The new tool AI
What is XPLR: MEDIA in Bavaria?
XPLR: MEDIA in Bavaria is an initiative of Medien.Bayern GmbH and is present as an online and print industry magazine as well as on social media. The XPLR: MEDIA Magazine is published annually at the Medientage München media conference and presents innovative projects from the Bavarian media industry. The fourth issue, published in 2023, is dedicated to the topic of artificial intelligence, which offers great opportunities for media professionals, but also presents them with challenges.
Task
- Content creation Print
- Art direction (layout & design)
- Photo production
- Creation of AI images (midjourney)
Hard facts
- How often? 1 x a year main issue, 1 x to 2 x a year supplement plus online content for website and social media
- Distribution: supplement at the kiosk in industry magazines, display at trade fairs
Implementation
In which areas and in which way will AI influence work in the media industry? Do new AI tools offer an opportunity for greater efficiency and credibility? And how can we avoid being left behind? To answer these questions, we asked Bavarian media companies, experts and, last but not least, AI itself for their assessments.
The result: inspiring use cases and exciting success stories that show in a practical way the opportunities that AI offers for media professionals and how innovative companies in Bavaria are shaping the future.
Three highlight stories from the issue:
1. Man, machine, music
Dr. Esther Fee Feichtner, head of the digitization program “Artificial Intelligence in Culture and Arts,” talks about the creative power of AI-generated music. Her vision: AI as a source of inspiration that opens up new avenues for both musicians and radio stations.
2. Radio Revolution
The radio station Gong 96.3 uses RadioADMaker. With this AI tool, advertisers can write, produce, and book a radio commercial in just a few minutes. CEO Johannes Ott explains how RadioADMaker not only reduces costs but also opens up new target groups.
3. Print on the ear
Munich-based audio start-up Articly shows how AI can facilitate access to high-quality journalism. Founders Lukas Paetzmann and Wolf Weimer explain how the audio recording of selected newspaper articles allows complex content to be experienced in a new way.
In addition, the magazine summarizes the results of the AI study conducted by XPLR: MEDIA in Bavaria 2023 in collaboration with 1E9. To shed light on the impact of AI on journalism and the current activities of media companies, 176 Bavarian media professionals and ten AI experts were surveyed. The respondents agree on one point: there will be no single point at which the success of AI manifests itself as a sudden breakthrough. Instead, AI systems are increasingly becoming curators and assistants, including in the presentation of media content.
Browse through the complete magazine here:
Selected AI stories from XPLR: Media Magazine N° 4 are also published in the online magazine at xplr-media.com.
Photo: Die Fotografen Innsbruck, Valerie Schmidt 
Photo: Die Fotografen Innsbruck, Valerie Schmidt 
Photo: Sebastian Arlt 
Photo: Sebastian Arlt 
Photo: Sebastian Arlt 
AI illustration: Midjourney / storyboard 
AI image: Midjourney / storyboard 
AI illustration: Midjourney / storyboard 
AI illustration: Midjourney / storyboard
Tasks
- Photo production
- Creation of AI images
For the issue focusing on AI, Storyboard combined classic photographic portraits with AI-generated visuals. The picture editors used Midjourney to create atmospheric AI images that fit harmoniously into the modern magazine layout. This symbiosis of analog photography and digital image art reflects the magazine's focus topic and shows how traditional and forward-looking design approaches can complement each other.
