More than 800 organized employees at USA Today Co., including journalists and other media staff members, are calling for an end to a recently revealed collaboration between USA Today Co. and data analytics firm Palantir, citing severe issues regarding reader privacy and the objectivity of the newsroom.

USA Today Uses Palantir to Analyze Reader Data

Chairman of USA Today Co. Mike Reed revealed during an August 6 conference with investors that the firm is cooperating with Palantir for gathering and analyzing readers' data. The objective was described as faster and more efficient monetization of data across the company's digital assets. Reed did not provide details on the time period Palantir had been using its software.

USA Today Co., which used to be Gannett, runs the biggest newspaper chain in the country. Its publications have been collecting, routing and analyzing massive amounts of information from users via their own systems as well as third-party analytics vendors.

Unions Raise Privacy and Editorial Concerns

NewsGuild-CWA stated that employees were surprised about the partnership and demanded that it be immediately discontinued. There are 31 unions supporting this call coming from workers of USA Today Co., which represent the interests of employees at all of its publications.

The issues raised by the unions go beyond the issue of reader privacy. They mention that Palantir itself is a subject of a lot of press coverage. In addition, they mention the use of artificial intelligence technology for surveillance purposes and enforcement of immigration laws by Palantir.

It was mentioned by the union that journalists who cover the immigration and protest movements have been subjected to assaults and false arrests, thus this partnership is especially problematic in view of such reporting.

Journalists Want More Transparency

The unions have reported that the USA Today Co. has shared very little information on the deal, which includes the methods by which users' personal data is to be handled.

As per Mike Davis, a journalist working with the Asbury Park Press, it is becoming increasingly hard for journalists to comprehend how the technology is being implemented. Davis also pointed out the risks associated with safeguarding the sensitive information collected as part of investigative journalism.

This issue has emerged when news organizations are heavily relying on data collection through digital means and are also under the constant pressure to earn some additional money.

From the unions' perspective, the main issue here is trust, in that journalists cannot ask their readers to subscribe to their publications without resolving these issues first.