Nota shut its eleven AI-generated local news sites after they were found copying local journalists' reporting
Nota ran a network of eleven AI-generated local news sites in US counties with little or no local news coverage. Local journalists found their reporting lightly reworded and republished without attribution. Poynter reported that work from at least 29 outlets appeared across more than 70 Nota stories, and that at least 53 journalists had their reporting used without credit. Nota took the sites down in April 2026. Its CEO told Poynter that "the fault absolutely lies with us in terms of keeping it open broadly to the web."
What the AI did
Nota's eleven AI-generated local news sites published stories that lightly reworded local journalists' reporting and republished it without credit, along with staff photos used without permission. Work from at least 29 outlets turned up across more than 70 of these stories.
Added to the register October 11, 2026 · 1 source
- Journalists whose reporting was used without attribution
- At least 53
- Deployer
- Nota
- Affected
- Henrico Citizen (publisher Tom Lappas)
- Country
- United States (Virginia)
- When it happened
- April 2026
- First reported
- Not stated in the sources
What this means for you
Could this affect you?
If you publish news or publish AI-generated content. At least 53 journalists and at least 29 local outlets had their reporting republished without credit, and one outlet's staff photos were used without permission. Readers in US counties with thin local coverage were given copied content presented as local news.
What to check
- Check AI-generated content for close copying of source material before publishing.
- Require attribution and permission for any reporting or photos your AI content draws on.
- Keep human editors reviewing AI-generated content before it goes live.
- Monitor for unauthorised republication of your own published work.
Areas of your AI programme this touches
Every fact and its source (6)
- Sites taken downApril 2026“In April 2026, a company called Nota took down all eleven”[1]
- CEO responseCEO Josh Brandau accepted fault“The fault absolutely lies with us in terms of keeping it open broadly to the web.”[1]
- Scope of closureNota News network only, not the whole company“The closure applied to the Nota News network, not to the company as a whole”[1]
- Photos used without permissionStaff photos reused“with staff photos used without permission”[1]
- Outlets whose work was copiedAt least 29 outlets“His was one of at least 29 outlets whose work turned up”[1]
- Nota stories containing copied workMore than 70“across more than 70 Nota stories”[1]
Sources
How this record is classified. Severity M (3/5): harm to individuals, or a policy breach with limited reach. OECD level: incident, an event in which an AI system led to actual harm. Evidence: Confirmed, meaning a company, official or court statement.
The facts in At a glance and in Every fact and its source are quoted from the sources listed. The summary, What the AI did and What this means for you are written from those sources and checked against them automatically before publication. Records reflect what has been disclosed, not everything that has happened. Incidents are found through news feeds and the GDELT Project.
