Thread by @Ike_Saul

I just want to say: Substack is awesome. It is what you make it, the voices on Substack are incredibly diverse, anyone can start one and you can easily run your content through editors or operate a traditional media company on the platform. It is so disheartening to see the hate.

The barrier of entry to launch something on Substack is low. So whether you're Glenn Greenwald or someone just starting their writing career you could easily produce bad content if you approach it the wrong way. But that's true of basically any media or writing endeavor.

I am absolutely baffled to see so many people hating on a platform that is creating more financial opportunities for writers and reporters at a time when the media industry is sucking air. Just because some ppl you don't like are publishing there? Get over it. This is huge!

I launched my Substack newsletter 15 months ago -- and there were hundreds of well-established writers there already. The idea that Substack = the ppl in the news recently is just silly. You can find anything you like on Substack, and writers across the idealogical spectrum.

I'm not saying your jokes aren't funny. Some of them are. But the genuine backlash to a platform making sustainable journalism possible for so many unemployed writers is honestly so damn sad. Where's the camaraderie in the media world? Substack is a great addition. I'm grateful.

And yeah, you can subscribe to my newsletter, punk. tangle.substack.com/about

One other thing, because the more I read the more annoyed I am by this (and then I'll go back to political coverage)

Every single time I hang out with journos and media people, the conversation inevitably gets into how broken the incentive structure is — clickbait, ads, etc...

It always comes up. Americans recognize this too. The Substack team actually did something about it. They didn't just complain -- they tried to create something to fix it, and it's going really, really well! 250,000 paying subscribers well! Maybe pause to think about that.

All the breath spent complaining about pop up ads, sensationalism and clickbait... platforms like Substack offer a legitimate antidote to that crap when used properly. So maybe embracing it and improving it is the move, not dunking on it cause you read something you didn't like.