Three prominent progressive outlets, including Raw Story and AlterNet, filed lawsuits against OpenAI on Wednesday, accusing the company of breaching their copyright protections. The legal action took place in federal court in Manhattan and follows in the footsteps of The New York Times' lawsuit against OpenAI and Microsoft last year.

The complaints allege that OpenAI's ChatGPT violated the Digital Copyright Millennium Act by not acknowledging or respecting copyright, failing to notify users when using protected content, and neglecting to provide attribution to journalists. John Byrne, CEO of Raw Story and AlterNet, revealed that an AI expert discovered their articles were being used without permission by OpenAI.

In response to the alleged copyright violations, the companies have blocked access to their data by both ChatGPT and Google's Bard systems. Byrne emphasized the importance of tech companies compensating publishers for their work rather than exploiting it without permission.

Annie Chabel, Chief Executive Officer of The Intercept, stated that non-profit news organizations struggle to find financial support, especially when their content is used without permission by tech giants like OpenAI. The media outlets' argument revolves around the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, which protects copyrighted materials from unauthorized use.

While OpenAI has partnerships with some news organizations to train its AI systems, the lawsuits highlight the ongoing struggle between publishers and AI companies over copyright issues. The media landscape continues to adapt to AI advancements, with companies like Bloomberg and The Washington Post exploring their own AI programs for journalism.

Despite the ongoing legal battle with OpenAI, John Byrne expressed a willingness to work with AI platforms if fair compensation is provided for their journalism. The outcome of the lawsuits against OpenAI could have far-reaching implications for the relationship between news publishers and AI companies.