The hottest Digital Publishing Substack posts right now

And their main takeaways
Category
Top Business Topics

How shortform video hacks our attention

Simon Owens's Media Newsletter • 399 implied HN points • 26 Feb 26
🕹 Technology Digital Publishing
  1. Shortform video apps are carefully engineered — from swipe mechanics to instant loading — to remove choice and keep people watching, creating a new internet habit that captures attention.
  2. Individual creators can build durable, monetizable media by using simple formats and niche focus — examples include walking local-news clips, conversational podcasts, curated book boxes, and deep-dive newsletters.
  3. Emerging tools and trends like AI-assisted editing, prediction markets, and strategic use of shortform video are likely to reshape media production and give savvy creators and political actors a competitive edge.

Now live: Substack Notes

read • 25570 implied HN points • 11 Apr 23
🕹 Technology Digital Publishing
  1. Notes is a new space for short-form posts and conversations on Substack.
  2. Both writers and readers can share links, images, and quick thoughts on Notes.
  3. Notes is a long-term project that will evolve based on feedback from users.

How a few college students bootstrapped one of the largest sports media websites in the world

Simon Owens's Media Newsletter • 74 implied HN points • 27 Jan 26
🎾 Sports Digital Publishing
  1. A few college students bootstrapped a global sports media site without raising outside capital, chasing viral platforms, or leaning on legacy media, showing indie teams can build massive audiences.
  2. It began as a dorm-room passion project with a narrow content focus and complementary founder skills—sports expertise plus technical know-how—which provided a practical foundation to grow.
  3. Patient, long-term commitment and steady work transformed the experiment into a 200-person, independently owned media company that ranks near the top of sports websites worldwide.
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Medium’s NEW Rules for AI-Generated Writing - Good or Bad?

Kristina God's Online Writing Club • 599 implied HN points • 21 Apr 24
🕹 Technology Digital Publishing
  1. Medium is changing its rules to limit AI-generated writing. Starting May 2024, stories mostly written by AI can't be part of the paid program.
  2. Writers can still use AI tools to help their writing, but they need to put in their own effort to make changes and improvements.
  3. Medium's goal is to support human storytelling and ensure that readers get authentic experiences, which means protecting writers from AI competition.

How to Start Writing on Substack in 2023 (Beginners Guide)

Kristina God's Online Writing Club • 1458 implied HN points • 10 Oct 23
🚌 Education Digital Publishing
  1. Substack is more than just a newsletter; it's like a personal book club where readers can engage and interact. It creates a cozy atmosphere for sharing thoughts and ideas.
  2. Getting started on Substack involves setting up an account, choosing a name for your publication, and customizing your URL. It's about making your space unique and welcoming for your audience.
  3. There are many underutilized tools in Substack that can help writers get seen, read, and paid. Exploring these tools can make your writing journey more effective and rewarding.

Oh! Medium Updates Its 3 Distribution Categories — Here’s What You Need To Know

Kristina God's Online Writing Club • 619 implied HN points • 17 Dec 23
🕹 Technology Digital Publishing
  1. Medium has three new distribution categories for stories: Boosted, General Distribution, and Network Only. Each category affects how many people will see your work.
  2. If your story is Boosted, it gets shown to a larger audience, almost like being in the VIP section. But being in General Distribution means your work reaches people who actually care about your topics.
  3. Network Only keeps your story within your follower group, so it won’t reach a huge audience, but it can still connect with the right people who enjoy your content.

How publishers should respond to declining Google traffic

Simon Owens's Media Newsletter • 1097 implied HN points • 10 Jan 24
💼 Business Digital Publishing
  1. Google traffic may not be as valuable as perceived, as it often results in low engagement and conversion rates.
  2. High-quality publishers can leverage brand recognition as a powerful tool to compete in search results dominated by AI-generated content.
  3. Building a strong personal brand in the Creator Economy can lead to burnout and lack of exit options, prompting some creators to launch companies separate from their personal brands.

Why Spotify is struggling to copy YouTube's playbook

Simon Owens's Media Newsletter • 424 implied HN points • 15 Nov 24
🕹 Technology Digital Publishing
  1. Spotify wants to be like YouTube by creating more video podcasts, but it's facing challenges. Many podcasts are hosted on different platforms, which makes it hard for Spotify to control everything.
  2. YouTube grew its ad business by having both video hosting and distribution. Spotify is trying to bring podcasters to its own platform, but many are reluctant to let one company have so much power.
  3. The shift in how Google ranks websites is affecting smaller publishers a lot. Many are losing traffic because the new updates target what Google considers 'low quality' sites.

Will the New York Times ever quit Twitter?

Silver Bulletin • 325 implied HN points • 05 Oct 23
🕹 Technology Digital Publishing
  1. Nate Silver discusses mixed feelings about Twitter's impact on democracy and tribalism.
  2. Twitter's latest changes, like removing headlines from external link previews, raise questions about its future utility.
  3. The potential consequences if the New York Times, with its high editorial standards, decides to quit Twitter and influence other publishers to follow suit.

Coming soon to Substack!

QUALITY BOSS • 0 implied HN points • 29 Nov 23
🕹 Technology Digital Publishing
  1. QUALITY BOSS is shifting its content from WordPress to Substack. This means they are changing platforms for their posts.
  2. While the transition is happening, there may be some minor issues. They are asking readers to be patient during this time.
  3. You can subscribe to their updates on Substack once they are set up. This will keep you informed about new content and changes.

Rhizome Presents: Do Not Research Book Launch at the New Museum

Do Not Research • 0 implied HN points • 06 Jun 22
🎨 Art & Illustration Digital Publishing
  1. Do Not Research is an online community and publishing platform that launched a new book in 2022.
  2. The book launch event includes a conversation between Joshua Citarella and Lauren Boyle of DIS about translating artist projects to institutional practices.
  3. DIS, an artist collective dating back to 2010, evolved from _DIS Magazine_ to the streaming platform Dis.art in 2018.

RAG to riches - the business model for the generative internet

Steven’s Substack • 0 implied HN points • 26 Oct 23
🕹 Technology Digital Publishing
  1. Generative search engines are changing how we consume information and threatening the traditional publisher advertising model.
  2. A new business model of programatic RAG royalties is seen as a solution to AI scraping, involving AI sharing revenue with content sources.
  3. Challenges in implementing a RAG royalty network include trust issues, measuring content value, and determining fair royalties for different publishers.