I’ll admit, I don’t really have any expectations or ideas about what will happen here. We’re trying something new together. So c’mon in. Ask a question, or drop a rant in the comments. Let’s get weird, and see where it takes us.
Wow everyone - when I said we should get weird and see where it takes us, I had no idea this is what would happen. THANK YOU ALL for making our first Office Hours a HUGE success. Rest assured, we're absolutely going to be doing this again. I'm gonna log off and feed the dog (and myself) but PLEASE feel free to chat amongst yourselves. This whole thing is as much yours as it is ours!
Jul 7, 2020Liked by Paul Blest, Jack Mirkinson, Jack Crosbie, Aleks Chan, Caitlin Schneider, Rafi Schwartz
Rafi, hi, hey, first-time long-time. Thanks for taking my comment. So, uhh the Avengers movies. Lotta folks say they're good, a lotta folks say they're bad. I dunno, just wanted to hear your thoughts. You really think they'll hold up? 'Preciate your time.
Jul 7, 2020Liked by Katherine Krueger, Jack Mirkinson, Aleks Chan, Caitlin Schneider
this may seem strange, but watching y'all get shitcanned, did inspire me to start writing about politics in a meaningful way. And also made me realize that there is no liberation till we own the means of production. SO THANK YOU, and I'm glad to see this thing around.
Jul 7, 2020Liked by Katherine Krueger, Jack Crosbie, Aleks Chan, Rafi Schwartz
I'm taking an online class with some undergrads about "oral post colonial literature" and my brain is so irony poisoned that I let out an involuntary laugh discussing a racist academic's ramblings about black teenagers telling yo mama jokes as an example of oral tradition in the 1970s and an anthropology major lectured me about how it's not funny and I don't know how to explain to her that I am completely broken by reading horrible things on the internet and there is absolutely no way I can stop myself from laughing at this kind of stuff.
Jul 7, 2020Liked by Katherine Krueger, Jack Mirkinson
I worked in media for a while; before leaving one of the things that shocked me to learn was just how financially entangled many media outlets are with the subjects of their reporting, especially outlets that do business in live events. Live events are obviously not happening right now, and the staffs who plan them have been heavily hit by layoffs. Do you think post-pandemic things will return to "normal" here (and we'll continue to see media companies captured by the corporations that cosponsor their events) or will we see some other even grosser form of collaboration to pad out this hole in revenue?
So anyone come up with any cool new ways to convince themselves that a Joe Biden presidency won't lead to a further right/center journey from the Democrats?
Jul 7, 2020Liked by Katherine Krueger, Jack Mirkinson, Jack Crosbie, Aleks Chan, Rafi Schwartz
This model gives me something sort of akin to hope as a freelancer losing outlets and opportunities by the day. Stay angry and thanks for making my inbox less of a fucking nightmare.
Jul 7, 2020Liked by Jack Crosbie, Aleks Chan, Caitlin Schneider, Rafi Schwartz
long time listener, first time caller here. no question, just came here to say that i didn't think hell world and discourse (aka zombie-splinter) would be the only two publications i pay for in 2020, let alone get all my, uh, news from, while removing myself from twitter and instagram completely because they became the impossible-to-believe larger-than-2019 absolute fuckin' dumpster fires, but 2020's weird as shit. i'll let luke trawl twitter for anger inducing takes and let you guys tell me what's important enough to pay attention to. thanks for not disappearing into bird-takes like barry did but instead coming up with this genius-level replacement plan.
Jul 7, 2020Liked by Katherine Krueger, Jack Crosbie, Aleks Chan, Caitlin Schneider, Rafi Schwartz
As a new journalist whose first job out of college is at a local paper owned by Gannett, it's real cool to see something like this and I'm really pulling for y'all
hi there! i was wondering if discourse is taking any freelance pitches? i inhaled the terrace house piece from today and it's really nice to see such excellent writing about a topic that has so many factors feeding into it with also a candid take to it which are difficult to find in mainstream outlets. i'm so happy that this exists
Before Splinter died, I think I remember yall soliciting nominations for Worst State/Local Politicians. Any chance you'll revive that feature in the future?
Huge fan of the people who have put this together. Like many I am poor at the moment so I cannot subscribe as I would like to, but is there any way I can still contribute or donate what I am able to afford?
Jul 7, 2020Liked by Katherine Krueger, Rafi Schwartz
One of the most frustrating things about being a progressive Jew who belongs to an orthodox synagogue and sends my kids to a Jewish day school is the lack of voices in my community who are willing to speak out against Israel. I recognize how the indoctrination has been successful in teaching multiple generations of American Jews to hate the Palestinians and I've tried to break that cycle with my own kids and pushing back against others in my community with very limited success outside my own house. Any suggestions on how best to combat this insular, backwards thinking and be able to promote pro-Palestinian voices to better educate folks who refuse to look past the incorrect concept that being anti-Israel is anti-Semitic?
That image brings to mind an idea for a short story I had years ago, after I had already dropped out of grad school. An epistolary story told solely thru the letters and telegrams of Indiana Jones’ increasingly distressed graduate assistant.
Jul 7, 2020Liked by Katherine Krueger, Rafi Schwartz
So I have a question for an experienced writer such as yourself Rafi! I recently accepted a job freelance writing at a popular publication. I interviewed with the editor I'd be working under and they were awesome and open and I'm chomping at the bit to get writing!
But I'm just sitting here. The last update I got was a week ago on Monday when I was told I'd be put into a bunch of different systems right away, but I only got put into one. And I've followed up a couple of times, as recently as today, regarding an update of when I can expect things to kick off. But nothing. With our fraught the world of digital media is, should I be as anxious about this as I am or is this just par for the course?
Very glad this experiment seems to have had a positive beginning. Are there plans to pull in more writers from Splinter or Deadspin as you continue on? Also is it bad to want to keep the best parts of the American ideal even if the actual history falls well short of, or at times is antithetical to, said ideal? (asking for friend)
Jul 7, 2020Liked by Katherine Krueger, Caitlin Schneider, Rafi Schwartz
I'm busy at my shit job that decided to move headquarters to TX *during a pandemic*, but wanted to drop by and say I love what y'all are doing so keep doing it.
If any freelancers on here are looking for gigs, I know that this YouTube channel The Take needs writers. I've worked with them before, and it's relatively simple and pays $500 a "script"
Thanks for doing this. I wasn't a regular Splinter reader but many people I respect have recommended your work, so I'm here.
I'm happy to support journalism unfettered by "gotta hear both sides"-ism and/or private equity douchebags.
What's your peer review process? As a collective, was it difficult to nail down standards/practices (if there are any)? What do you see as your biggest internal challenges?
Office Hours
Wow everyone - when I said we should get weird and see where it takes us, I had no idea this is what would happen. THANK YOU ALL for making our first Office Hours a HUGE success. Rest assured, we're absolutely going to be doing this again. I'm gonna log off and feed the dog (and myself) but PLEASE feel free to chat amongst yourselves. This whole thing is as much yours as it is ours!
rafi what's the weirdest thing you've eaten this week
if you get a certain number of subscribers per month, will one of you promise to bro ice yourselves and film yourself doing it?
Rafi, hi, hey, first-time long-time. Thanks for taking my comment. So, uhh the Avengers movies. Lotta folks say they're good, a lotta folks say they're bad. I dunno, just wanted to hear your thoughts. You really think they'll hold up? 'Preciate your time.
Can we remember some bloggers? I'll go first:
David Roth
Caity Weaver
Giri Nathan
Ashley Feinberg
Drew Magary
this may seem strange, but watching y'all get shitcanned, did inspire me to start writing about politics in a meaningful way. And also made me realize that there is no liberation till we own the means of production. SO THANK YOU, and I'm glad to see this thing around.
loved the terrace house piece today. don't have a question sorry
how are you feeling about the future of worker owned/crowd funded media after day 2 of paid subs?
I would kill for an occasional burneko food post
I'm taking an online class with some undergrads about "oral post colonial literature" and my brain is so irony poisoned that I let out an involuntary laugh discussing a racist academic's ramblings about black teenagers telling yo mama jokes as an example of oral tradition in the 1970s and an anthropology major lectured me about how it's not funny and I don't know how to explain to her that I am completely broken by reading horrible things on the internet and there is absolutely no way I can stop myself from laughing at this kind of stuff.
I worked in media for a while; before leaving one of the things that shocked me to learn was just how financially entangled many media outlets are with the subjects of their reporting, especially outlets that do business in live events. Live events are obviously not happening right now, and the staffs who plan them have been heavily hit by layoffs. Do you think post-pandemic things will return to "normal" here (and we'll continue to see media companies captured by the corporations that cosponsor their events) or will we see some other even grosser form of collaboration to pad out this hole in revenue?
So anyone come up with any cool new ways to convince themselves that a Joe Biden presidency won't lead to a further right/center journey from the Democrats?
Can you guys do some sports posts?
blogs are fake, can't prove they are real
This model gives me something sort of akin to hope as a freelancer losing outlets and opportunities by the day. Stay angry and thanks for making my inbox less of a fucking nightmare.
long time listener, first time caller here. no question, just came here to say that i didn't think hell world and discourse (aka zombie-splinter) would be the only two publications i pay for in 2020, let alone get all my, uh, news from, while removing myself from twitter and instagram completely because they became the impossible-to-believe larger-than-2019 absolute fuckin' dumpster fires, but 2020's weird as shit. i'll let luke trawl twitter for anger inducing takes and let you guys tell me what's important enough to pay attention to. thanks for not disappearing into bird-takes like barry did but instead coming up with this genius-level replacement plan.
Hey Rafi, Tom from Gizmodo here. You *sure* you're not David Cross or one of his long-lost sons?
which discourse person drops the best slack content
As a new journalist whose first job out of college is at a local paper owned by Gannett, it's real cool to see something like this and I'm really pulling for y'all
hi there! i was wondering if discourse is taking any freelance pitches? i inhaled the terrace house piece from today and it's really nice to see such excellent writing about a topic that has so many factors feeding into it with also a candid take to it which are difficult to find in mainstream outlets. i'm so happy that this exists
Can I disable emails for replies/likes on my comments?
Before Splinter died, I think I remember yall soliciting nominations for Worst State/Local Politicians. Any chance you'll revive that feature in the future?
t*yl*r sw*ft?
Huge fan of the people who have put this together. Like many I am poor at the moment so I cannot subscribe as I would like to, but is there any way I can still contribute or donate what I am able to afford?
ahaha keep it chill and keep it tight folks \m/
One of the most frustrating things about being a progressive Jew who belongs to an orthodox synagogue and sends my kids to a Jewish day school is the lack of voices in my community who are willing to speak out against Israel. I recognize how the indoctrination has been successful in teaching multiple generations of American Jews to hate the Palestinians and I've tried to break that cycle with my own kids and pushing back against others in my community with very limited success outside my own house. Any suggestions on how best to combat this insular, backwards thinking and be able to promote pro-Palestinian voices to better educate folks who refuse to look past the incorrect concept that being anti-Israel is anti-Semitic?
Does Aleks allow you guys to wear shorts to work
I couldn't subscribe fast enough, glad to see this place up and running, and looking forward to years on decades of solid news.
That image brings to mind an idea for a short story I had years ago, after I had already dropped out of grad school. An epistolary story told solely thru the letters and telegrams of Indiana Jones’ increasingly distressed graduate assistant.
Really happy to be a subscriber! Thanks for everything!
What’s a blog
Heyo. First time, long time. I'm so glad this is happening, and I'm proud to subscribe. Good luck, gang. We're rooting for you.
I am just so thoroughly, thoroughly, thoroughly happy for all of you.
The good folks at BroBible ranked the best song of the summer since 2000 and they picked... Rihanna's Pon de Replay? Are they nuts or smarter than everyone else https://brobible.com/culture/article/best-song-of-summer-since-2000/
Which signatory to the Harper's Letter, if any, had the biggest "oh. oh no." reaction upon seeing the full list, ya think?
So I have a question for an experienced writer such as yourself Rafi! I recently accepted a job freelance writing at a popular publication. I interviewed with the editor I'd be working under and they were awesome and open and I'm chomping at the bit to get writing!
But I'm just sitting here. The last update I got was a week ago on Monday when I was told I'd be put into a bunch of different systems right away, but I only got put into one. And I've followed up a couple of times, as recently as today, regarding an update of when I can expect things to kick off. But nothing. With our fraught the world of digital media is, should I be as anxious about this as I am or is this just par for the course?
Very glad this experiment seems to have had a positive beginning. Are there plans to pull in more writers from Splinter or Deadspin as you continue on? Also is it bad to want to keep the best parts of the American ideal even if the actual history falls well short of, or at times is antithetical to, said ideal? (asking for friend)
Will Rafi's Trump Brain Status: [soupy variable here] series return???
Hey buddy, just stopping by to say "cool shit you got going on here"
keep it upppp! whats your favorite piece of hot twitter gossip today you really need closure on
I'm busy at my shit job that decided to move headquarters to TX *during a pandemic*, but wanted to drop by and say I love what y'all are doing so keep doing it.
Any thoughts on the Harper's letter that just started trending?
If any freelancers on here are looking for gigs, I know that this YouTube channel The Take needs writers. I've worked with them before, and it's relatively simple and pays $500 a "script"
Thanks for doing this. I wasn't a regular Splinter reader but many people I respect have recommended your work, so I'm here.
I'm happy to support journalism unfettered by "gotta hear both sides"-ism and/or private equity douchebags.
What's your peer review process? As a collective, was it difficult to nail down standards/practices (if there are any)? What do you see as your biggest internal challenges?
Content ideas (recurring sections)
-Covidiots
-Copaganda
-Charlie Sheen
Can you do a PBS style subscription drive? I'd like to hear more about what content you offer in between some british TV and Nova
Who's writing the post on the Harper's letter?
I'm so glad you guys are back creating quality content.
Did i miss the piece on the Lincoln project ghouls, or is that in the works?
Where do y'all see Discourse Blog a year from now?