Mayor Pete joins Substack’s growing army of progressive warriors

Also, Gov. Newsom and Terry Moran. See if you can pick up on the Meme of the Year.

In his Substack bio, Pete Buttigieg (right) describes himself as a “husband, father, veteran and proud Midwesterner …” His Substack newsletter, which he launched three months ago, already has more than 490,000 subscribers.

Later today I’m going to publish research that, I believe, documents even more curious subscriber metrics on Substack. The dispatch will focus on oddities I’ve recently found by reviewing various Substack “leaderboards.”

*** My Story on curious leaderboard data is now posted at my Substack. (See link here). ***

However, before I share a different type of metrics story, I’d like to mention the recent Substack news that three new star writers have recently joined Substack.

(At the bottom of this dispatch, I also include text about a Substack author who supports my work who says he’s been banned or shadow banned by Substack).

These new content providers are Pete Buttigieg (aka “Mayor Pete”), California Gov. Gavin Newsom and former ABC anchor and correspondent Terry Moran, all of whom are terrified of MAGA and of living in a nation that’s rapidly becoming a democracy-free land mass.

As I wasn’t surprised to learn, all three new Substack authors have rapidly produced eye-opening numbers of subscribers.

Pete Buttigieg, “President” Biden’s head of the Department of Transportation, published his first Substack dispatch on March 13th. As of yesterday, Mayor Pete already has “490,000+” subscribers (247,000 more than Alex Berenson has developed in four-plus years on Substack).

In the past 3 1/2 months, Buttigieg has published only 10 dispatches, but based on “likes,” “Reader Comments” and “cross post” metrics, Mayor Pete is already one of the platform’s most-read authors.

One of Mayor Pete’s early dispatches was a podcast interview with liberal professor and historian Heather Cox Richardson, who - as of my last analysis - had more than 2.5 million subscribers.

(I never really knew what Ms. Richardson looked or sounded like but this interview answered my question. Also, I see that Mayor Pete is now sporting a scruffy beard.)

I sucked it up and watched three minutes of the podcast interview, which was enough time to see that the “Queen of Substack” (Ms. Richardson) and Mayor Pete are both preaching from the same prayer book as every liberal, narrative-protecting Substack author.

Per the new dominant Substack message, America didn’t become a “fascist,” tyrannical, non-democratic nation in the Covid lockdowns … nor in the the ensuing period when millions of people were notified by the State that they would lose the “right” to have a job, go to a restaurant or attend religious services if they didn’t get an experimental injection …

… Instead, the “fascists” and real dictators took over when President Trump defeated anointed nominee Kamala Harris in an election that, presumably, was faux “democracy.”

Mutual Admiration Podcast …

Heather Cox Richardson introduced her new Substack colleague as “one of the best communicators our nation has ever had” … (a person who will use these skills) “to call people into a new kind of future.”

Before I clicked off the interview to avoid sudden gagging, America’s most articulate communicator was babbling about the “disastrous situation” that now confronts our nation.

“We’re at one of those turning points that come across once every generation or two,” said the former small town mayor, mentioning that recent developments are very “scary” and Americans are now “losing our Constitutional protections, our democracy protections.”

I also learned that the former mayor of South Bend, Indiana has now moved from his home state and is living in Michigan, where he has been mentioned as a potential candidate for several political offices (excluding mayor) in his beloved new home state.

***

California Governor Gavin Newsom made his Substack debut on June 17th and with two dispatches already has more than 63,000 subscribers, a figure I imagine will soon surpass “millions” of subscribers.

The headline of Newsom’s first post: “Trump is trying to destroy our democracy. Don’t let him.”

*** (I do think some real live human beings are getting my articles. I appreciate everyone who hits me with a share, cross-post or re-stack.) ***

Terry Moran is on a mission as well …

Also, long-time ABC TV news anchor and reporter Terry Moran joined Substack on June 11th. In 12 days, Moran has already generated 115,000 subscribers, of which “thousands” are paid.

Moran was fired from ABC after he used an X post to call President Trump “a world-class hater.”

It took Moran two Substack posts to establish that he was going to continue to develop the “world-class hater” theme.

As Moran described in a podcast interview, America is living through “really important and dangerous times.” (The Meme of the Year has clearly been disseminated to all of Substack’s “rising” all-star authors).

A headline from Moran’s June 13 dispatch reads: “Senator Murray is right. We will lose this democracy if we do not use our voices.”

In a short podcast announcing his move to Substack, Moran called Substack “this amazing space (in) this time of trouble in our country.”

On June 20th Moran, again, warned his growing numbers of subscribers about President Trump and a country that is facing a grave risk of losing its democracy.

“… (President Trump’s) goal is now clear: to achieve a fundamental change in American democracy. To use the vast powers of the presidency to force individuals, institutions and even great corporations into submission and silence. To punish dissenters and reward allies and toadies. To use law enforcement to spread fear in the land.”

That is, over the last five-plus years, the Establishment Oligarchies and the diversity-celebrating left did not try to “spread fear in the land” and never tried to “force” anyone “into submission and silence.”

Okay. We get the FUBAR message.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

A Substack author with a huge* reach just cross posted two of my favorite recent articles

Yesterday, I learned that one of Substack’s bravest journalists cross posted two of my recent articles on curious Substack subscriber trends.

Substack author Richard Luthmann, one of the co-authors of the This is Real Substack, cross-posted my May 16th article on “Sustack’s Liberal Takeover” and also my article that gave the back story of Substack’s three co-founders.

Investigative journalist Richard Luthmann says his work is being censored or shadow-banned by Substack. Richard seems to be a fan of some of my articles.

In his short intro text, Luthmann made my points far better than I did.

These concise summaries actually provide the perfect prologue to my next story on “curious” Substack trends. This “censored” author’s summary tells us what’s (perhaps) happening on Substack and why these developments matter more than many people might think.

‘Substack’s Liberal Takeover’ …

“Once the free speech sanctuary of dissident thinkers and ‘Covid Contrarians,’ Substack now looks like a safe space for mainstream liberals.

“In the months following Trump’s re-election, data shows explosive growth for left-leaning authors—while the original contrarian voices stagnate or decline.

“Writers like Heather Cox Richardson, Robert Reich, and Dan Rather have gained hundreds of thousands of subscribers. In contrast, once-prominent skeptics like Robert Malone, Steve Kirsch, and Alex Berenson have flatlined.

“The platform built by rebels now rewards conformity. If this trend holds, Substack’s founding identity as a home for heterodoxy may be fading fast.”

My comment: Yes, those were the exact points I was trying to make. (“Gaww-lee!” Someone else gets it.)

Cross-Post No. 2 - ‘Substack’s Leftward Drift: A Free Speech Platform at a Crossroads’

(See original article here.)

“Substack began as a refuge for independent writers—especially those censored, de-platformed, or demonetized for challenging mainstream narratives. Its founders, Chris Best and Hamish McKenzie, championed free expression and built a platform that empowered ‘Covid Contrarians,’ libertarians, and dissident thinkers. But something changed.

“In the last year, Substack has taken a noticeable turn left, with liberal writers dominating growth and visibility while conservative authors stagnate.

“Once a haven for heterodox voices, the platform now appears to be repositioning itself to attract traditional media elites and narrative-protecting progressives. Is Substack abandoning its founding mission in pursuit of mainstream approval?” - Richard Luthmann

My comment: Again, I couldn’t have said it better myself. Thank you, Richard.

*The strange back story of Richard Luthmann and This is Real …

These two cross-posts could be prominent exhibits in my continuing effort to document that certain authors should not be100-percent certain all Covid metrics are accurate.

When I saw that “This is Real” cross-posted two of my articles, I was immediately curious about how many subscribers this Substack “reaches.”

Per Substack, This is Real has 67,000 subscribers! If this subscriber information is accurate, this “contrarian” Substack has far more readers than the Substack newsletter of dissident authors like Dr. Meryl Nass, Sasha Latypova and Celia Farber.

(Another blurb I found said Luthmann, at least at one time, had “40,000+ subscribers.”)

Alas, when I clicked on a few recent This is Real articles, I saw these articles were generating only about five to 10 “likes” and very few Reader Comments.

As of last night, I also saw these two cross-posts hadn’t significantly boosted the number of “reads,” “likes” or Reader Comments of either of my articles.

How could a Substack with either 67K or 40K subscribers NOT increase my reach?

One possible answer comes to mind: This is Real is NOT reaching 67,000 subscribers. (Just like I don’t think my newsletter is reaching 7,561 subscribers).

I also learned that Mr. Luthmann and his co-authors are apparently engaged in a fight with Substack and believe they or Luthmann have been unfairly censored by Substack.

Per The Thunder Report Substack:

“According to Luthmann, the platform shadowbanned his readers months ago. Then, just one day after the NYC primary election—where his publication covered key political actors—his ability to publish was revoked.”

So, it appears a talented writer and real investigative journalist, who apparently thinks just like I do regarding possible alarming trends on Substack, has himself perhaps been targeted for “silence” to a far greater extent than myself.

The author of the Thunder Report is trying to rally support for Richard Luthmann.

To self censor or not self censor, this is the question …

In my recurring “censorship” articles, I often note “self censorship” is perhaps the most diabolical and effective outcome for the strategists who created the Censorship Industrial Complex (CIC).

The thought that crossed my mind was:

Just don’t mention these guys or this topic, Bill. Remain silent - self censor - and maybe Substack or the CIC will leave you alone or shadow ban only a few of your dispatches.

Alas, this would be the wimpy approach.

If the Powers that Be want writers and citizens to self-censor, the correct response is to do the opposite of what our minders want.

I also don’t think Substack will like my coming story on its leaderboards, which strike me as dubious and sometimes ridiculous.

But if the Good Lord’s willing and the creeks don’t rise (and I don’t get banned in the next couple of hours), I’m going to go ahead and post this article.

These are not times to self censor … nor allow Mayor Pete and Heather Cox Richardson to frame our national debates.

***

*** (In the last week or so, I’ve lost five more paid subscribers, but one reader bought a paid subscription. Thank you very much!) ***

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