Substack is a social media platform where writers are the product just like Facebook is a social media platform where everyone who uses it is the product.
It already tolerates Nazis and has for some time.
I’m going to advocate something that will be very unpopular with the big names on here who are among the few who make a lot of money from subscriptions: stop monetizing your newsletters.
Some writers on here been promoting a general strike to stop ICE.
What if Substack writers went on strike and stopped making money for Substack ownership?
He’s a grifter, so he’s not going to stop monetizing even though he totally could choose to do so since he’s independently wealthy from generational wealth. This is the hypocrisy from white men faking their leftism out of guilt.
Currently I feel the only answer is to not monetize your subs. I feel that certain aspects of news should be free and not behind a paywall (not suggesting journalists don't get paid for their hard work, but some news is vital for the public). We are living in an era where accurate news and opinions are increasingly becoming limited (in the US anyway) and access is so important.
I'm glad you wrote about this. I, too, was REALLY bothered when I got that email from them. I guess I will contact them to voice my displeasure about it. Not sure if enough of us can pressure them to change their mind about this.
Whether that pressure works or not the bigger picture is they have always been about profit. That was clear from the beginning. That is why their argument for allowing Nazi groups and truly antisemitic groups of people is bs. It’s all about the Benjamins. It like X’s evil Musk is interested in “freedom of expression”. The same.
Thanks for sharing. I think a lot of us really need (and want) a public space to air the collective grievances of the citizens of our failed state. So we keep looking for the next {free} forum coming down the pike. But the apartheidist bros are so quick to absorb anything with soul that the second something gets any traction, its wheels get removed. I remember when Instagram disrupted the social media space; everyone was so excited to have an open discussion that wasn’t toxic. Then the most toxic of basement dwellers bought it to put a stop to the progress. I think the ultimate solution is to dump the phones for a few decades until the new paradigm is built. Then perhaps something functional can happen.
I hope it's true that we will still hear from you. Your voice is one I celebrate and share with my friends, and would hate to lose your analysis and thoughtful writing.
This will be the eventual death of substack, at least in the form anyone reading comments values. I already get newsletters from authors that migrated to ghost or beehiiv but the community aspect isn't on those sites. It might be a good thing eventually in terms of getting readers to leave the platform who were already feeling conflicted about staying. It's going to be very disastrous for the writers with most of their income coming from subscriptions here that end. So douchebags will be less likely to have paying subscribers who care about the moral implications of staying once more. It sucks.
I don't think this will be the death of substack. The fact is we have seen this time and time again from social media platforms. Substack is just repeating the cycle. Not everyone thinks about community and capitalism the way the readers of this blog do. We are unique in that aspect, and we are the minority, it seems. I am 45. I have seen the same issue happen with every single social media platform. And none of them died as a result of it. That's capitalism for you.
You're 100% right. I didn't mean it will kill the platform but I wasn't clear in what I meant. I should have said it will make it much more difficult for the subgroup of users that read these types of newsletters and care about what their attention and paid subscriptions are tacitly supporting. Just like some newsletters left over the monetization of antisemitic and racist newsletters but most didn't, Substack itself didn't appear to suffer at all. It grew.
I started hosting my writing on my own website, because I no longer trust that any company I sign onto will remain ethical or viable. I'm glad to hear you're taking this step, and I hope more people do!
I left about 9 months ago, when I (as a publisher of a free newsletter, I had shunned all their entreaties to turn on paid subs) realized that they were stifling my reach at about 2,000 subscribers. I, as a product manager, looked at their careers page and realized that they were beginning the advertisement insertion (sponsors are just the first of that) to sate their latest round of investors.
I decamped for a self hosted Ghost instance. But I remain on Notes, and I still pay for many writers whom I support here. The algorithmic shift in the last few months has been striking on notes. Now, when I scroll the for me feed on my phone or tablet, it is a wall of short form video. It is like I was on TikTok.
This though, seems like the beginning of the speed run of enshittification. I just subbed (free) to follow you to where you end up, but it seems that the founders are going to ride this into the ground.
I left fb, insta, twit, never did tt- can leave ss too - gotta get some dev friends and make our own private space where the ghouls can’t destroy it. We’re smarter & have embedded integrity to the point where the parasites are like nails on a chalkboard. No, just no.
Left Medium because they cash in all new countries and dropped the money flow to the writers. Here people are also complaining. Ghost is also trying to insert ads. When AI slops will conquer platforms we will regain our voices in the streets because online will be AI bots kingdom.
Indeed. It’s shit here and it happened in less than a year. Not to mention everyone and their brother thinks that they have something to say (and they can’t write for beans).
Thanks for sharing. This is important. I wish there were a few comparable alternatives to Substack. Maybe Patreon? Frankly, I don't know. Maybe a new platform will emerge or another will move to provide a home. The "entshittification" of Substack appears to be going full-steam ahead.
I was dismayed too. And you’re so right…in late stage capitalism everything does turn into a casino — with all the tacky materialism that word implies. Not to mention the addictive behaviour substituting for human connection which betting ….well…..abets. It is so fucking destructive. Thank you for saying so. Let me know where you go next, please, so I can keep up.
Substack is a social media platform where writers are the product just like Facebook is a social media platform where everyone who uses it is the product.
It already tolerates Nazis and has for some time.
I’m going to advocate something that will be very unpopular with the big names on here who are among the few who make a lot of money from subscriptions: stop monetizing your newsletters.
Some writers on here been promoting a general strike to stop ICE.
What if Substack writers went on strike and stopped making money for Substack ownership?
He’s a grifter, so he’s not going to stop monetizing even though he totally could choose to do so since he’s independently wealthy from generational wealth. This is the hypocrisy from white men faking their leftism out of guilt.
Currently I feel the only answer is to not monetize your subs. I feel that certain aspects of news should be free and not behind a paywall (not suggesting journalists don't get paid for their hard work, but some news is vital for the public). We are living in an era where accurate news and opinions are increasingly becoming limited (in the US anyway) and access is so important.
I'm glad you wrote about this. I, too, was REALLY bothered when I got that email from them. I guess I will contact them to voice my displeasure about it. Not sure if enough of us can pressure them to change their mind about this.
Whether that pressure works or not the bigger picture is they have always been about profit. That was clear from the beginning. That is why their argument for allowing Nazi groups and truly antisemitic groups of people is bs. It’s all about the Benjamins. It like X’s evil Musk is interested in “freedom of expression”. The same.
I never got an email!
I didn't get the email
Thanks for sharing. I think a lot of us really need (and want) a public space to air the collective grievances of the citizens of our failed state. So we keep looking for the next {free} forum coming down the pike. But the apartheidist bros are so quick to absorb anything with soul that the second something gets any traction, its wheels get removed. I remember when Instagram disrupted the social media space; everyone was so excited to have an open discussion that wasn’t toxic. Then the most toxic of basement dwellers bought it to put a stop to the progress. I think the ultimate solution is to dump the phones for a few decades until the new paradigm is built. Then perhaps something functional can happen.
I hope it's true that we will still hear from you. Your voice is one I celebrate and share with my friends, and would hate to lose your analysis and thoughtful writing.
This will be the eventual death of substack, at least in the form anyone reading comments values. I already get newsletters from authors that migrated to ghost or beehiiv but the community aspect isn't on those sites. It might be a good thing eventually in terms of getting readers to leave the platform who were already feeling conflicted about staying. It's going to be very disastrous for the writers with most of their income coming from subscriptions here that end. So douchebags will be less likely to have paying subscribers who care about the moral implications of staying once more. It sucks.
I don't think this will be the death of substack. The fact is we have seen this time and time again from social media platforms. Substack is just repeating the cycle. Not everyone thinks about community and capitalism the way the readers of this blog do. We are unique in that aspect, and we are the minority, it seems. I am 45. I have seen the same issue happen with every single social media platform. And none of them died as a result of it. That's capitalism for you.
You're 100% right. I didn't mean it will kill the platform but I wasn't clear in what I meant. I should have said it will make it much more difficult for the subgroup of users that read these types of newsletters and care about what their attention and paid subscriptions are tacitly supporting. Just like some newsletters left over the monetization of antisemitic and racist newsletters but most didn't, Substack itself didn't appear to suffer at all. It grew.
where will you go? Beehiv ? Ghost?
The nice thing about Substack is the engagement it allows. I'm so sad about this new development. Why do greedy people have to ruin everything???
My question.
I started hosting my writing on my own website, because I no longer trust that any company I sign onto will remain ethical or viable. I'm glad to hear you're taking this step, and I hope more people do!
I left about 9 months ago, when I (as a publisher of a free newsletter, I had shunned all their entreaties to turn on paid subs) realized that they were stifling my reach at about 2,000 subscribers. I, as a product manager, looked at their careers page and realized that they were beginning the advertisement insertion (sponsors are just the first of that) to sate their latest round of investors.
I decamped for a self hosted Ghost instance. But I remain on Notes, and I still pay for many writers whom I support here. The algorithmic shift in the last few months has been striking on notes. Now, when I scroll the for me feed on my phone or tablet, it is a wall of short form video. It is like I was on TikTok.
This though, seems like the beginning of the speed run of enshittification. I just subbed (free) to follow you to where you end up, but it seems that the founders are going to ride this into the ground.
I left fb, insta, twit, never did tt- can leave ss too - gotta get some dev friends and make our own private space where the ghouls can’t destroy it. We’re smarter & have embedded integrity to the point where the parasites are like nails on a chalkboard. No, just no.
Where are you heading???
I'll follow you on whichever host you choose next
Left Medium because they cash in all new countries and dropped the money flow to the writers. Here people are also complaining. Ghost is also trying to insert ads. When AI slops will conquer platforms we will regain our voices in the streets because online will be AI bots kingdom.
Just started a substack and am now NOT certain I should continue. Ugh
Indeed. It’s shit here and it happened in less than a year. Not to mention everyone and their brother thinks that they have something to say (and they can’t write for beans).
Thanks for sharing. This is important. I wish there were a few comparable alternatives to Substack. Maybe Patreon? Frankly, I don't know. Maybe a new platform will emerge or another will move to provide a home. The "entshittification" of Substack appears to be going full-steam ahead.
I was dismayed too. And you’re so right…in late stage capitalism everything does turn into a casino — with all the tacky materialism that word implies. Not to mention the addictive behaviour substituting for human connection which betting ….well…..abets. It is so fucking destructive. Thank you for saying so. Let me know where you go next, please, so I can keep up.