Artificial intelligence is flooding public libraries with low-quality, AI-generated books—also known as AI slop. Shelly Palmer, tech expert and Professor of Advanced Media in Residence at Syracuse University’s Newhouse School of Public Communications, joins Fox 5 New York to break down the issue.
📚 What’s happening?
- AI-generated books are being mass-produced and uploaded in bulk to digital platforms, overwhelming libraries and online retailers.
- Amazon’s Kindle Direct Publishing has even set a cap—allowing authors to upload only three books per day to combat spam.
- Companies like Hoopla are working on AI detection filters to prevent these low-value books from cluttering public library catalogs.
💡 How can you spot AI slop?
- Generic content that lacks depth or originality
- AI-generated covers with misleading titles
- Books that are essentially summaries of existing content
The rise of AI slop signals a new era of spam, and libraries are struggling to keep up. Tune in as Shelly Palmer explains how this problem impacts digital content and what readers can do to identify and avoid low-quality AI-generated books.
Original Airdate: February 25, 2025
Author’s note: This is not a sponsored post. I am the author of this article and it expresses my own opinions. I am not, nor is my company, receiving compensation for it. This work was created with the assistance of various generative AI models.