Do people respond differently to digital animals compared to real ones?
And can that distinction make a difference in a nonprofit campaign?
These are questions University of Cincinnati Professor Victoria LaPoe is investigating in the Department of Journalism where she teaches digital media.
Before coming to UC this year, LaPoe taught journalism at Ohio University, where she volunteered with the Athens County Humane Society. She saw firsthand how hard it was for nonprofits to meet their fundraising and adoption needs.
So she turned to the example set by her fellow Louisiana State University alumnus, Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow, whose charitable foundation's message is "Do good."
"So I thought, 'What good can we do?'" she said.
"People think journalism is defined only as hard news, but there is also solutions-journalism and journalism for the public good," she said. "You can take your research and identify a deficit in a community and apply it."
UC Professor Victoria LaPoe, head of the Department of Journalism, examined the effectiveness of AI-created imagery in adoption appeals for the Humane Society. Photo/Provided
Researchers, including UC Assistant Professor Benjamin LaPoe, surveyed more than 300 people nationwide as part of a digital campaign exploring topics ranging from adoptions and donations to emotional support animals and social media use.
In one example focused on emotional support animal messaging, researchers examined whether audiences reacted differently to an AI-generated illustration versus a traditional photograph of children cuddling cats.
While it was obvious to participants that the cartoon image was artificial, what ultimately influenced their responses was what LaPoe describes as "perceived human emotion" - the emotional authenticity conveyed through the imagery and messaging.
"The humor in 'Save a Bird, Adopt a Cat,' caught the respondents off guard and they seemed to find it funny and clever. That natural emotion of humor outweighed the AI generated images - even with cute kids cuddling cats." LaPoe said.
"We had pics of real cats taken at the Humane Society and images of an AI bulldog. And the AI bulldog looks a little more cartoonish to me than the real one. But I think because it looks more polished, that stood out to people than the real photos," she said.
Researchers found that messaging produced by AI scored lower in emotional authenticity and empathetic tone than those created by people. Traditional content generated stronger emotional connections, which directly influenced adoption and donor interest.
She was asked to share her findings with the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in New York this month.
LaPoe and her co-authors concluded that care is needed when using AI-generated messaging to maintain emotional authenticity and genuine connection with the target audience.
Her research has covered a wide range of topics relating to social media, indigenous communities and current events. Before joining academia, she was a broadcast journalist.
Co-author Adonis Durado, an associate professor at Ohio University, said AI tools can be both useful and problematic. During his career in advertising, he learned how to craft persuasive messages for target audiences.
"That experience taught me how powerful storytelling can be when it is authentic and emotionally honest," he said.
AI tools can help nonprofit groups analyze tone, predict audience response and identify emotionally resonant messages associated with successful appeals, he said.
"For nonprofits, AI can be incredibly helpful. It can study what kinds of stories or visuals connect with people and what makes someone stop scrolling, click donate or share a post," he said.
UC researchers surveyed 300 people nationwide about their response to three adoption appeals for emotional support animals, including an AI-generated illustration and two authentic photos. Images/Provided
But there's a risk that the audience might associate AI with artifice or manipulation, he said.
"If organizations rely too heavily on automation, messages can start to feel generic or manipulative," he said. "The same survey showed that authenticity and brand consistency matter deeply to audiences - and that is where human creativity still matters most. Nonprofits depend on trust. If people sense that an AI wrote something that feels too perfect, it can backfire."
Meanwhile, LaPoe is happy to be in Cincinnati, where she can cheer on other Burrow "Do Gooders," having one son down the road from LSU and another in Athens, Ohio.
Featured image at top: UC journalism researchers examined the effectiveness of AI-created imagery for nonprofit campaigns. Photo/TheDogPhotographer/IstockPhoto
