Wyoming
Wyoming reporter caught using artificial intelligence to create fake quotes and stories
HELENA, Mont. — A quote from Wyoming’s governor and a local prosecutor were the first things that seemed slightly off to Powell Tribune reporter CJ Baker. Then, it was some of the phrases in the stories that struck him as nearly robotic.
The dead giveaway, though, that a reporter from a competing news outlet was using generative artificial intelligence to help write his stories came in a June 26 article about the comedian Larry the Cable Guy being chosen as the grand marshal of the Cody Stampede Parade.
“The 2024 Cody Stampede Parade promises to be an unforgettable celebration of American independence, led by one of comedy’s most beloved figures,” the Cody Enterprise reported. “This structure ensures that the most critical information is presented first, making it easier for readers to grasp the main points quickly.”
After doing some digging, Baker, who has been a reporter for more than 15 years, met with Aaron Pelczar, a 40-year-old who was new to journalism and who Baker says admitted that he had used AI in his stories before he resigned from the Enterprise.
The publisher and editor at the Enterprise, which was co-founded in 1899 by Buffalo Bill Cody, have since apologized and vowed to take steps to ensure it never happens again. In an editorial published Monday, Enterprise Editor Chris Bacon said he “failed to catch” the AI copy and false quotes.
“It matters not that the false quotes were the apparent error of a hurried rookie reporter that trusted AI. It was my job,” Bacon wrote. He apologized that “AI was allowed to put words that were never spoken into stories.”
Journalists have derailed their careers by making up quotes or facts in stories long before AI came about. But this latest scandal illustrates the potential pitfalls and dangers that AI poses to many industries, including journalism, as chatbots can spit out spurious if somewhat plausible articles with only a few prompts.
AI has found a role in journalism, including in the automation of certain tasks. Some newsrooms, including The Associated Press, use AI to free up reporters for more impactful work, but most AP staff are not allowed to use generative AI to create publishable content.
The AP has been using technology to assist in articles about financial earnings reports since 2014, and more recently for some sports stories. It is also experimenting with an AI tool to translate some stories from English to Spanish. At the end of each such story is a note that explains technology’s role in its production.
Being upfront about how and when AI is used has proven important. Sports Illustrated was criticized last year for publishing AI-generated online product reviews that were presented as having been written by reporters who didn’t actually exist. After the story broke, SI said it was firing the company that produced the articles for its website, but the incident damaged the once-powerful publication’s reputation.
In his Powell Tribune story breaking the news about Pelczar’s use of AI in articles, Baker wrote that he had an uncomfortable but cordial meeting with Pelczar and Bacon. During the meeting, Pelczar said, “Obviously I’ve never intentionally tried to misquote anybody” and promised to “correct them and issue apologies and say they are misstatements,” Baker wrote, noting that Pelczar insisted his mistakes shouldn’t reflect on his Cody Enterprise editors.
After the meeting, the Enterprise launched a full review of all of the stories Pelczar had written for the paper in the two months he had worked there. They have discovered seven stories that included AI-generated quotes from six people, Bacon said Tuesday. He is still reviewing other stories.
“They’re very believable quotes,” Bacon said, noting that the people he spoke to during his review of Pelczar’s articles said the quotes sounded like something they’d say, but that they never actually talked to Pelczar.
Baker reported that seven people told him that they had been quoted in stories written by Pelczar, but had not spoken to him.
Pelczar did not respond to an AP phone message left at a number listed as his asking to discuss what happened. Bacon said Pelczar declined to discuss the matter with another Wyoming newspaper that had reached out.
Baker, who regularly reads the Enterprise because it’s a competitor, told the AP that a combination of phrases and quotes in Pelczar’s stories aroused his suspicions.
Pelczar’s story about a shooting in Yellowstone National Park included the sentence: “This incident serves as a stark reminder of the unpredictable nature of human behavior, even in the most serene settings.”
Baker said the line sounded like the summaries of his stories that a certain chatbot seems to generate, in that it tacks on some kind of a “life lesson” at the end.
Another story — about a poaching sentencing — included quotes from a wildlife official and a prosecutor that sounded like they came from a news release, Baker said. However, there wasn’t a news release and the agencies involved didn’t know where the quotes had come from, he said.
Two of the questioned stories included fake quotes from Wyoming Gov. Mark Gordon that his staff only learned about when Baker called them.
“In one case, (Pelczar) wrote a story about a new OSHA rule that included a quote from the Governor that was entirely fabricated,” Michael Pearlman, a spokesperson for the governor, said in an email. “In a second case, he appeared to fabricate a portion of a quote, and then combined it with a portion of a quote that was included in a news release announcing the new director of our Wyoming Game and Fish Department.”
The most obvious AI-generated copy appeared in the story about Larry the Cable Guy that ended with the explanation of the inverted pyramid, the basic approach to writing a breaking news story.
It’s not difficult to create AI stories. Users could put a criminal affidavit into an AI program and ask it to write an article about the case including quotes from local officials, said Alex Mahadevan, director of a digital media literacy project at the Poynter Institute, the preeminent journalism think tank.
“These generative AI chatbots are programmed to give you an answer, no matter whether that answer is complete garbage or not,” Mahadevan said.
Megan Barton, the Cody Enterprise’s publisher, wrote an editorial calling AI “the new, advanced form of plagiarism and in the field of media and writing, plagiarism is something every media outlet has had to correct at some point or another. It’s the ugly part of the job. But, a company willing to right (or quite literally write) these wrongs is a reputable one.”
Barton wrote that the newspaper has learned its lesson, has a system in place to recognize AI-generated stories and will “have longer conversations about how AI-generated stories are not acceptable.”
The Enterprise didn’t have an AI policy, in part because it seemed obvious that journalists shouldn’t use it to write stories, Bacon said. Poynter has a template from which news outlets can build their own AI policy.
Bacon plans to have one in place by the end of the week.
“This will be a pre-employment topic of discussion,” he said.
WYOMING — Governor Mark Gordon hosted an impromptu panel discussion earlier this week with state veterinarians and the Wyoming Department of Health (WDH) to initiate communication efforts relating to the New World screwworm.
A statement from Gordon’s office says that there are no reported outbreaks of the flesh-eating New World screwworm in the U.S. outside of previously confirmed cases in Texas and New Mexico. Gordon called the session to increase lines of communication about the screwworm ahead of Wyoming’s peak summer travel, backcountry and rodeo season. Included in the panel were State Veterinarian Dr. Hallie Hasel, State Wildlife Veterinarian Dr. Samantha Allen, and WDH Public Health Veterinarian Dr. Emily Curren.
“There are no reported cases in Wyoming; however, Texas and New Mexico are tracking instances, so it is important to keep all citizens informed — including pet owners, campers, rodeo athletes, and sportsmen, in addition to our ag, ranching and wildlife communities.” Gordon said in the statement. “I’m satisfied with the extensive outreach regarding NWS that has been ongoing to our ag, livestock, and wildlife professionals.”
Gordon and the panelists fielded questions and heard commentary from various professionals, including Wyoming Department of Agriculture Director Doug Miyamoto, Director of Wyoming Game and Fish Department Angi Bruce, and Wyoming Livestock Board Director Steven True.
New World screwworm is a deadly, flesh-eating parasite that was previously eradicated in the United States and hasn’t been seen in Texas since 1966. An outbreak of the insects in Panama spurred a state of emergency in 2023, and a case of the screwworm was confirmed in southern Mexico in 2024. The female flies lay their eggs in open wounds of mammals, and the livestock industry is fearful of potential impacts on cattle and beef production.
Below are the key takeaways from the discussion, per Gordon’s statement.
- There are no reported outbreaks of New World screwworm in Wyoming.
- New World screwworms feed on and lay eggs in open wounds of warm-blooded animals, including humans.
- Transmission to humans is very rare.
- New World screwworm is not a food safety issue.
- Livestock and domesticated animals should be checked regularly — daily if possible.
- Contact a veterinarian or medical doctor if open wounds are painful and persistent.
- Keeping fly populations under control at rodeo events protects animals and people.
- Protocols for safe animal transport are currently in place in Wyoming.
- Wildlife and game populations are being monitored for early indicators of fly strikes.
JACKSON, Wyo. – Jackson Hole Public Art (JHPA) is proud to announce the
public installation of 250 Portraits, a community art project featuring self-portraits created and submitted by Wyoming residents from across the state. Launched in honor of the nation’s 250th anniversary, the project invited Wyomingites of all ages and backgrounds to submit portraits of themselves or other Wyoming residents, resulting in a vibrant and deeply personal collection of artwork.
Portraits were submitted by artists ranging in age from 5 to over 80, representing residents from 16 of Wyoming’s 23 counties. Participants included individuals, families, school groups, and educators who worked with their students to take part. The result is a wide-ranging snapshot of the people who call Wyoming home, from young children just beginning to express themselves through art to lifelong residents reflecting on decades of experience and identity.
The portraits are now on display in five large-scale grid installations located throughout downtown Jackson. They can be found at the Center for the Arts, JH Book Trader, the Antler Inn, the alley at Pinky G’s, and the Jackson Hole Elks Lodge. The exhibition will remain on view throughout the summer, giving locals and visitors alike the opportunity to take in the full collection at their own pace.
The exhibit, 250 Portraits, was designed to highlight both individual identity and collective belonging, weaving together faces from communities large and small into a single, statewide visual portrait of Wyoming’s people. By placing the work in accessible, high-traffic locations in downtown Jackson, JHPA hopes to spark conversation among residents and visitors about what it means to be part of a community that spans such a wide and varied landscape.
A self-guided walking map is available to help visitors navigate between the five sites and experience other public art projects throughout Jackson. For more information and to access the 2026 Public Art Map, visit https://www.jhpublicart.org/art/2026map.
Pair your portrait with an audio story! Please consider adding your voice to another state-wide project celebrating the stories of everyday Wyomingites: Re-Storying the West.
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