, not less, valuable in public-interest journalism.

The panel included Vsevolod Pulya, head of RT China and editor-in-chief of Gateway to Russia; Diego Ruzzarin, a Mexican content creator with more than 10 million followers across platforms and also a partner director of MPV Management; and Zephyr, host of the Boston Round Face Channel known for current-affairs commentary. Their backgrounds spanned traditional media, the global creator economy and younger audiences.

WHO SETS THE AGENDA

The discussion opened with a fundamental question about influence: From the perspective of a major international media organization, do newsrooms still shape the news agenda, or do they depend more on social media platforms to reach audiences?

Pulya described the change from inside the industry. "Traditional news agencies were the gatekeepers who decided for the audience what and when to know about the outside world. But now big tech companies have become the gatekeepers."

He described how the previous top-down structure of news dissemination is giving way to a different model. Influencers, he said, communicate horizontally, much like talking to a friend. "Real emotional attachment is something that any media should learn to develop."

That shift is evident even in the composition of global media gatherings. The WMS has invited not only mainstream media representatives, but also a growing number of internationally known content creators, noted Guo, also a Xinhua News Agency journalist.

"This is both a footnote to the changing media landscape and a source of more diverse perspectives and voices for global news communication," the moderator said.

The panel also examined why younger audiences increasingly turn to individual creators for news rather than established news organizations. For Ruzzarin, the answer lies beyond institutional brands, in lived experience and cultural connection.

"Every time I come to China, I bring at least four to five different influencers from different countries in the Global South for them to experience firsthand. Nothing is more powerful than coming here, having tea and talking to local people," he said.

He added that his two most-watched videos on YouTube over four consecutive years were a review of Sun Tzu's The Art of War and an analysis of Dragon Ball Z, the Japanese anime drawing inspiration from the Monkey King, Sun Wukong, from classic Chinese novel Journey to the West. Neither is conventional hard news, yet both use shared cultural motifs to connect with young audiences across borders.

For traditional media, Pulya said the lesson was clear. "You have to jump on the pop culture train. Pop culture is a separate world worth exploring and worth reflecting on."

AI, DEEPFAKES AND TRUST

Guo noted that AI can help journalists write, translate, edit, summarize and analyze information, leading to faster production and lower costs, and asked whether the industry risks becoming too dependent on it, with young journalists in particular missing the chance to practice basic skills.

Zephyr approached the issue from the perspective of an individual creator. "I don't believe that AI will one day replace me." In his view, the difference between humans and AI lies precisely in an authentic personality and irreplaceable individual judgment.

Guo said knowing how to use AI may become a basic requirement, but professional judgment, critical thinking and the ability to earn people's trust may become even more important.

Panelists noted that AI-generated videos, voices and images are making it harder to distinguish authentic content from fabricated material, especially with deepfakes, and that a single error can damage credibility built over years or even decades.

Zephyr described a dilemma facing serious content creators. "Often we find that content we put a lot of money and energy into doesn't perform as well as amusing false content." Yet he stressed maintaining credibility remained central to their work.

Ruzzarin emphasized face-to-face contact as a means of building trust, something that neither algorithms nor virtual content could replace.

The panel also raised a question of responsibility when it comes to misleading content being produced with the help of AI. Who should be held accountable -- the person who creates it, the media organization that publishes it, the platform that distributes it, or the technology company that builds and provides the AI tool?

The discussion did not offer a simple answer, with participants noting that, given the multiple actors within the information space, responsibility can no longer be placed at the door of a single gatekeeper. Participants suggested that in the age of deepfakes, professional judgment, critical thinking and the ability to earn trust serve as human filters against misinformation.

Under the theme "Media in the Intelligent Age: From Consensus to Action," this year's WMS, jointly organized by Xinhua News Agency and the Beijing municipal government from Nov. 5 to 9, drew nearly 500 representatives from nearly 330 mainstream media outlets, think tanks, government bodies, the United Nations and other international organizations across 112 countries and regions.