FB hasn't actually launched anything. You can't apply to write for Bulletin; the only way you can pay for it is with FB Pay; no controversial topics or politics are allowed; FB won't say what its cut will ultimately be. That's not a competitor to anything. thewrap.com/can-facebooks-…
(PS) Up until 6 months ago, I thought tech columnists had *so much to write about* that they were struggling to keep up. I've since learned that they are so starved for content that they'll *routinely* claim Facebook and Twitter have "launched" products that are still in beta.
(PS2) This article is asking if authors will do something they *literally can't do*. While I personally would never go to Facebook for any reason, it's clear that even once Bulletin is *actually* launched no one will go there until FB announces its cut and lifts its politics ban.
(PS3) At UNH I teach journalism and writing and concept development, and while I promise I'm *not* trying to focus on this writer in particular—because this is a much broader problem—I would certainly tell aspiring professional writers to never write a premature piece like this.
(PS4) Not only is Bulletin a 100% closed ecosystem still in beta that can't be applied to, it'd be unethical for anyone to encourage or suggest that a creator go to Bulletin when Facebook is withholding the revelation of what its financial terms with creators will ultimately be.
(PS5) In a world in which professional writers' skillsets are brutally ignored, denigrated or exploited—and I say this as someone who daily deals with dozens of strangers demanding my work product for free—what Facebook is doing in hiding the ball on contractual terms is risible.
(PS6) Obviously these are just my personal opinions as a writer and a journalist who's deeply concerned about how media is covering the still-emerging "creator economy." I certainly don't speak for Substack. But I bet I do speak for many newsletter authors in what I've said here.
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