Media shifts and software
Congrats on your new endeavour, Jane and Dann. I have no particular reason for being so devoted to your podcast. Except that I am a fan of good journalism, and your story-telling methods are so strong. The 'hypnosis' and 'CTE' episodes were recent favourites. The ad-free version wasn't a big draw for me, but the idea of supporting you was appealing, and maybe asking a question. Anyway, question: I am finding it draining to curate my news habits from various sources -- podcasts, substacks, patreons, etc. It seems as though ad-supported media is a thing of the past, and although many aspects of the media industry are fragmenting, the biggest changes are in advertising. Most podcasters seem to interview other podcasters and there's a too-many-players-in-a-shrinking-pool MLM feel to the marketing. (But not yours!) Do you think stories of this era of media fragmentation might make for a future season of The Dream? Also, as a retired journalist, I am following the substackistan industry with interest. It seems that most of the micro-publishing software -- for media and online courses -- does not encourage linear and logical publishing -- everything veers to 'latest,' 'most popular,' 'most commented.' The sameness of it all is overwhelming. If you get any tips on that, follow 'em up! Bad software and algorithmic publishing seems to be driving this industry. Do you have thoughts? ps- edit: I tried to paragraph this but alas, software didn't allow that ): apologies for length.
Don’t be ashamed
A comment: Just listened to your origin podcast episode and want to encourage Jane to stop apologizing for having to ask for money. I have done fundraising in the nonprofit space for decades and remind people all the time that every single one of us has to sell something. At least you believe in what you are doing! So if you believe in your product, don’t apologize for it. I think it’s sort of cringe. PS happy to subscribe. Just did it.