Monona media committee demos AI workflow to auto-generate YouTube chapters, urges department review and disclosure

The City of Monona Community Media Committee on Feb. 12 heard a demonstration of a process that uses YouTube transcripts and generative AI to produce condensed video chapter markers and highlight summaries for meeting recordings.

Will, a committee member who presented the workflow, showed how copying YouTube transcript time codes into a generative model can produce a short list of chapters and time stamps for upload. "And, of course, ChatGPT was involved," Will said during the demonstration, adding that the workflow can be completed in about 15 minutes for shorter meetings but may require splitting longer meetings into multiple passes. He and other members recommended limiting visible chapters to roughly six to eight to improve viewer experience and to reduce YouTube’s tendency to insert ads at chapter boundaries.

Committee members emphasized the need for human review before publishing. One member suggested a light-weight quality-control step in which the committee chair or the relevant department head quickly checks highlighted timestamps and chapter labels before they are posted. "We have made it a priority to cite when we're using, Gemini or generative AI," a member representing the local school district's practice said, recommending a short disclosure on video and city pages that notes when generative AI assisted in drafting chapters or summaries.

Members also discussed security and governance limits. The group noted that the city’s IT contractor has expressed reservations about external AI tools because of potential vulnerabilities; speakers said broader rollout should involve department heads and IT staff rather than a unilateral committee decision. The committee did not take a formal vote to adopt a citywide policy; instead members agreed to share the workflow and recommended disclosure language with department leaders and to test the process further.

The discussion concluded with practical next steps: Will will share example disclosure wording and sample prompts the committee can use, and the committee plans to present the approach to department heads for review and approval. The committee flagged the need for spot-checking transcripts and for clarifying who will have final responsibility for published chapter markers and descriptions.