Recently, media houses have been increasingly turning to Artificial Intelligence (AI) to generate content, with various degrees of success. For example, some publishers use AI to generate news reports on financial data or sports events. Amidst this backdrop of technological integration, The Arena Group, known for operating prominent brands such as Sports Illustrated and The Street, has made a significant leadership change. The company’s chief executive, Ross Levinsohn, was dismissed from his role, a decision announced by a company spokesperson to CNN.
This decision to remove Levinsohn, who had held the position for three years, came in the wake of a major mishap involving Sports Illustrated. The magazine faced embarrassment after it was revealed that it had published stories under fictitious author names, with profile photos created by AI. This incident marked a significant misstep in the publication’s use of AI technology.
Following Levinsohn’s departure, Manoj Bhargava, the founder of 5-Hour Energy who holds a majority stake in The Arena Group, took over as the interim chief executive, as stated by Vince Bodiford, Bhargava’s spokesperson.
“All of the media brands, including Sports Illustrated, will continue to operate with the management of those verticals, while the company just takes a broad view of operations and how to improve the business overall,” Bodiford told CNN.
The termination of Levinsohn’s contract occurred shortly after The Arena Group had already dismissed three of its top executives: Andrew Kraft, the president of operations and chief operating officer; Rob Barrett, the president of media; and Julie Fenster, the corporate counsel. These sweeping changes in the company’s upper echelons indicate a significant shift in its leadership and strategic direction.
“We have nothing further to add to the company’s prior statements regarding AI,” said Bodiford in response to inquiries about whether the executive changes were related to the accusations of Sports Illustrated utilizing AI for article creation.
