Pope warns against 'losing humanity' to AI machines; BBC, September 24, 2026

Hugh Schofield, BBC; Pope warns against 'losing humanity' to AI machines

"Pope Leo XIV has issued a warning about the dangers of artificial intelligence (AI) at the start of his four-day visit to France.

The pontiff cautioned against "losing our humanity amid a paradise of machines" in wide-ranging remarks to Church and state officials at the Élysée Palace, following an hour of talks with President Emmanuel Macron.

Leo made a similar warning earlier this year when he spoke of the need for AI to be "disarmed" in the first major teaching document of his papacy.

In his May appeal, he mentioned the slave trade in relation to AI, suggesting that the world was in danger of normalising the exploitation of people once again."

Elon Musk and the US government fought an AI anti-discrimination law. The arguments don’t hold up; The Guardian, May 20, 2026

 Genevieve Smith, The Guardian; Elon Musk and the US government fought an AI anti-discrimination law. The arguments don’t hold up

 "This April, the US Department of Justice joined Elon Musk’s xAI in suing the state of Colorado to kill its AI anti-discrimination law.

When the federal government sides with a billionaire against a state trying to protect its residents from AI discrimination, that’s not only a Colorado story. That’s everyone’s story.

The justice department’s lawsuit is part of a coordinated federal effort to reframe AI consumer protections as ideological overreach. In July 2025, Donald Trump signed an executive order on “preventing woke AI”, equating bias mitigation measures to a leftist “woke” agenda that suppresses free speech and truth. The federal National Policy Framework launched in March included a push to pre-empt state laws on AI, with Colorado’s law targeted. The justice department’s intervention in Colorado marks the first time the federal government has sought to intervene in a lawsuit challenging a state AI law."

Canadian astronaut’s bon mots help heal wounds from French language row; The Guardian, April 19, 2026

 Leyland Cecco , The Guardian; Canadian astronaut’s bon mots help heal wounds from French language row

"On day three of the mission, as the Integrity spacecraft hurtled towards the moon, Jeremy Hansen turned to a camera. “Bonjour tout le monde,” he said from nearly 125,000 miles away – a greeting with a literal translation that captured the immensity of the journey: hello all of the world.

“For the first time in history, our language, the French language, was expressed en route to the moon,” posted a Canadian parliamentarian. “Never had French been spoken from so far away.”

Hansen’s decision to speak French, during the mission and at a Nasa press conference on his return to the Earth, came shortly after a linguistic row – and public relations nightmare – for Canada’s flagship airline, that underscored how deeply the language is linked to the country’s politics and culture.

The Air Canada chief Michael Rousseau was forced to resign last month amid a storm of indignation after he spoke just two words of French in a video tribute to two pilots killed in a fatal collision. One of the pilots was a native French speaker, and Air Canada is based in Montreal, and Rousseau’s failure to speak the language – despite having a francophone mother and wife – has been seen as a snub to the 80% of Quebec’s population who do...

Upon return to Earth, the Artemis crew appeared moved by the deeply human experience of leaving the planet. Hansen later said it made him realize humans were “small and powerless – yet powerful together”.

Recent developments in artificial intelligence and wearable technology have led some to suggest that learning a second language is no longer important. But the Canadian astronaut’s decision to deliberately speak French, with the world watching reflected the deep cultural component embedded in learning and respecting another language.

“Of course, language is a tool of information, exchange and communication. But it’s so much more than that. Anyone who decides to learn to speak another language than their own, realizes the extent to which any language comes with a specific conception of the world and the universe around us,” said Chouinard. “It’s really a way to learn to see the world – our world – through a different lens.”"

Pope Leo Doesn’t Want to Be the Anti-Trump. But He Is.; The New York Times, November 16, 2025

 DAVID FRENCH, The New York Times; Pope Leo Doesn’t Want to Be the Anti-Trump. But He Is.

"Serving the most marginalized is fundamental to the Christian faith. By one count, more than 2,000 scriptural passages mandate or endorse service to the poor and the work of justice.

In May, just after the pope’s election, I wrote that the most important American in the world was no longer named Donald Trump. The president has less than four years left at the center of the international stage. The pope will present a global moral witness for years to come, and it’s a moral witness that is fundamentally incompatible with the cruelty and corruption of Trumpism.

If you examine the new pope’s pronouncements, there is a consistent through line. He defends human dignity and condemns government brutality. In addition to his defense of the human rights of migrants, he’s decried Russian abuses in Ukraine, and he’s called for a cease-fire, hostage release and compliance with international humanitarian law in Gaza.

His concern for human dignity extends to the world of technology and commerce as well. On Nov. 7, for example, he posted on social media: “Technological innovation can be a form of participation in the divine act of creation. It carries an ethical and spiritual weight, for every design choice expresses a vision of humanity. The Church therefore calls all builders of #AI to cultivate moral discernment as a fundamental part of their work—to develop systems that reflect justice, solidarity, and a genuine reverence for life.”

The pope’s comment drew an immediate rebuke from Marc Andreessen, a venture capitalist and Trump supporter, who posted (and then deleted) a meme mocking the pope’s statement.

Each of the pope’s statements is part of a consistent ethic of life. I love the Catholic writer Mark Shea’s description of what this ethic means — that “all human beings, without any exception whatsoever, are made in the image and likeness of God and that Jesus Christ died for all human beings, without any exception whatsoever. Therefore each human person — without any exception whatsoever — is sacred and is the only creature that God wills for its own sake.”"

Nashville church helps unhoused people after downtown library fire; NewsChannel5, September 6, 2025

 

Kim Rafferty, NewsChannel5; Nashville church helps unhoused people after downtown library fire

"When the Nashville Public Library's downtown branch closed after a fire, McKendree United Methodist Church stepped up to fill a critical gap for people experiencing homelessness who had lost their daily refuge.

"Alright we'll get ya all bagged up here," said Francie Markham, who volunteers at the church every Thursday morning helping people experiencing homelessness...

After losing their cool refuge with computers and resources, Smith said many people just wanted to avoid the long stretch of summer heat.

"So what we were able to do on our Tuesdays and Thursday meal is to allow them to come in much earlier rather than at the 11:30 times so they would be out of the element," Smith said.

"With the changing of the season we need it open as soon as we can," Smith said.

In the meantime, Smith and Markham keep doing what's written on the walls — serving kindness.

Despite initial reports the library would open soon after the fire, library officials say the library requires a third party inspection before it can open. The two nearest library branches, North Branch and Hadley Park, are both more than a 30-minute walk from the library downtown. 

Have you witnessed acts of community kindness during challenging times? Share your story with Kim Rafferty and help us highlight the helpers making a difference in Middle Tennessee. Email kim.rafferty@NewsChannel5.com to continue the conversation.

In this article, we used artificial intelligence to help us convert a video news report originally written by Kim Rafferty. When using this tool, both Kim and the NewsChannel 5 editorial team verified all the facts in the article to make sure it is fair and accurate before we published it. We care about your trust in us and where you get your news, and using this tool allows us to convert our news coverage into different formats so we can quickly reach you where you like to consume information. It also lets our journalists spend more time looking into your story ideas, listening to you and digging into the stories that matter."

Georgetown Hires New University Librarian and Dean of the Library; Georgetown University, June18, 2025

 Georgetown University; Georgetown Hires New University Librarian and Dean of the Library

 "Georgetown has appointed Alexia Hudson-Ward, a leader in university library systems, as the new university librarian and dean of the library.

Hudson-Ward will begin her role on Aug. 30, 2025, following the departure of Library Dean Harriette Hemmasi, who is retiring after seven years at Georgetown.

Hudson-Ward is the associate director of research, learning and strategic partnerships at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Libraries. 

As dean, she will serve as the chief administrative officer for the Georgetown University Library, which holds 3.5 million volumes and extensive collections and offers research and information services for students and faculty. 

Hudson-Ward will oversee the university libraries, which include the Joseph Mark Lauinger Memorial Library, Blommer Science Library, the Capitol Campus Library and the historic Riggs Memorial Library...

Hudson-Ward earned her master of library and information science from the University of Pittsburgh, where she pursued both academic and corporate librarianship tracks, and her doctorate in library and information science from Simmons University.

In the years since, she served as a tenured associate librarian at Pennsylvania State University and the director of libraries for Oberlin College — the first person of color to lead in the library’s 192-year history. In this role, she oversaw four libraries, a $7.2 million budget, and the renaming of the Main Library after Oberlin alumna Mary Church Terrell, who was one of the first Black women to earn a college degree and the co-founder of the NAACP.

She joined MIT in 2020, where she leads research and learning services for MIT’s library; partnerships with more than 40 MIT departments, labs, centers and institutes; and the library’s AI strategy — work she’s eager to continue at Georgetown. Her latest book project, Social Intelligence in the Age of AI, will be published by ALA Editions later this year."

ALA Releases State of America’s Libraries 2025 Report; American Libraries, April 8, 2025

 American Libraries ; ALA Releases State of America’s Libraries 2025 Report

Report looks at censorship attempts, artificial intelligence, and sustainability in US libraries

"On April 7, the American Library Association (ALA) released its State of America’s Libraries 2025 report, an annual snapshot of library trends. The report is published during National Library Week, this year taking place April 6–12.

As in recent years, the 2025 report documented censorship in libraries from the previous year. In 2024, ALA recorded 821 attempts to censor library books and other materials across all library types. This is a decrease from the 1,247 attempts that were recorded in 2023 but still the third-highest number since ALA began tracking library censorship in 1990."

Federal officials caution employers on using AI in hiring; FCW, May 12, 2022

Natalie Alms, FCW; Federal officials caution employers on using AI in hiring

"The growing use of artificial intelligence and other software tools for hiring, performance monitoring and pay determination in the workplace is compounding discriminiation against people with disabilities, federal civil rights officials say.

Artificial intelligence can be deployed to target job ads to certain potential applicants, hold online job interviews, assess the skills of job applicants and even decide if an applicant meets job requirements. But the technology can discriminate against applicants and employees with disabilities.

On Thursday, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the Department of Justice put employers on alert that they're responsible for not using AI tools in ways that discriminate and inform employees of their rights, agency officials told reporters."

'Bias deep inside the code': the problem with AI 'ethics' in Silicon Valley; The Guardian, March 29, 2019

Sam Levin, The Guardian; 'Bias deep inside the code': the problem with AI 'ethics' in Silicon Valley

"“Algorithms determine who gets housing loans and who doesn’t, who goes to jail and who doesn’t, who gets to go to what school,” said Malkia Devich Cyril, the executive director of the Center for Media Justice. “There is a real risk and real danger to people’s lives and people’s freedom.”

Universities and ethics boards could play a vital role in counteracting these trends. But they rarely work with people who are affected by the tech, said Laura Montoya, the cofounder and president of the Latinx in AI Coalition: “It’s one thing to really observe bias and recognize it, but it’s a completely different thing to really understand it from a personal perspective and to have experienced it yourself throughout your life.”

It’s not hard to find AI ethics groups that replicate power structures and inequality in society – and altogether exclude marginalized groups.

The Partnership on AI, an ethics-focused industry group launched by Google, Facebook, Amazon, IBM and Microsoft, does not appear to have black board members or staff listed on its site, and has a board dominated by men. A separate Microsoft research group dedicated to “fairness, accountability, transparency, and ethics in AI” also excludes black voices."

Digital Ethics: Data is the new forklift; Internet of Business, December 17, 2018

Joanna Goodman, Internet of Business; Digital Ethics: Data is the new forklift

"Joanna Goodman reports from last week’s Digital ethics summit.

Governments, national and international institutions and businesses must join forces to make sure that AI and emerging technology are deployed successfully and responsibly. This was the central message from TechUK’s second Digital Ethics Summit in London.

Antony Walker, TechUK’s deputy CEO set out the purpose of the summit: “How to deliver on the promise of tech that can provide benefits for people and society in a way that minimises harm”.

This sentiment was echoed throughout the day. Kate Rosenshine, data architect at Microsoft reminded us that data is not unbiased and inclusivity and fairness are critical to data-driven decision-making. She quoted Cathy Bessant, CTO of Bank of America:

Technologists cannot lose sight of how algorithms affect real people."

AI ‘gaydar’ could compromise LGBTQ people’s privacy — and safety; Washington Post, February 19, 2018

JD Schramm, Washington Post; AI ‘gaydar’ could compromise LGBTQ people’s privacy — and safety

"The advances in AI and machine learning make it increasingly difficult to hide such intimate traits as sexual orientation, political and religious affiliations, and even intelligence level. The post-privacy future Kosinski examines in his research is upon us. Never has the work of eliminating discrimination been so urgent."