Does indie media need to be saved?
(Or maybe just let it die)
Hey! I’m Josh Spilker and this newsletter is about online writing, creativity, and culture.
I’m dropping off my kids at my in-laws this weekend, but this is about the state of indie media. Hit subscribe below to always get this and let’s go:
This article from the NY Times came in over the transom a few days ago:
I admire the earnestness, the New York-ness of it all, the bold history of starting new media ventures in a city already full of them.
That’s what the book, Traffic, was all about — Buzzfeed and Gawker and Vice and HuffPo and The Drudge Report taking on what that legacy media just couldn’t get.
The article mentions how these two young-ish people captured a moment with a fun print magazine they released during the pandemic and how they’re hoping to turn it into another online outlet for writers called the Byline.
Hopefully, it succeeds, maybe it won’t, I’m not in a position to know.
However, I do find the panic about where and how writers will continue to create fascinating.
This quote is particularly telling, from Washington Post reporter Taylor Lorenz:
“It’s harder than ever if you’re a young writer today,” said Taylor Lorenz, who covers online culture for The Washington Post and has signed on as an adviser for Byline. “If you’re starting out, who do you pitch for? There’s no one left.”
If There’s No One Left, Maybe There’s a Good Reason?
Randomly, I was in New York City a few weeks ago and I was struck by the lack of print around.
I didn’t see a newspaper except for a few copies of the New York Times in the hotel.
No boxes of the Village Voice. Or The New York Post. Or The New York Daily News.
These things used to be littered all over the ground, the subway, the parks.
Now, barely anything.
Many feel the online space has the same barren feel. It’s all TikTok or Twitter or Facebook. Very few publications in that middle tier get much traction. The ones that did— like Buzzfeed or Vice — have faded out.
And then there’s this. Same song, different verse:
So where are the opportunities?
Considering all of that, and the lack of money, any journalist, would-be journalist, or writer has to take the initiative and look beyond traditional outlets.
1. Build your own newsletter & online business
A newsletter (usually) starts as free, but it doesn’t have to be that way.
Substack has become the best outlet for former journalists to carve their own niche of one.
Some favorites are
by Ethan Strauss, and by Polina Pompliano. All are former newspaper / magazine people who started their own thing.Others include Marc Stein, Anne Helen Petersen, and Alison Roman.
To be clear: Many of these had their own audience beforehand, so it was easier for them to get going.
There are exceptions:
The newsletter Noahpinion writes about economics and has over 10,000 monthly paying subscribers. That’s economics, not chasing a brand-new fad.
Rob Henderson started a psychology and culture newsletter with no previous audience and has hundreds of paying subscribers
To take it a step further, many writers and creators in this niche have expanded to courses, ghostwriting, and consulting.
2. Go local (but online)
When many frustrated journalists think about local news they think about what used to be there instead of what’s there now.
Now, Axios and other local newsletters have sprung into action providing a potential outlet for former journalists or would-be journalists to write about the areas where they live.
3. B2B content marketing
B2B (business-to-business) marketing is my bread and butter and what I’m most familiar with.
And I’ve been a content marketer and marketing leader in it for about 10 years. This is still a ripe field for frustrated journalists to make a mark.
In fact, lots of software and industries need your skills — especially in editing and research.
Research reports are huge. Well-reasoned articles are highly desired by CEOs and CMOs alike. There is room here for you to go in-house to work or to find agency work.
The lingo will be slightly different, but to make you’ll need strong ideas, a good portfolio, and the flexibility to change.
If you’re ok not breaking news and are cool with not working (as many) weekends, then the non-journalist lifestyle will have some appeal.
The Shift: People Trust Faces, Not Institutions
There does need to be a form of media and good reporting. I’m not denying that. But style, culture, commentary, and entertainment have all been hit by the creator and influencer shift.
People want faces, not institutions for this type of content.
And that market has exploded.
Even though the influencer's life has a lot of ups/downs/twists/turns, wishing for the old days won’t make it come back.
What that means for writers & journalists: It’s possible to build a career on your own.
But monetizing subscribers isn’t the only way — in fact, sponsorships for smaller or independent newsletters have exploded.
This is a viable strategy, because you’re getting niche advertisers, not usually Coca-Cola. The advertisers know the audience will be more engaged.
If that sounds anathema to your writing career, just remember that advertisers have been propping up for journalism for like most of the time journalism has existed.
The change is in the outlets, not the mechanism.
It’s hard to think that a new online newspaper will have much meaningful success, unless the face behind the brand (perhaps like The Free Press) is already well-established.
The Issue of Quality
This isn’t to say that journalists/style writers don’t provide a good product or a good function in society.
The checks-and-balances inherent within traditional newspapers and magazines help with resources to pursue stories.
But a lot of those resources will have to be factored into brand deals and newsletter pursuits, especially if you want to attend Bonnaroo this weekend or something on your own dime.
It was pretty sweet to have Rolling Stone pay for that (I’m sure they’re sending somebody) but the free trips (often) meant lower salaries for the stringers or freelancers, because ACCESS to see Vampire Weekend or Animal Collective up close or whatever.
To do journalism like that, it’ll have to be priced in which is a whole new way of thinking for individual journalists.
All that said, let’s link to a few “classic” media outlets:
More Things (Classic Media Edition)
Related: Is My Writing a Hobby or a Career? At Esquire.
How Podcasts Took Over The World. At The Guardian.
Thanks to AI, every painting can now have an expanded border, every minor character a ChatGPT-written spinoff series. At The Atlantic.
What Was The Hipster? Looking Back 20 Years Ago. At Vice.
How MrBeast became the Willy Wonka of YouTube. At NY Times. (written by Substacker Max Read)
Last Week
Last Things
“If you don't read the newspaper, you're uninformed. If you read the newspaper, you're mis-informed.”— Mark Twain
Keep going,
-Josh
Great post, Josh!