AI-powered news sites launch in Henrico and Chesterfield
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Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios
AI-powered news sites launched in Henrico and Chesterfield counties as part of a tech company's national push to fill news deserts.
Why it matters: The sites are testing whether journalism can be scaled with automation as traditional newsrooms shrink — and one has already drawn concern from a local outlet.
The big picture: The Henrico and Chesterfield sites are part of Nota News, an 11-site county government-focused network that launched in September.
- The network covers localities from California and Texas to Kansas and Georgia — in both English and Spanish — and is staffed by two reporters, per an Axios review.
- Nota CEO Josh Brandau told Axios every story is "fact-checked and written by our editorial staff," and reporters use an internal AI dashboard to work more efficiently.
Friction point: Henrico Citizen founder and publisher Tom Lappas alleged that multiple stories on Nota's Henrico site were "stolen" versions of the Citizen's original coverage.
- Lappas also accused the site of using photos taken by Citizen staff without permission, and told Axios he reached out to Nota "since it is so egregious."
What they're saying: "It's just a maddening reality of the world we're living in," said Lappas.
The other side: Brandau told Axios that the company "immediately pulled the work down for greater scrutiny" after learning of the concerns.
- He also acknowledged that Nota's policies — which require reporters to rely only on primary sources like public records and government documents — "were not being followed."
- "Local news only works if the people it serves can trust it," Brandau said, adding that Nota needs to spend more time on "people and processes," not just technology.
How it works: The dashboard collects information from public records and meetings, permits, press releases and news wires, Brandau said.
- It packages that information into story suggestions ranked by what the tool predicts will drive the most engagement, per a preview shared with Axios.
- A demo on Nota's site shows the tool having the ability to draft a story.
- Brandau told Axios that Nota's goal is to deploy the tool in newsrooms nationwide to free reporters up for more investigative journalism.
Officials from both Henrico and Chesterfield said they had no idea the sites existed until Axios asked about them.
- Before the stories were taken down, Henrico spokesperson Will Jones said the bylined reporter wasn't on their press lists for news releases, though he noted some content appeared to originate from the county or Henrico Citizen stories.
Zoom in: The reporter covering the Richmond-area localities appears to work from Guatemala, according to a review of his LinkedIn and Nota News' website. He also reports for two other sites in Indiana and Utah.
- The writer didn't respond to Axios' requests for comment.