More than humanoid robots and cyborgs? How German print media visualize articles on artificial intelligence

Engaging with the ongoing debate regarding the portrayal of artificial intelligence (AI) in the public sphere – particularly the alleged predominance of sci-fi imagery and humanoid robots – our study examines how six German print media visualize articles related to AI. A mixed-methods approach combines qualitative and quantitative visual content analysis, analyzing 818 images from articles published in 2019 and 2022/23. Our findings indicate that human figures, rather than robots, serve as dominant visual objects, and no significant image-to-text gaps were observed. Overall, German print media appear to present a nuanced perspective on AI, balancing opportunities and risks associated with this technology.