Columnist Philip Bump left the Washington Post last month after accepting a buyout. For his Pbump blog, he writes about power — who has it and is using it responsibly and how to preserve your own — and why he is not a fan of Twitter/X or Substack. "There’s value to debate and conversation, of course, but that isn’t what’s fostered on Twitter or (in my limited experience) on Substack. Instead, conversation occasionally glimmers through a waterfall of bad-faith, uninformed trolls and attacks. It’s an effort to play a college football game after the crowd has stormed the field."

https://flip.it/cVKlO2

#Journalism#Media#SocialMedia#Twitter#Substack#WashingtonPost

Columnist Philip Bump left the Washington Post last month after accepting a buyout. For his Pbump blog, he writes about power — who has it and is using it responsibly and how to preserve your own — and why he is not a fan of Twitter/X or Substack. "There’s value to debate and conversation, of course, but that isn’t what’s fostered on Twitter or (in my limited experience) on Substack. Instead, conversation occasionally glimmers through a waterfall of bad-faith, uninformed trolls and attacks. It’s an effort to play a college football game after the crowd has stormed the field."

https://flip.it/cVKlO2

#Journalism#Media#SocialMedia#Twitter#Substack#WashingtonPost

The idea of the "cicada" is great. People who only write occasionally when they have something important to say. It acknowledges that much of what the #substack puts out is filling space. To justify a paid subscription. I'd say the same with podcasts that aren't about processing the weekly news etc.

We need media/payment apps designed to support this, that surface the work most popular with the people you follow on decentralized social media.

cc @coachtony @rabble

https://pca.st/episode/cdcba3c7-3133-43ee-b708-671eba0ac552

The idea of the "cicada" is great. People who only write occasionally when they have something important to say. It acknowledges that much of what the #substack puts out is filling space. To justify a paid subscription. I'd say the same with podcasts that aren't about processing the weekly news etc.

We need media/payment apps designed to support this, that surface the work most popular with the people you follow on decentralized social media.

cc @coachtony @rabble

https://pca.st/episode/cdcba3c7-3133-43ee-b708-671eba0ac552

☝️ Clicking finger extends and approaches post touting an interesting-looking thing to read

✊ Clicking finger retracts immediately upon noticing that the link is on goddamned #Substack

People, please don't use #SubStack

Please use #Ghost
https://ghost.org

You can let your site be hosted by Ghost or even better..

..self-host!

Setting up a site is super easy and you can even use membership features like I do here: https://stux.me/membership/

For every platform with a shady CEO there is a self-hosted alternative that is waaay better

#FOSS FTW!

People, please don't use #SubStack

Please use #Ghost
https://ghost.org

You can let your site be hosted by Ghost or even better..

..self-host!

Setting up a site is super easy and you can even use membership features like I do here: https://stux.me/membership/

For every platform with a shady CEO there is a self-hosted alternative that is waaay better

#FOSS FTW!

"Yes, users have technically consented. But it’s hardly informed consent when nobody realizes what, exactly, they’re consenting to — and in its actions, the platform reveals what it hopes to become."

This quote made me think of @neil, who is very much the reason I apply 'it's not meaningful consent if you don't know what you're consenting to or how to opt out' to tech as well as sex.

https://www.esckey.co/why-substack-is-nudging-you-to-follow-your-ex/

#Substack#Writing#Newsletter

"Yes, users have technically consented. But it’s hardly informed consent when nobody realizes what, exactly, they’re consenting to — and in its actions, the platform reveals what it hopes to become."

This quote made me think of @neil, who is very much the reason I apply 'it's not meaningful consent if you don't know what you're consenting to or how to opt out' to tech as well as sex.

https://www.esckey.co/why-substack-is-nudging-you-to-follow-your-ex/

#Substack#Writing#Newsletter

"Many writers genuinely seeking to build independent media careers have become unwitting participants in a system that undermines the very independence they’re pursuing. They’re building audiences on borrowed land, subject to algorithmic whims and platform policies they cannot directly influence, while helping to subsidize the infrastructure that promotes their ideological opponents."

Answering the question: why Substack is nudging you to follow your ex?

https://www.esckey.co/why-substack-is-nudging-you-to-follow-your-ex/

#Substack

A similar thing appears to be happening with the so-called “ #ai.” It’s been shown to have little or no value over and over and over again, and yet people continue to “debate” its worth.

When do these debates end?

Cool post by @_elena arguing that every writer who covers technology — especially resistance to #BigTech — should disclose their own tech stack.

Hers no longer includes Substack; she is “positively repulsed by Substack - a platform that openly refuses to moderate or demonetize Nazi-friendly, racist, homophobic and transphobic content.” She moved from Substack to Ghost in January 2024.

And she writes: “I believe that the platforms and apps we use send an important message about our values.”

https://news.elenarossini.com/technofeudalism-disclosing-my-tech-stack/

#Substack

Jetzt, wo @spreeblick angekündigt hat, auch (endlich) #Substack zu verlassen, wie @pallenberg und ich und viele andere vor ihm, hab ich die Gelegenheit genutzt, meinen Account dort endgültig zu löschen. Ward Tid.

Kill yer #substack! #ghost exists!

You should *definitely* leave #Substack

You should *definitely* leave #Substack

About that #Substack toot I published earlier: it made me feel uncomfortable to have it up without tagging the journalist (so she couldn't see what we were discussing). I had not tagged her on purpose because s​he complains of being called out about choosing to stay on Substack.

What is the right way to hold that discussion? I don't know. So I deleted the post.

An excerpt from my (now deleted toot): "Maybe it's just me, but I believe that the tech we use sends an important message about our values and the causes we support. Everything is politics now. Including our tech stack."

So later this week I will publish an article on my blog about my own tech stack, how everything is politics now and how I think the platforms we use should reflect our values. It will be linked at the bottom of every blog post I will publish from now on, in a sort of: "disclaimer: here is the tech stack I use" way.

Related: https://news.elenarossini.com/this-is-what-resistance-to-the-digital-coup-looks-like/

Wishing everyone a lovely day 🌞​

Substack is terrible - but even people who know it don't want to leave the platform – a tale in 3 acts.

Act I

Tech journalist Taylor Lorenz published a scoop a few days ago, showing how "Substack sent a push alert promoting a Nazi blog" (if you don't want to give #Substack a click, here is an alt link https://archive.ph/FTjEH).

It was a terrific and disturbing piece - kudos to her.

Act II (plot twist)

People started pointing out that Lorenz herself is using Substack as the publishing platform for her blog - which she monetizes with subscriptions. So, very ballsy move on her part to criticize the platform that she relies on to make a living, but still, some people started pointing out the incongruity of this. What about her values? Why wouldn't she move her newsletter?

Lorenz was starting to get fed up with these comments and explained on Bluesky (alt link / snapshot if you don't want to give Bluesky a click: https://archive.ph/CePll)

" Them: Get off substack
Me: Ok I set up a Patreon. The features aren’t as good but I’m willing to take a hit and do a lot more time consuming work on the back end to make it work. Here’s where you can subscribe to support me. Once enough people hop over I’ll be able to make the jump
Them: crickets "

She followed up that post with the comment:

" A lot of people on here want to attack and punish creators (esp women and LGBTQ ppl) for being forced to rely on certain platforms to make a living, but aren’t actually willing to support those creators in a way that allows them to leave the platforms ur so critical of them being forced to rely on. "

Fair enough.

Act III (in which I insert myself)

I don't post on Bluesky anymore but I felt compelled to resuscitate my account to point out that Substack is not only terrible, but it's also very expensive and takes the BIGGEST cut out of all other newsletter platforms.

I wrote:

" With all due respect Taylor, moving away from Substack is the ethical choice and it also makes financial sense. The great Molly White compiled a detailed breakdown of how much money creators who rely on subscriptions could save... by switching over to other platforms. "

And I linked to Molly White's brilliant post: https://hachyderm.io/@molly0xfff/114319870485786053

I also added a link to the article by @micahflee : "Not only is Substack right-wing broligarchy garbage, it's way more expensive than Ghost" https://micahflee.com/not-only-is-substack-right-wing-broligarchy-garbage-its-way-more-expensive-than-ghost/

Lorenz responded:

"Again, I am on Patreon and have had the option to receive my newsletter directly outside of Substack since day 1. Only 3 people have ever taken me up on this. By the way I cover Substack and the only reason I got the scoop I got it from being in the platform. Hence why I’ll always have an acct"

I just replied to her that #Ghost offers a free concierge migration service (https://ghost.org/concierge/) where she could move over all her paid subscribers... and I said that IMHO she could still use Substack Notes to share her articles if she moved elsewhere... but staying on Substack and giving them 10% of her earnings feels like an implicit endorsement.

I meant that in the most empathetic way. I can understand her struggles but she has 87,000 subscribers and if she wanted to move she could simply ask for help and I'm sure people would volunteer to set her up somewhere else. If she did so on the Fediverse she'd have a self-hosted account on a VPS in less than 24 hours.

Lest you think I want to "attack and publish creators (especially women)" like in Lorenz's words on Bluesky, well, I'm a woman who started self-hosting only 6 months ago and I now run my own Ghost blog which I manually installed. It's not that unattainable.

Maybe it's just me, but I believe that the tech we use sends an important message about our values and the causes we support. Everything is politics now. Including our tech stack.

#DigitalLiteracy #DigitalCoup #A16Z #Broligarchy