California Tech Editor

POLITICO is seeking a fixed-term California Tech Editor for a temporary assignment, leading agenda-setting coverage of technology politics and policy, with a focus on editing the California Decoded newsletter. This role involves supervising a talented team of reporters, collaborating with editors across newsrooms (California and Washington), and producing high-impact journalism across all platforms. The ideal candidate is a fiercely competitive self-starter with an unrelenting desire to break news, helping to craft new coverage lines in the fast-moving tech beat.

Must Have

• Track record of breaking news and developing compelling enterprise stories on national politics and policy
• Experience managing and coaching reporters
• Superior organizational skills
• Rigorous commitment to fair-minded, nonpartisan journalism
• Demonstrated track record of producing ambitious, scoop-driven journalism

Good to Have

• Imagination and curiosity for a fast-moving tech beat

Description

POLITICO is looking for a fixed-term California Tech Editor to serve a temporary assignment leading our agenda-setting coverage of the politics and policy of technology — one of the most consequential and fastest-moving stories occurring anywhere — with a special focus on editing the California Decoded newsletter.

The right candidate to step in for the roughly six-month period is fiercely competitive, thrives in a fast-paced environment and has an unrelenting desire to break news. Working through mid-year 2026, you’ll supervise a talented team of reporters and collaborate with editors across the newsroom — including the team in California working on politics, climate and energy, healthcare and education and ballot measures, as well as Washington-based editors and reporters focused on technology, the White House, Congress, and more — to produce high-impact journalism across all platforms.

This is a unique opportunity for a self-starter to join a growing newsroom and lead policy coverage in the state that regularly passes landmark laws on everything from artificial intelligence to election deepfakes. In addition to teaming up with policy teams in Washington, you’ll edit high-impact articles and convene with reporters across our European and state-based newsroom to generate ambitious global enterprise pieces.

Tech is a fast-moving beat that rewards imagination and curiosity, and to that end you’ll also help POLITICO craft new coverage lines and approaches to meet the challenge with the highest possible impact.

What You'll Need:

• A track record of breaking news and developing compelling enterprise stories on national politics and policy
• Experience managing and coaching reporters, superior organizational skills and a track record of strong storytelling and editing
• A rigorous commitment to fair-minded, nonpartisan journalism
• A demonstrated track record of producing ambitious, scoop-driven journalism

What You’ll Do:

• Edit the California Decoded daily newsletter.
• Assign and edit breaking news for both subscribers and the POLITICO homepage
• Plan and edit original, in-depth stories that take readers inside the relationship between the tech industry, governments and the public
• Work with colleagues across the California and Washington newsroom to guide this coverage across POLITICO’s platforms: Politico.com, our must-read newsletters and our premium subscriber service
• Work across POLITICO’s teams to brainstorm events, big-idea showcases, and new approaches to the coverage

The anticipated annualized salary range for candidates who will work this temporary assignment in Sacramento, CA or San Francisco, CA is $110,000.00-$130,000.00 per year. The final salary offered, which may be higher than the current anticipated salary range, to a successful candidate will be dependent on several factors that may include but are not limited to the type and years of experience within the job, type and years of experience within the industry, education, etc.

To apply: Please submit a résumé, cover letter and samples of work that showcase your editing and idea-generating skills.

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About Us.

POLITICO illuminates the forces shaping global power. Since 2007, we have delivered intelligence that anticipates tomorrow's headlines, not reports on yesterday's news. As politics has increasingly become the defining force of our era, our work has never been more vital.

Cabinet secretaries and Ministers start their mornings with our analysis. CEOs shape strategy around our reporting. Advocacy leaders rely on our insights to move policy. We deliver the straightforward facts and clear-eyed analysis they need to navigate the most complex political landscape of our lifetimes.

Our 1,100+ publishing professionals across the world's key democratic capitals—Washington, Brussels, London, Paris, Berlin, Sacramento, and New York—form the world's premier politics and policy newsroom. We tell the story of how power really works by explaining who wields it and how they plan to exercise it, connecting dots others miss and delivering scoops from sources others don't even know exist.

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These bets have made POLITICO the most successful digital news startup of its generation and the indispensable resource for leaders who shape the future. Today, we are a rarity in media: a growing, profitable, and sustainable news organization.

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