I think fundamentally it's because science and health journalism written by well-qualified and clear communicators is one of the few genres of mainstream journalism left that actually pays pretty well still for folks who've built up the necessary expertise. And it's also one of the forms of writing that there are alternative venues for that also pay well (e.g., you can write for think-tanks, you can write for government agencies, you can write for international agencies, you can write well-selling nonfiction books, and so on). So the people who could hold up a corner of a platform like Substack with that kind of work don't have much incentive to do this kind of gig writing unless Substack decides to heavily invest in building that kind of presence, and that isn't the way Substack's executives think--they subsidize individuals who bring over big audiences, but they don't really do it by topical area or overall niche.
I'm not sure I agree with your premise that politics is more balanced than healthcare. It's "more balanced" because one out of five isn't a rabble rouser? Weiss and Taibbi are the Mercolas of politics.
That said, the common denominator here is clicks. Substack might have been antidote for social media a few years back, but it's nothing more than long form social media now.
I don't think I'd characterise them as the Mercolas of politics. I'm not a fan of either of them, but if I was pressed to name the Mercolas of politics I'd be pointing to people like Alex Jones or Breitbart. To draw a better analogy with Weiss and Taibbi with health writers.... maybe I'd go as far as the Dr Ozs of politics!
I think some of these also show up in the Culture category? I could be wrong. I came across a newsletter with c. 600,000 subscribers with a piece on how statins made Americans uniquely susceptible to COVID. (I wish they’d make up their minds whether the disease is real or not.)
Nice comparison to flat-earthers. You might be interested in my novel satirizing all of this, especially the flatties.
Thanks, I'll check that out - I was really interested in nutty esoteric Earth shape theories once (Flat Earth, Hollow Earth, etc. - not interested as a believer by any means, but interested in the topic)
I think fundamentally it's because science and health journalism written by well-qualified and clear communicators is one of the few genres of mainstream journalism left that actually pays pretty well still for folks who've built up the necessary expertise. And it's also one of the forms of writing that there are alternative venues for that also pay well (e.g., you can write for think-tanks, you can write for government agencies, you can write for international agencies, you can write well-selling nonfiction books, and so on). So the people who could hold up a corner of a platform like Substack with that kind of work don't have much incentive to do this kind of gig writing unless Substack decides to heavily invest in building that kind of presence, and that isn't the way Substack's executives think--they subsidize individuals who bring over big audiences, but they don't really do it by topical area or overall niche.
I'm not sure I agree with your premise that politics is more balanced than healthcare. It's "more balanced" because one out of five isn't a rabble rouser? Weiss and Taibbi are the Mercolas of politics.
That said, the common denominator here is clicks. Substack might have been antidote for social media a few years back, but it's nothing more than long form social media now.
We don't need better algorithms. We need fewer.
I don't think I'd characterise them as the Mercolas of politics. I'm not a fan of either of them, but if I was pressed to name the Mercolas of politics I'd be pointing to people like Alex Jones or Breitbart. To draw a better analogy with Weiss and Taibbi with health writers.... maybe I'd go as far as the Dr Ozs of politics!
I think some of these also show up in the Culture category? I could be wrong. I came across a newsletter with c. 600,000 subscribers with a piece on how statins made Americans uniquely susceptible to COVID. (I wish they’d make up their minds whether the disease is real or not.)
Nice comparison to flat-earthers. You might be interested in my novel satirizing all of this, especially the flatties.
https://open.substack.com/pub/larryhogue/p/welcome-aboard-the-ship-of-fools-1e4?r=1hfx9&utm_medium=ios
Thanks, I'll check that out - I was really interested in nutty esoteric Earth shape theories once (Flat Earth, Hollow Earth, etc. - not interested as a believer by any means, but interested in the topic)
This doesn't bode well for our species 😔
Little does these days.
Aye😔
I had this same experience. Was following health and just seeing vaccines cause autism crap. Had to unfollow the category as it kept pissing me off.
Another great piece, Peter. Keep it up! You're on the right track.