Malta’s first financial journalism programme will teach responsible AI use

Malta’s first Financial Journalism Excellence Programme will be held on 27 and 28 August at the University of Malta’s Faculty of Economics, Management and Accountancy. The two-day course will cover core reporting skills and the responsible use of AI in journalism. According to Lovin Malta, the editorial programme will be led by Tom Burroughes and Jeff Prestridge. Burroughes is Group Editor of WealthBriefing and a former Reuters correspondent. Prestridge is a veteran UK finance journalist with more than 40 years of experience. Organisers are promising a “Newsroom, Not Classroom” approach. Participants will take part in masterclasses, editorial discussions, team exercises and practical newsroom challenges across the two mornings. The syllabus ranges from reading financial statements and reporting on budgets and markets to financial crime, investigative journalism, personal finance and source verification. It also includes digital reporting, social media engagement and the responsible use of AI in journalism. The programme was developed by Petra Ellul Mercer, founder of CapableMind, and Noreen Burroughes Cesareo MBE, principal of Market Accents, with involvement from the University of Malta’s Department of Insurance and Risk Management. Guest contributors will include University of Malta Professor Simon Grima and representatives from the Malta Financial Services Authority and the Financial Intelligence Analysis Unit. The FIAU, Malta’s national central agency for collecting, collating, processing, analysing and disseminating information to combat money laundering and the funding of terrorism, says it will support and participate in the course. It says the programme is meant to strengthen financial reporting, analysis and investigative journalism skills, and to help collaboration between journalists, regulators and communications professionals. The course is open to journalists, editors, business and current affairs reporters, content creators, PR and communications professionals, and people working in financial services communications and public affairs. Participants who complete both days will receive a certificate of completion. Places are limited, and the introductory fee is €75. The AI element comes as newsroom use of such tools is already widespread. A Reuters Institute survey of 1,004 UK journalists found that 27% use AI daily for at least one journalistic task, while 29% use it one to four times a week and 12% use it at least monthly for fact-checking, verification or source assessment. Its most common uses were transcription and captioning, translation and grammar checking or copy-editing. Nieman Lab has also reported that newsroom guidelines stress human oversight, transparency and accountability.