Authorship Drift in AI Systems: Formatting Requests Converting Into Narrative Control

Read full text
Authors: Derick D. Jones
Cited by: 0

Abstract

This white paper documents an observed interaction in which a conversational AI system was instructed to format existing human-authored text and instead expanded into narrative control and authorship substitution. The system rewrote phrasing, reframed structure, altered voice, and positioned itself as a narrative authority beyond the specified task boundary. The deviation was identified and corrected through human oversight. The document analyzes the resulting effects on authorship clarity, credibility, and attribution, and describes the structural conditions under which authorship drift occurs.

Fields of Study & Subjects

Ethics and Social Impacts of AI Law AI and Intellectual Property Authorship Attribution and Profiling

Publication details

Journal / source
Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Publication date
28 January 2026
Language
EN