26 Comments
User's avatar
Mo Robinson's avatar

Bloody brilliant idea Jack 👏🏻👏🏻 I’m on limited income, but I would definitely subscribe, just like I’m subscribing to PBS!

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Teri Gelini's avatar

Great advice...How to we get them to do this? ...We need all those late night peeps to do this..

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Kathy's avatar

The good news is these late night guys don’t need the money. And, it’s way cheaper to do a podcast or YouTube channel. They need to perform as artists, not hang it up. It’s part of their DNA and society trusts comedians to “go there”. I’m sure these and other comedians are gathering together to leave old school media. Once the public refuses to support the networks and the homogenized message from conglomerate sources funded by a China and Russia we set ourselves free.

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Joanne Rossmassler Fritz's avatar

Wonderful idea, Jack! Now how do we reach all those comedians/hosts and convince them to band together and make their own YouTube channel? Or Podcast? Will they listen to you? I know Meidas Touch has offered Jimmy Kimmel a spot. I don’t know if Jimmy has seen that yet.

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TV's avatar

Great ideas! Bankrupt cowardly corporate media!!

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Robert Reed's avatar

I would be most happy to pay a subscription fee for these voices. I already stopped watching corporate news, so I don’t miss them at all.

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Lori R's avatar

I think Jimmy Kimmel should have this information.

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Randy S. Eisenberg's avatar

The speed with which Acosta, Phang, Lemon.. (well, you know the list, and it seems to grow longer by the week) landed here was impressive. Fascinating to see how each reacted to the “new” landscape. No need to name names, but it seems some took to the format like kittens to a litterbox, others seem intent on just recreating what they’d just left behind. The difference, and for that matter my preferences are surprising. Folks I’d admired from afar now have no clothes, so they buy a haberdasher. And others fit in as smoothly to the change of venue it’s as if they were never anywhere else.

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Jo Burns's avatar

Great ideas. I know MeidasTouch has reached out to both Jimmy Kimmel and Steve Colbert to join their network. They are on a variety of platforms and cross post; BlueSky, Facebook, Substack, Patreon, YouTube, etc. They have even stretched international with teams opening up in Canada and Australia and other countries. So bravo to the intrepid spirits that won’t back down. Thank you Jack for never compromising.

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John Durante's avatar

You simply are the best at combining intel, smarts and practicality. I k ow your nome de plume is wealthy but surely there are many folks in your organization making this happen. So now consider my advice about this brand to optimize your impact (not maximum monetization).

1. Make your brand and automatic association of where rant, smart and practical advice coalesce. Right now at least on this platform, no one can touch you.

2. Aggressively exploit existing contacts with those in legacy media. There are dozens of late stage career folks who continue to whore themselves for either merely a paycheck of because that are like candidate Mayo—they’ve got nowhere else to go. You and I both know there professional heads will continue to roll.

When that’s done they’ll need an immediate place to be comforted and heard.

3. Be selective. Not everyone getting kicked to the curb is worth cultivating. Chris Cilizza stands out as a B level example while good guy Jim Acosta is the A-level evidence. These guys were underwhelming when at cable networks. Just because they have changed that doesn’t mean their value to you is sufficiently high for your current cause.

4. Above all else, resist to be a rag that “reacts with hot takes.” There is no question that will bring more monetary success but it will also bring credibility and distinguishing brand challenges that you don’t need. I am sorry the business side of media is so perverse—but for right now—those who want dough can’t be credibly effective and vice versa

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Concerned Citizen's avatar

Do you recall the Strike Force Five podcast with Colbert, Kimmel, Myers, Fallon, and Oliver that was done during the 2023 WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes to raise money for their out-of-work staff? They could include others and get into Substack along with their podcast.

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JP4M's avatar

Bravo, Jack! Thank you for these fine suggestions or directions!

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laura oshea's avatar

Brilliant idea!! Now is there a way to pull the license of Faux Entertainment so nobody has to that creep Gutfield talk about murdering anyone????

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Michael Herzfeld's avatar

I like this idea, and I hate to be all doom and gloom, but almost every time someone says Trump can't do something, he does it, with impunity, and gets away with it. Even without the FCC, don't you think he'll be able to strongarm Google into blocking these videos or taking them down?

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Kimberly McInerney's avatar

Your insights & analyses fill my Way Forward cup like Popok fills my No F in Way Legal cup.

It was my mission to subscribe & support independent journalists after the election purge/exits. Funded by cancelled subscriptions to the prison food pablum being fed from what was once mighty mastheads. I was over budget but as my southern MIL once drawled, all you need is one Coach purse.

You, Jack Hopkins, whoever you are, are PRICELESS!

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Elaine's avatar

Not sure how these things work, but it might help for them to be on a European server as a backup. I'm willing to help with this

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