Kathleen Schmidt is a book publicist and the founder of KMS Public Relations. She writes Publishing Confidential, a newsletter about the publishing industry.
Case
Simon & Schuster defends approved AI tools for internal work. Literary agents want disclosure or a ban, while Kathleen Schmidt distinguishes writing publicity from administrative assistance.
Role at the time: Book publicist and author of the Publishing Confidential newsletter, in a newsletter post
Statement summary
Book publicist Kathleen Schmidt said she agrees it is short-sighted to use AI to write publicity copy and pitches, because they would all start sounding the same, while saying AI-powered media databases are useful in publicity work.
“I agree it is short-sighted to use them for publicity copy and pitches, because if that becomes the norm, all pitches and publicity copy will start sounding the same.”
The case asks whether book publishers should use AI tools in their internal workflows. Schmidt agrees "it is short-sighted to use them for publicity copy and pitches" but says an AI-powered media database is "a good thing". Because she opposes one use and supports another, we labeled it Mixed or conditional. The closest competing label is Condemned; it loses because she endorses AI for media research.
Statement dates: October 10, 2026
Statement dates: October 10, 2026
Statement dates: October 10, 2026
Statement dates: October 10, 2026
