We are learning that AI is useful for generating prototypes of our projects. Chat-GPT (generative pre-trained transformer) works best as a tutor, writes Alexandra Samuel, not as a substitute for doing our work—our thinking—for us (Wall Street Journal, Nov. 9, 2023, pp. B1-2). I applied some tips from CGPT in revising essay on the great but forgotten boxer Tony Zale (1913-97). He was the middleweight titleholder in the 1940s. His fights with Rocky Graziano (1919-1990), which took place between 1946 and 1948, rank as some of the most violent battles of the decade.
I asked ChatGPT why Zale had been forgotten and got this reply:
“Tony Zale might not be a household name today, but he definitely left his mark in the boxing world. It's not uncommon for athletes from the past to fade from public memory as time goes on, especially if they didn't have the same level of media exposure or if their careers were overshadowed by more flamboyant personalities. Boxing has a rich history with many great fighters, and not everyone can be remembered as vividly as, say, Muhammad Ali. But those who know their boxing history still appreciate Zale's contributions to the sport.”
The reply is safe and almost generic, as is much AI content. However, it helpfully singles out two key points: media exposure and flamboyance. Zale had limited media exposure and no flamboyance. As a titleholder, Zale had exposure on the national level, but it was limited to news coverage of his championship fights and follow-up assessments. Zale did not have media exposure focused on human interest, by which I mean focused on who he was as a man. Others boxers did. Zale was the kind of figure, as CGPT observed, that is easily “overshadowed by more flamboyant personalities.”
Then I asked CGPT how one might correct this situation. Here’s the full response:
“That's a noble endeavor! To restore some fame to Tony Zale, a writer could consider the following approaches:
1. Biography or Documentary: Write a detailed biography or create a documentary about Tony Zale's life, highlighting his achievements, struggles, and the impact he had on the boxing world. This can bring his story to a new audience.
2. Feature Articles: Contribute articles to sports magazines, websites, or newspapers, focusing on specific aspects of Zale's career. This can help generate interest and educate readers about his accomplishments.
3. Social Media Campaigns: Utilize social media platforms to share information, anecdotes, and highlights about Tony Zale. Create a hashtag to encourage discussions and engagement among boxing enthusiasts.
4. Collaborate with Boxing Communities: Engage with boxing forums, communities, and fan clubs. Share content about Zale and participate in discussions to bring attention to his legacy among dedicated boxing fans.
5. Incorporate in Fictional Works: If you're a fiction writer, consider incorporating Tony Zale into your stories or novels. This can introduce his character to a new audience and spark curiosity about the real person behind the fiction.
6. Podcasts and Interviews: Start or participate in podcasts and interviews dedicated to boxing history. Discuss Tony Zale's career, interview experts, and share insights to attract a broader audience.
7. Campaign for Recognition: Advocate for Tony Zale to be recognized in the Boxing Hall of Fame or other relevant institutions. Gather support from fans, fellow writers, and boxing authorities to highlight his significance.
Remember, the goal is to bring attention to Tony Zale's contributions in a way that resonates with contemporary audiences. By leveraging various media channels and creative storytelling, a writer can play a significant role in reviving interest in this forgotten boxing legend.”
This is impressive by any standard. A paid consultant might not have done as well. I had to hand it to the program for the pat on the back (“a noble endeavor”), something every writer appreciates, and I liked the coaching (“Remember, the goal is”).
But I wondered if I could fit my Substack essay into CGPT’s ambitious options. Many of them would require a life’s work, and even CGPT might reconsider the second point. Absent a significant discovery about him, is it likely that a sports magazine would accept an article on a forgotten boxer? CGPT’s emphasis on audience appeal and the need for a creative approach helped.
Substack is a new audience for Tony Zale, and perhaps for boxing and masculinity. My essay on Zale overlaps the first two of CGPT’s seven categories, biography and feature. The program advised me to find an approach “that resonates with contemporary audiences.” CGPT also refers to “boxing enthusiasts,” a subset of that audience.
Boxing fans are mostly concerned with active boxers, some of whom are very active on social media (#3 on the list; see my post https://allenfrantzen.substack.com/p/social-media-boxing-and-violence).
Most “contemporary audiences,” also called the “broader audience” of readers (#6 on the list), are not concerned with boxing and would not be interested in Zale unless he had significant human interest, as, for example, Ali had. Few boxers achieved Ali’s level of recognition, but many, including Rocky Marciano, Jack Dempsey, Gene Tunney, Mike Tyson, and others, are still remembered as men who helped define the art of boxing in their time.
CGPT redirected my approach. As a specialist in medieval English culture and language, I think like a historian: first this, then that. At first I saw Zale as a talented athlete who was ordinary in many ways (“first this”) and, hence, was forgotten (“then that”). CGPT underlined something I was taking for granted, which is that by writing about Zale I was trying to do something about his status. That meant finding the path to an audience, and that pointed to the need for creativity. I was not writing a novel into which I could fit Zale, but I could be creative as I built a context for him. In a novel, Zale would make a good secondary character. For a leading man, of course, one would have to turn to Graziano.
Prior to consulting CGPT, I was going to start with these paragraphs:
Inside every famous boxer there is a man who might, or might not, fit fans’ idea of a fighter. Some men have personalities as big as their boxing talent. Those are the boxers we know as men. Think of Joe Louis, Muhammad Ali, Jack Dempsey, and Mike Tyson. These men subsumed boxing into their masculine identity. Big, powerful, and freewheeling, they put a face on boxing that boxing fans wanted to see.
Some boxers have personalities that that compete with fans’ idea of what a fighter should be. These are men in whom boxing and personality do not merge. Exhibit A is Gene Tunney (1897-1978), a heavyweight champion who was also an intellectual. Reading Tunney: Boxing's Brainiest Champ and His Upset of the Great Jack Dempsey (2006), I could see that author Jack Cavanaugh was interested in “the great” one, not in the other one. [end sample]
I wanted to establish the tension between a boxer’s professional standing and his personality, with a nod to contemporary boxers and to older boxers of exceptional fame. I included Gene Tunney because I saw him as similar to Tony Zale. Mentioning Tunney, however, delayed Zale’s entrance. CGPT helped me tell the story more directly by beginning with Zale and “flamboyant personalities.” Zale did not have one; his chief competitor, Rocky Graziano did. I saw a new design and energy for the essay in that point.
The revised essay follows, next post.
No doubt CGPT can be used in this manner, but one has to know what one is doing in the first place. Someone asked the AI the other day who the first scientist was and CGPT told him is was Thales of Miletus. This response is of course arguable, and troubled by anachronism. But users without the training to know better will walk away believing they are in possession of a fact. Consequently, I see CGPT as an awful tool that will lead to a barbaric sense of what knowledge is. That said, you do a great job here at leveraging some potential.