Thread by @AndrewFeinberg

Luke does a good job of making a case for why substack is good for many writers and subscribers here, but I would just like to point out that starting one's own newsletter product is not a viable option for the vast majority of folks writing about DC politics/policy because.. 1/

https://twitter.com/lukeoneil47/status/1327315699505696770

...of some major institutional roadblocks. Reporting from Capitol Hill, for instance, requires press credentials that are issued based on employment with a credentialed outlet. Getting a new publication approved is a multi-month process that is opaque, byzantine & not... 2/

...traditionally hospitable to freelancers running their own subscription-based product w/o some sort of financial backing.

Even if one wanted to do some sort of very niche agency coverage substack, press access at many depts/agencies require Hill creds as a prerequisite... 3/

...because in DC, the Hill process is, for better or worse, a de facto certification of legitimacy.

And of course, there are cultural barriers, namely the proliferation of comms flacks in both government & elsewhere who simply do not consider it worth their time to engage... 4/

...with anyone not from a stable outlet with a wide audience UNLESS they are someone who has established relationships from stable employment at such an outlet and is now striking out on their own (e.g. the Punchbowl crew).

There are, of course, always exceptions to the... 5/

...set of circumstances and barriers I've described above. And in case anyone is thinking that I'm just airing grievances here, I'm not. I'm just providing information so y'all will understand why hanging out a substack shingle isn't the solution for every writer/journalist. 6/6