Just trying to figure out what your objections to a Superman with a "psychic" origin for his powers are. I'm not saying they should go that route and IIRC they haven't but if they did it wouldn't be all that "wrong".
OK, that is a fair question.
The short answer as to why psionics is inappropriate for Superman is because, traditionally, in universe the paranormal has not been the source of his powers. The limitations of Superman's powers traditionally derive from purely physical arrangements, such as lead to block his X-ray vision, not to mention that it is the radiation from kryptonite that is harmful to Superman, and lead (Pb) can shield Superman from this radiation. So, historically, the tone of Superman has been that his powers derive from that part of the fantasy spectrum closer to science fiction than to swords and sorcery. From
the wiki:
The source of Superman's powers has changed subtly over the course of his history. It was originally stated that Superman's abilities derived from his Kryptonian heritage, which made him eons more evolved than humans.[73] This was soon amended, with the source for the powers now based upon the establishment of Krypton's gravity as having been stronger than that of the Earth. ... [Later,] the Superman writers established that Kryptonians, whose native star Rao had been red, only possessed superpowers under the light of a yellow sun.[100] More recent stories have attempted to find a balance between the two explanations.
I summarize my take on tactile telekinesis as follows.
First of all, the term "tactile telekinesis" is a misnomer, because the prefix "tele-" implies action at a distance. Be that as it may, my understanding, as it were, is that tactile telekinesis results from "an energy field surrounding and penetrating" Superman's body that may be extended to encompass objects in physical contact with him. It is worth noting that the film
Superman (1978) practically admitted that Superman had this power, although it did not name it, when he took Lois Lane for the ride on "the night she spent with Superman". She stays in flight with Superman, even when they touch only by their fingertips. It is only when her hand slips away and they lose contact that she begins plummeting to Earth. (He swoops down to save her, brilliantly foreshadowing how he reverses her death in the climax of the film. But I digress.) Therefore, this power predates the Byrne reboot by almost a decade.
Conceiving tactile whatever-kinesis as a force field also places it on the fantasy spectrum closer to science fiction than to swords and sorcery. One can imagine that physical contact allows some sort of
induction to occur that transfers the levitation effect from Superman's body into any matter in direct contact with him, in a technobabbly sort of way not at all dissimilar to electromagnetic induction. The fact that tactile telekinesis is a misnomer, in that it is not really action at a distance, tends also to make a characterization of this ability as being "psychic" more of a stretch.
It is also worth noting another thing about the 1978 Donner film. Besides all but stating overtly that Superman's powers result from Krypton being in a different galaxy with a different set of physical laws,
Jor-El also says:
JOR-EL'S VOICE
...
As we pass through the flaming turmoil which is the edge of your own galaxy, we will enter the realm of the red Krypton sun, source of your strength and nourishment, cause of our eventual destruction
Given also what is evidently the visual depiction of this flaming turmoil, I am reminded of nothing else than the
force field at the edge of the galaxy depicted in TOS:
Where No Man Has Gone Before. In this episode, as we know, Mitchell and Dehner develop god-like powers after interacting with the force field. They were susceptible to the effect because of their psychic abilities. Now, without getting bogged down in semantics, I argue that TOS:WNMHGB attempted to operate on the end of the fantasy spectrum closer to science fiction than to swords and sorcery, despite telling a story that invoked ESP. In universe, the causes of the mutation were all scientific, and ESP was considered a scientifically measurable phenomenon. I would be more than a little surprised if the "flaming turmoil" in the Donner film were not a direct allusion to the galactic barrier in Star Trek. If it is such an allusion, then I think the intent would be to suggest an explanation for Superman's powers that, while in actuality fantastic, in universe is meant to have the tone of a scientific explanation, in particular involving some intergalactic phenomenon leading to god-
like as opposed to god
ly abilities, that can be countered by villains, such as Lex Luthor, employing attacks based in the science of the fictional world.
It is this tone of having a scientific explanation in universe that is the decisive reason why I find the use of the term "psionics" in connection with tactile telekinesis to be inappropriate.
The only possible way it could avoid being distasteful to me is if, as with TOS:WNMHGB, and as an extension of this sort of science fiction, one argues that in universe psionics are not really paranormal. But if that view is Mulder, then as a reader my viewpoint is Scully, and even if the case is made, I'm going to be dragged kicking and screaming the whole time. For, and furthermore, even in TOS:WNMHGB, the full blown god-like abilities took physical contact with the barrier to manifest themselves, and therefore were not exclusively psionic in nature, even if at all psionic. The cause was therefore strange energy rather than freak mentality. Incidentally, failing to stay on Scully's side of this distinction is why I consider TNG:
Journey's End to have jumped the shark.
I know this all personal and subjective, but it's the best I can do for now. Thanks for asking.
But hey, if you're enjoying debating pointless silliness that isn't, you know, anything whatsoever to do with the title of this thread, knock yourself out. 
