Synthetic media boom: AI reshapes news, culture, and reality

A new study, published in AI & Society, argues that we are entering an era where AI-generated content is not only indistinguishable from human-created work but is actively transforming cultural production, economic structures, and social consciousness. This phenomenon, termed the Algorithmic Condition, signals a shift in the way we perceive reality and engage with media in an age dominated by artificial intelligence.

The research, titled "Synthetic media and computational capitalism: towards a critical theory of artificial intelligence", delves into the concept of The Inversion, where AI-generated artifacts increasingly shape social consciousness, leading to a post-consciousness state in which traditional notions of creativity, labor, and human agency are eroded.

Conducted by David M. Berry at the University of Sussex, the study highlights the rise of synthetic media - AI-generated news, deepfake videos, algorithmically composed music, and AI-driven influencers - that now populate much of the digital space. With AI systems autonomously generating cultural artifacts and interactions, the distinction between reality and simulation is becoming increasingly difficult to maintain.

AI and the future of digital authenticity

One of the most critical takeaways from the study is the growing verification crisis in online spaces. As AI-generated content proliferates, users are faced with a reality in which distinguishing human-made content from machine-generated material is nearly impossible. Traditional markers of authenticity such as institutional credibility, journalistic integrity, and even personal identity are being destabilized. This has profound implications for democracy, public discourse, and personal privacy, as synthetic media can be manipulated to influence political narratives, spread misinformation, and create artificial consensus online.

Berry’s research suggests that computational capitalism is driving the rise of automimetric production, where both content creation and consumption are increasingly automated. Platforms like YouTube, Spotify, and TikTok already rely on algorithmic curation, but as AI becomes more sophisticated, these systems are evolving beyond passive recommendation engines into autonomous generators of cultural content. The result is an economy where value is extracted not from human creativity, but from AI-driven engagement loops that maximize monetization while minimizing human involvement.

The Inversion: When AI content becomes the norm

The study introduces the concept of "the Inversion," a pivotal moment in technological evolution where AI-generated interactions and media overtake human-created content as the default experience on digital platforms. Initially observed by engineers at YouTube in 2013, the Inversion has since accelerated, fundamentally reshaping how digital platforms operate. Today, AI bots not only generate advertising clicks, fake social media engagement, and synthetic influencers, but they also interact with other AI systems, creating self-sustaining loops of artificial engagement.

Berry warns that this shift is not just a quantitative increase in AI-generated media, but a qualitative transformation in how meaning, truth, and authenticity are constructed. From AI-generated political speeches to algorithmically written news articles, the boundaries between human and machine authorship are blurring, raising ethical and epistemological questions that demand urgent attention.

The research outlines several key implications of synthetic media and computational capitalism:

• The Loss of Human Cultural Production: As AI systems generate more content, human creativity is at risk of being marginalized. The rise of AI influencers, AI-generated art, and automated storytelling challenges the role of human authorship in creative industries.
• Algorithmic Value Extraction: Social media platforms and streaming services increasingly rely on AI-generated content to drive engagement, creating closed economic loops where human labor is no longer essential to the production process.
• Deepfake Manipulation and Political Risk: The ability to create hyper-realistic AI-generated videos and voice replicas raises concerns about misinformation, election interference, and the erosion of public trust in digital communication.
• Post-Consciousness and Psychological Effects: The study introduces the term post-consciousness to describe a state where human cognition is increasingly shaped by AI-generated stimuli, leading to a detachment from reality and an over-reliance on algorithmic mediation.

The urgent need for digital reflexivity and AI regulation

The research calls for critical reflexivity - a societal shift in which individuals and institutions develop methods to engage with AI-generated media without being wholly subsumed by it. This includes:

• Developing AI-Verification Systems: Governments and technology firms must invest in tools to detect and label AI-generated content, preventing misinformation and ensuring transparency in digital communication.
• Redefining Digital Labor: The creative economy must adapt to AI-assisted workflows, ensuring that human creativity remains at the core of artistic and journalistic production.
• Algorithmic Governance: Policymakers must address the ethical concerns of AI-driven media manipulation, enforcing stricter regulations on deepfake technology and AI-generated misinformation.
• Promoting Media Literacy: Digital education initiatives must equip users with the skills to critically engage with synthetic media, reducing susceptibility to AI-generated deception.