September 23, 2025
September 23, 2025
Co-founder of Salon.com. Theater critic. VP of editorial operations. Book author.
Scott Rosenberg has held all these titles (and others!) throughout his long career in media. Since 2018, he’s served as managing editor of technology at Axios, where he oversees coverage in Silicon Valley and D.C. of the news shaping tech companies, products, and policy.
When he joined us for a recent AMA, we asked Scott what AI trends he’s keeping an eye on and which are a flash in the pan, how he builds relationships with sources, and his tips to maintain harmony between journalists and PR professionals even as PR pros outnumber journalists seven to one.
What follows is an edited version of our conversation.
How Axios’ Smart Brevity philosophy shapes Scott’s journalism
Smart Brevity is Axios’ approach to make its journalism clear, engaging, and memorable.
“It’s a way of thinking about the reader and accepting the truth that the reader has no time – we know this because we're all readers ourselves,” Scott says.
Smart Brevity also shapes how Axios covers stories. “No story is alone,” he says. “Each is like a little molecule that connects with others. Normally a journalist will break a story down into short pieces focused on individual events – we try to go one level further.
Reporters breaking news will focus on sharing it in a ‘just the facts’ kind of way. Then, a newsletter writer is looking at the story and thinking about how to illuminate it in a different way in the next day’s newsletter.”
Axios newsletters crystallize One Big Thing for readers to take away about each story – smart brevity in action.
On which AI trends are compelling versus played out
Axios readers are hungry for the big picture on AI, but want stories that frame it in a way that’s meaningful to them. To that end, Scott focuses less on broad trends like AI agents, and more on concrete examples of their day-to-day impact on people.
“It's so much more valuable for readers to understand how agents are useful for doctors or accountants, for example – something real in a certain profession or environment,” he says. “Those stories are rooted in what’s actually happening versus what investors are excited about or executives hear about at conferences.”
Readers are also interested in how AI is impacting the job market as two trends converge: C-suite leaders emphasize the importance of employees using AI, while many employees worry it will take their jobs.
In Scott’s words: “That has people very confused. Anything we can do to sort out that confusion and create reality checks about the actual state of AI in employment is helpful.”
On what makes a valuable source
For Scott’s team, knowledgeable sources who are willing to answer questions beyond those about their own company or product are the most valuable.
“Speaking knowledgeably and in an interesting way will naturally make the reporter interested in learning about what a source is working on,” he says. “It’s a better way in to promote your company or product than just talking about it directly.”
Also valuable: sources who practice Smart Brevity themselves.
Engaging with PR pros
While journalists and PR pros are sometimes positioned as adversaries, Scott has enormous empathy for PR folks’ work. To make his job easier, timeliness and quick responses are key: He reiterated that journalists operate under very hectic deadlines. Something as simple as providing a URL for an announcement or event ahead of time can make a big difference.
And he urges careful thought before asking for a correction, noting that his most challenging interactions with PR pros have come when they ask for corrections based on how a story frames a company instead of factual errors.
Reflections on journalism after decades in the industry
Scott has seen a lot of change during his years in tech journalism. Today, there’s more activity and money flowing through the industry than ever before even as newsrooms and resources for journalists continue to shrink.
“Why am I doing this? Because I have to – this is what I love, and most people in journalism do it for that reason,” he says. “We feel a calling and see the public value in what we do, even though we're wildly outnumbered. We try to stay afloat in the sea of information and do our best.”
