If you’ve been looking for a blog about anything, whether philosophy or Philadelphia, AI or angels, you’ve probably encountered the blogging platform Substack. Even Substack has a Substack page. The platform markets itself as a “subscription network for independent writers and creators”—a centralized platform for which writers, bloggers, and journalists can publish their ideas. Yet for many popular creators and writers, Substack is their livelihood. 

For a simple blogging platform, the company has encountered unprecedented success. It’s valued at $1.1 billion. How has the platform become so popular? This article looks at the rise of Substack, touching on the short-form sinkhole, the fall of Twitter, and the increasing necessity to monetize the Internet.

How did we get here?

The rise of Substack can be understood by a three-part shift in the way people consume, think about and share social media content.

In the last five to seven years, social media has shifted from photo-sharing and Twitter threads to an emphasis on short-form content. The rise of TikTok as a popular platform prompted rivals Instagram and Facebook (both owned by Meta) to launch their own short-form offerings with Reels. YouTube followed suit with YouTube Shorts. While short-form content made these platforms significant amounts of money, some users disliked the forcing of short-form content (several popular social media platforms limited their users to 140 280 characters).

The algorithms of social media platforms have changed the way people speak. Adam Aleksic (better known as @etymologynerd on various social media platforms) told Reuters that in efforts to avoid certain sensitive words that would get flagged by algorithms, users have used other words to convey the same meaning. If you’ve ever heard someone use the word “unalive” (a word I absolutely despise, although that’s probably an article for the Opinion section), you’ve witnessed the way algorithms affect language.

Those who disliked short-form content didn’t have many places to go; those who created long-form content had even fewer places to go. A downturn in traditional journalism meant that the standard instant-news website was Twitter (when it was still known by that moniker). Elon Musk’s takeover and rebrand to X has driven many users away from the platform, opening the doors for companies such as Mastodon and BlueSky. Furthermore, built-in X features such as xAI’s Grok began generating other problems for users and advertisers.

With short-form content on the rise and traditional platforms no longer available, long-form writers and academics jumped at the opportunity to use a long-form content platform. One scientist who made the move cited “[having] a whole lot more ownership” over the content they produce and not being tied to a schedule. 

Since moving from social media to Substack requires forgoing platform advertising revenue, authors have begun monetizing paid Substacks similar to news subscriptions. Top creators exceed $500,000 in annual revenue, with most revenue earned from subscriptions going directly to creators. (Substack takes a 10% cut of subscription revenue to cover its overhead costs; its payment provider, Square, takes an additional 3%.)

While the platform’s lax moderation policy has occasionally caused issues, Substack has risen to become a feasible alternative for long-form content creation. For those looking to create blogs, discover new voices, or consume information, Substack may be a platform worth considering.

Photo by Solen Feyissa via Uplash.

The influence of social media is nothing new. Many children have access to or  use social media platforms daily, but all this is possibly about to change. Australia is on track to pass a social media ban for children who are under the age of 16 to avoid trafficking and protect juveniles online. The plan behind this ban is to issue up to a $33 million fine for social media platforms if underage users are found on their sites. 

While many parents are protective over their kids’ safety, according to an article published by The Washington Post called “Can you stop a teen from using TikTok? Australia finds out,” experts and the owners of the sites aren’t as enthusiastic. Elon Musk, the owner of X, has reportedly called this law, “A backdoor way to control access to the internet by all Australians.” Other companies have expressed their concerns by calling this law “rushed” and saying there will be “unintended consequences.” Despite these protests, this ban idea is becoming more appealing to other countries and their leaders. Foreign countries are following suit, with Paris recently passing a bill that banned social media for teens under the age of 15. Trump’s top pick for U.S. Surgeon General, Janette Nesheiwat, has been claiming to want a social media ban for children since July of this year.

 During an interview with the Washington Post’s Tech Brief, Nesheiwat stated, “In my opinion, I think social media should be banned for all teenagers, to all young children, because it’s done nothing but harm.” This is a much different approach from what the current U.S. Surgeon General, Vivek H. Murthy, has taken in the past. Murthy has talked about parents working together to protect their children online, yet cabinet members have never called for a total social media ban. Nevertheless, Nesheiwat has come to the same conclusion that the legislative body in Australia has reached: there should be a ban on social media for teenagers under 16. 

Many have wondered if Nesheiwat can impose a ban, and it seems unlikely. A Washington Post article titled “Trump’s surgeon general pick called for banning social media for teens” has stated that a ban to this degree would anger groups that are a part of the tech trade, such as Amazon, Meta, and Google. The president-elect has yet to express his views on the topic. For now, America is at a standstill regarding social media and whether a ban is ethical. Meanwhile, Australia is heading towards the future with a ban attempting to keep teens off social media for as long as possible. As this trial run occurs across the ocean, other countries will be watching to see what happens and if parents can truly protect their children from the potential terrors of technology. 

Many young men today are facing a crisis of masculinity, which has prompted many to turn to the internet as a source of escape, validation and community. These keyboard warriors have spawned across all social media platforms, from Reddit to TikTok, and have established movements that decry feminism and validate sexist opinions. Dubbed the “manosphere,” this online world blames women for the challenges men face and is a cesspool of toxic masculinity, victim complexes and overall dehumanization of women and non-cisgendered-heterosexual men. 

These strange, disturbing subcommunities include all types of misogynist rhetoric, all of which share the sentiment of male victimhood. Many of these communities, such as incels and self-proclaimed “men’s rights activists,” criticize modern feminism as an institution that has decreased male power within society and thereby victimizes men. 

These videos by manosphere influencers, such as Andrew Tate, are almost humorous in their over-the-top rhetoric and content, but it’s also shockingly scary that these influencers are shaping young boys and men. The impact goes beyond just spreading offensive misogynist ideas. There is a link between the “manosphere” and right-wing extremism. There are several instances in which young men who were radicalized by online rhetoric inflicted real-world violence upon victims, often women. In 2020, a San Bernadino man, who was a prominent men’s rights activist online, murdered two people when targeting a female judge.

Podcasting has become a popular medium for men’s rights activists to spread superficial “hustle” culture and misogynist ideas. If you tune into these podcasts, such as “Fresh and Fit,” hosted by Walter “Fresh” Weeks and Myron “Fit” Gaines, you can get generic financial and fitness tips— with a side of sexism. “Fresh and Fit” often invite female guests, many of whom are models and sex workers, to humiliate them and insist that they “deserve less” because of their work. They even published a book, “Why Women Deserve Less,” which, if you couldn’t tell from the title, is about why women should earn less and are using men for money. 

Even one of the most popular shows on the podcast charts, “The Joe Rogan Experience,” is part of this manosphere. Although Joe Rogan’s podcast is more tame than the constant barrage of sexism spewed by other podcasts, he has made several sexist and racist remarks in the past, comparing a Black neighborhood to “Planet of the Apes,” lamenting about white male victimhood and laughing as a guest bragged about conducting quid pro quo sexual assault. He has also invited problematic guests, such as the leader of the Proud Boys, a neo-fascist hate group that participated in the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, who claimed that his feature on “The Joe Rogan Experience” boosted recruitment numbers. Joe Rogan has been rewarded for his problematic behavior, attracting a mostly white, male audience with a $100 million deal with Spotify.

As an avid podcast listener and feminist, I know the absurdity of these types of podcasts is ridiculous but also harmful. Of course, it is nothing new that extremist and harmful ideas are present on social media; however, it is frustrating when they enter the mainstream. If you want to protest the popularity of manosphere podcasts, there are plenty of other good listening options to support. Here are some of my favorite podcasts that celebrate female empowerment and gender inclusivity to help you escape the nastiness of the manosphere.

Stuff Mom Never Told You

I’ve been a longtime listener of this podcast, and the hosts Anney Reese and Samantha McVey use intersectional feminism to examine culture, history and science. This podcast highlights the experiences and stories of women and other marginalized groups. One of my favorite things about this podcast is that it features stories I’ve never heard about, such as the story of Sissiertta Jones, the first Black woman to headline a concert at Carnegie Hall.

Call Her Daddy

This is another podcast that I’ve been a fan of for a long time . The show has faced controversy in the past for perpetuating sexist stereotypes and offensive comments, but it has undergone a transformation for the better and its new content is much more inclusive. “Call Her Daddy” is the most listened-to podcast by women, and the host, Alex Cooper, has shattered the glass ceiling in podcasting by signing a $60 million 3-year deal with Spotify. Cooper interviews female celebrities and shares her own experiences regarding dating, navigating female friendships and the overall experiences of being a woman in her 20s. This podcast uses comedy to break down the stigma around sexuality and mental health. Cooper has also tackled serious topics such as sexual harassment, homophobia and online bullying through her interviews and personal stories.

The Mel Robbins Podcast 

The host, Mel Robbins, is a famous and accomplished writer whose advice and self-help books, “The Five Second Rule”’ and “The High Five Habit,” have led her to become a New York Times bestseller and have one of the most watched TED Talks ever. Robbins interviews a variety of guests spanning from medical professionals to psychologists to discuss relatable topics such as relationships, mental health and procrastination in an honest way and gives science-backed tips to her listeners. Robbins’s honesty and vulnerability in sharing her experiences is refreshing. Her wisdom on overcoming imposter syndrome, navigating your 20s and healing have helped me immensely.

Binchtopia

Hosts Eliza McLamb and Julia Hava are both young podcast hosts who are hilarious and have really insightful views on culture, politics and society. They use sociological and psychological perspectives on a variety of topics ranging from serious ones, such as reproductive rights and diet culture, to much lighter ones, such as horse girls and furries. This podcast is one of my recent favorites, and I find their commentary both hilarious and educational. Their discussion about the Manosphere inspired this article, so you should definitely check it out! 

Why Won’t You Date Me

Nicole Byer is the host of this podcast and a self-professed “perpetual singleton.” Byer’s podcast is refreshingly sex-positive and invites her friends and fellow comedians to share their crazy dating stories. I was introduced to “Why Won’t You Date Me” through her interview on “Call Her Daddy,” and I was drawn to Byer’s wit and personality. Women of color are underrepresented in the podcasting sphere, and this podcast is breaking old norms by openly talking about dating as a Black woman.

I hope this list of podcasts inspires you to give them a listen and boost female-led podcasting. There are so many great options to escape the podcast manosphere – and expand your worldview in the process! 

By now we have all heard the warnings of how bad social media can be for you. For example, that social media, when used consistently, may paint unrealistic expectations for your life and can cause way too much overthinking. 

While this is true, I think there’s a way to find a balance and make social media both beneficial and fun. It’s all about setting boundaries between you and your phone and realizing that all your accounts on social media are for yourself, and no one else. 

The biggest apps out there that have the potential to be detrimental to our generation are Snapchat, Instagram and Tik Tok. These apps portray unrealistic lives and body images through editing and filters. I think we all have been there and tried to take a million different photos for a selfie just so we could look good for our feed. Personally, I don’t think this is bad, though. It’s okay to take photos and post them and feel good about how you look. Where it gets toxic is in the reason behind posting it. 

If you are posting a photo and then taking it down because it didn’t get enough likes or you think you look bad in it, then it might be time to take a break from social media. However, once you start thinking of social media as your platform to express yourself, then the selfies and accounts you follow and things you see on your feed become super beneficial for yourself, and you stop worrying about the likes and comments. 

Follow who you want to follow. Social media can be used to either build yourself up or knock your image down, so if you follow accounts that impact you positively and add a smile to your day, it’s a lot better for your health. This means you should follow what you find inspirational and helpful, not just who has a lot of followers. For me, that means lots of dog and food accounts and zero Kardashians. I think it’s also really important to not feel bad about muting an account or blocking someone on Snapchat or Instagram – it’s not petty. They won’t know, and you will be so much better off not seeing things that might distract you or cause you to overthink things.

Lastly, take a break. There are a million ways to enforce this ideal but I think deleting the apps for a week or two can be really refreshing. Now I know this can be scary, but your streaks and likes are not as important as your mental health. If Snapchat is distracting you from getting things in real life done, tell your friends you’re taking a break, and delete the app – they can text you. For Instagram, you can actually temporarily suspend your account so you can’t even receive notifications. You can also turn off notifications for apps for a temporary break or give your phone to a friend when studying. This is usually what my friends and I do, and it really works to stay focused on what you actually need to do instead of reacting to every notification that pops up. 

In the end, you can either have a healthy relationship with social media by setting time limits, following accounts that you like and not overthinking it, or a toxic one that is difficult to break. You just have to remember that it’s supposed to be fun and that it is yours to do with what you want.