Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

T.J. Thomson @tjthomson.bsky.social · 5d

🔗 The open-access study can be read here: journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...

🙏 Thanks to @nataliialaba.com for inspiring this study and to she and @neous.bsky.social for organising a panel on visual style that we presented at #ADDA5 and that helped sharpen my arguments in this paper.

Computer-mediated representations: a qualitative examination of algorithmic vision and visual style - TJ Thomson, 2025

To the general public, text-to-image generators, such as Midjourney and DALL-E, seem to work through magic and, indeed, their inner workings are often frustrati...

journals.sagepub.com

2 3

T.J. Thomson @tjthomson.bsky.social · 5d

👁️🤖 How do humans and computers "see"? That's the question driving my latest research, published in @viscomjournal.bsky.social. This study evaluates how computers process images and which specific #visualstyle elements across 3 dimensions computer vision regards as important and which it does not.

A pixelated image of a face with computer-generated overlays that label facial features along with confidence scores. Image by Elise Racine / Better Images of AI

1 2 6

T.J. Thomson @tjthomson.bsky.social · 7d

💬 We also published a plain-language summary of the article in @aunz.theconversation.com: theconversation.com/we-teach-you...

We teach young people to write. In the age of AI, we must teach them how to see

Generative AI changes how we see – and how we decide what’s real.

theconversation.com

3

T.J. Thomson @tjthomson.bsky.social · 7d

What a delight it was to work with @danielpfurtscheller.at, @klobinger.bsky.social, @nataliialaba.com, & @kathchr.bsky.social on this newly published study: Visual literacies in transition: multimodal co-production with generative AI.

🔗 You can read our open access study here: lnkd.in/gZwZr83g

1 4 7

T.J. Thomson @tjthomson.bsky.social · 7d

Looking forward to this chat later today. 😃

Nataliia Laba @nataliialaba.com · 14d

When: October 2, at 8:00 AM GMT
Register: docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F... @tjthomson.bsky.social

Pre-register: VCSD Q&A on Zoom (Oct 2)

EARLY CAREER AND INTERNATIONAL SUBMISSIONS Q&A FOR #ICA26 Join the upcoming Q&A Zoom Event organized by the ICA Visual Communication Studies Division (VCSD) to know more about our call for abstracts ...

docs.google.com

Reposted by T.J. Thomson

ADM+S Centre @admscentre.org.au · 21d

New article from The Conversation by ADM+S researcher @tjthomson.bsky.social with Samuel Cornell (UNSW). They explore the consequences for young people when consuming violent and disturbing viral content on social media.

#viralvideos #socialmediaharms

🔗 Read more: bit.ly/466Ui7Q

1 2

Reposted by T.J. Thomson

Jorge Vázquez @jorgevazquez.bsky.social · 24d

The Routledge Companion to Visual Journalism (ed. N. Dahmen & @tjthomson.bsky.social) was available at the Future of Journalism Conference #FoJ2025 @cujournmedcul.bsky.social

1 3

Reposted by T.J. Thomson

Joanne Kuai @joannekuai.bsky.social · Sep 1

🚀 New piece w/ @tjthomson.bsky.social T.J. Thomson: we explore how newsrooms can integrate AI and research into journalistic AI can be done in ways that are context-aware, value-driven, and human-centred.
🔗 doi.org/10.1080/2204...

#Journalism #AI #ResponsibleAI #MediaInnovation #aanzca #jeraa #foj

Rethinking journalistic autonomy in the algorithmic era: toward context-aware, value-driven, and human-centred research into journalistic AI

Published in Communication Research and Practice (Ahead of Print, 2025)

doi.org

1 3

T.J. Thomson @tjthomson.bsky.social · Aug 12

🗺️🔗 If you’re in the rest of the world, you can pre-order a copy here: www.routledge.com/The-Routledg...

The Routledge Companion to Visual Journalism

Representing the first collection of its kind, The Routledge Companion to Visual Journalism introduces fundamental topics and ideas, delineates the diversity and complexity of this growing field, and ...

www.routledge.com

2

T.J. Thomson @tjthomson.bsky.social · Aug 12

📖 The #RoutledgeCompanionToVisualJournalism is now available for pre-order. It features a whopping 41 chapters over 524 pages and is richly accompanied by all types of visuals from photographs and screenshots to AI-generated images and data visualisations.

🇦🇺🇳🇿🔗: www.booktopia.com.au/the-routledg...

1 4 7

T.J. Thomson @tjthomson.bsky.social · Jul 31

🔗 Register here to attend the launch and receive a copy of the report: events.humanitix.com/engaged-jour...

@skpark.bsky.social

Report launch: Engaged Journalism in the Heartland - Understanding Regional News Audiences

Register on Humanitix - Report launch: Engaged Journalism in the Heartland - Understanding Regional News Audiences hosted by News and Media Research Centre . Online. Wednesday 27th August 2025. Find e...

events.humanitix.com

2 2

T.J. Thomson @tjthomson.bsky.social · Jul 31

🤔 What do news audiences want from local news?
📰 What do they think is poorly covered or missing?
📝 How involved are news audiences in the production and dissemination of local news?

Our new report addresses these and other pressing questions for those living in regional parts of the country.

1 3 6

T.J. Thomson @tjthomson.bsky.social · Jul 16

🙌 Thanks to all my co-authors and to the editors who make the work shine. I'm also grateful to the team at @admscentre.org.au for helping amplify our work.

🔗 Fancy a read about AI, visual culture, visual communication, or inclusion? Check the articles out here: theconversation.com/profiles/t-j...

T.J. Thomson

T.J. Thomson — Profile on The Conversation

theconversation.com

2 2

T.J. Thomson @tjthomson.bsky.social · Jul 16

I reached a satisfying milestone today: 1 million reads of my 24 career-to-date articles published in @theconversation.com. I genuinely enjoy translating research for public benefit through these pieces and look forward to hopefully continuing to do so for many years into the future.

2 2 16

T.J. Thomson @tjthomson.bsky.social · Jun 10

🤔 We see hundreds or thousands of images each day – but not all of them stand out to us. Why are some visuals more engaging than others? We explore this question in our latest article in @theconversation.com.

🔗 theconversation.com/novelty-nega...

@admscentre.org.au

Novelty, negativity and no politicians: research reveals what makes some images more engaging than others

If you’re a sucker for a black and white filter, think again, as new research shows colour images are preferred by most viewers.

theconversation.com

4

T.J. Thomson @tjthomson.bsky.social · Jun 9

👀 New research out on the types of bodies who are making visual news in regional settings, how bodies are being represented in visual news in these areas, and how the embodied nature of visual journalism affects the way that news images are made and presented.

🔗 www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

3

Reposted by T.J. Thomson

ADM+S Centre @admscentre.org.au · Jun 3

Google’s new SynthID tool claims to detect AI-generated content—but only if it’s made with Google’s own models. Researchers @tjthomson.bsky.social @jeanburgess.bsky.social @busedoyu.bsky.social
explain how it works & whether watermarking can meet the challenge of #GenAI authenticity bit.ly/43Lj2jB

Google’s SynthID is the latest tool for catching AI-made content. What is AI ‘watermarking’ and does it work?

AI watermarks are supposed to help us tell if content is real or generated. But they dramatically vary in effectiveness.

bit.ly

2 4

Reposted by T.J. Thomson

ADM+S Centre @admscentre.org.au · May 15

Join Brisbane Hacks/Hackers - ADM+S Affiliate Dr T.J. Thomson will discuss news audiences’ experiences with AI-generated/-edited content in journalism & the social-ethical-legal issues that they think exist @hackshackers.com @tjthomson.bsky.social @antmandan.bsky.social admscentre.org/HacksHackers

2 5

Reposted by T.J. Thomson

Stephen Harrington @phzerosounds.bsky.social · Apr 24

Here's me and @tjthomson.bsky.social's latest piece for @theconversation.com, discussing some of the memes put out by the major parties in the Australian election campaign.

theconversation.com/election-mem...

Election meme hits and duds – we’ve graded the some of the best (and worst) of the campaign so far

Memes are the currency of the election campaign online. Here’s a report card on the Labor, Liberal and Greens efforts, from the good to the tone-deaf.

theconversation.com

2 5 9

T.J. Thomson @tjthomson.bsky.social · Apr 10

I saw an ad over the weekend for Apple's #cleanup photo editing feature, now accessible through the default photos app on eligible devices, and wrote this in @aunz.theconversation.com about what this means for trust in #visual media.

🔗 theconversation.com/tools-like-a...

@admscentre.org.au

Tools like Apple’s photo Clean Up are yet another nail in the coffin for being able to trust our eyes

Editing any photo, anywhere, is cheaper and easier than ever. What does that mean for having ‘visual proof’ of something?

theconversation.com

6 10

T.J. Thomson @tjthomson.bsky.social · Apr 4

Enjoyed musing about the implications of #IlFoglio's fully #AI-generated newspaper experiment with SBS's Max Gugole and being quoted alongside @monicaattard.bsky.social in the resulting article.

🔗 www.sbs.com.au/language/ita...

@admscentre.org.au

1 3

T.J. Thomson @tjthomson.bsky.social · Apr 2

🤔 How would you fare with trying to sort photos from synthetic #AI images? Here's your opportunity to try it out. I had fun working with Michael Lucy and Matt Garrow on this interactive for @aunz.theconversation.com.

theconversation.com/can-you-tell...

@admscentre.org.au @ntsnetwork.bsky.social

Can you tell the difference between real and fake news photos? Take the quiz to find out

As the tide of AI ‘slop’ rises, it’s more important than ever to hone your reality-checking skills.

theconversation.com

3 6

T.J. Thomson @tjthomson.bsky.social · Apr 2

Delighted to be included in this list with co-authors @ryanjthomas.bsky.social and @phoebesophist.bsky.social alongside some very fine colleagues from around the world.

Digital Journalism @digitaljournalism.bsky.social · Apr 1

💡 Need some inspiration? Check out some of our most-downloaded articles in #DigitalJournalism over the past 12 months.

🔗 Check out the full top-10 list here: linktr.ee/digitaljourn...

2 5

T.J. Thomson @tjthomson.bsky.social · Mar 14

🧑‍💻 Cc: Tanya Notley, @dezuanni.bsky.social, & @skpark.bsky.social.
🏢 @qutdmrc.bsky.social, & @admscentre.org.au.

T.J. Thomson @tjthomson.bsky.social · Mar 14

Brilliant working with Aimee Hourigan and @zthetrain.bsky.social on this article about adults' everyday experiences with online #misinformation.

📋 Which topics surround misinformation beyond the usual suspects like health and politics?

🔗 Read on for more: 360info.org/half-truths-...

Half-truths and lies: an online day in Australia - 360

Australians are swamped by misinformation every day but they’re smart enough to know they need help to better navigate an untrustworthy online world. False online claims about business and the economy...

360info.org

1 1 3