Host: Annik Sobing
Guest: Eric Johnson - Journal of Commerce

Published: May 2026
Length: ~34 minutes
Presented by: Global Training Center

AI, Trade Reporting, and Why the Industry Is Changing Faster Than Ever

Annik Sobing sits down with Eric Johnson of the Journal of Commerce for a wide-ranging conversation about trade media, logistics, technology, and the growing influence of AI across the industry. Eric shares how his reporting career led him from newspapers and ports coverage into trade journalism, why global experience sharpened his perspective, and how the pace of change has accelerated as the industry becomes more connected and more technical. The discussion also explores TPM, how conferences are evolving, and why smart technology still depends on smart people.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode

Eric’s background
Eric shares how he moved from sports journalism into trade reporting after covering the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach. He explains how travel, international exposure, and a love of writing shaped the career path that brought him to the Journal of Commerce.

How trade reporting works
Eric explains that trade journalism is built on conversations, sources, and a wide horizontal view of the industry. He discusses how reporters learn from brokers, forwarders, shippers, carriers, and consultants to build a clearer picture of what is happening across the supply chain.

The impact of culture and perspective
The conversation explores how working and traveling abroad changed Eric’s writing style and made him more sensitive to different communication styles, especially when covering people across regions and languages. He talks about the importance of being accurate, fair, and empathetic in reporting.

How the industry has changed
Eric reflects on how the core work in logistics and trade has stayed mostly the same, even as technology, internet access, and media coverage have transformed the way information moves. He argues that AI is speeding up the pace of change, but not replacing the underlying work itself.

TPM and the future of events
The episode also covers TPM’s evolution from a shipping-focused conference into a broader industry gathering shaped by technology, geopolitics, and operational complexity. Eric explains why TPM still matters most as a place where people meet face-to-face to solve real business problems.

AI, investment, and resilience
Annik and Eric also discuss how different types of companies should think about investing in technology. Eric notes that asset-light companies, asset-heavy companies, and shippers all face different incentives and risk levels when deciding how aggressively to adopt AI and other tools.

Credits
Host: Annik Sobing
Guest: Eric Johnson
Presented by: Global Training Center

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