Jim VandeHei: Rise of Super Journalists

Axios

22-07-2025

We write and talk a lot about the rise of AI superintelligence machines that'll be much smarter than humans — and the technology's impact on society and traditional journalism.
In this column, we'll delve into the rise of what we call Super Journalists — reporters with sourcing, expertise, nuance and connections no machine can possibly match.
Why it matters: We believe Super Journalists will dominate media in the AI era.
These are journalists with true domain expertise, top-notch sourcing and historical depth to tell people things they don't know.
They're not your average journalist doing a dutiful job chronicling unfolding events. Those, we believe, will be displaced by an AI agent summarizing things to match — with precision
— the tastes of each individual user.
No, these are the journalists with deep passion for a topic — be it politics, AI or a specific city — and deep sourcing, knowledge and credibility. They establish an authentic human connection, based on trust built over years.
The big picture: This is great for you, the news consumer. In the future, we envision a world where discerning readers, viewers and listeners get the best of both worlds: higher quality human expertise on their favorite topics and quicker, better summaries of daily news or happenings via AI.
We built Axios years ago for this very moment. We have a smaller newsroom than some older competitors. But we have true subject matter experts — including Sara Fischer on media, Dan Primack on deals, Ina Fried on tech, Hans Nichols on Congress, Neil Irwin and Courtenay Brown on economics and the Fed, Marc Caputo on the White House, Alex Thompson on national politics, Barak Ravid on the Middle East, Eleanor Hawkins on communications strategy, Joann Muller on transportation, and so many more.
We're doing the same in Axios Local cities — now 34 and counting — where we hire the most wired reporters in a city to cover that city for a core local audience of smart professionals.
We're not alone: Substack just raised $100 million to entice experts to go solo on its platform. New media companies, notably Puck, have adopted a similar Super Journalist ethos.
AI will change journalism dramatically. We're updating the Axios Manifesto to make it clear we'll use AI as a tool for research, data collection and analysis, and compilation of data like concerts or events in cities — not to write stories. We'll soon start sharing some of the best use cases we've found.
We believe AI will enable us to expand Axios Local to many more cities, much faster (more on this soon). But it won't replace Super Journalists. In fact, the spread of AI will make their work even more vital and valuable.
Here's how we think about it: AI will help facilitate getting more high quality human-generated content to more humans. The distinctiveness of true Super Journalists' work will stand out amid the sameness of commodity news spit out by AI machines. We're betting you'll yearn for and reward:
Authentic scoops by people you trust.
Authentic context to see and think about topics in a more sophisticated way.
Authentic nuance that flows not from the literal words and actions of people — but from their facial expressions, body language and true intent.
The bottom line: Super Journalists + superintelligence = information nirvana if Axios can nail the mix and win your trust.