“There Has to Be a Line”: Substack’s Founders Dive Headfirst Into the Culture Wars

One day last June, Patti Smith opened her laptop, typed a brief message to the thousands of readers of her Substack newsletter, and hit Send. “I would be grateful for any suggestions of songs you think I might try,” she wrote. “Have a good week-end!” Smith began using the rapidly expanding, increasingly influential, and sometimes controversial email publishing platform in March 2021. Coronavirus had put touring on hold, and Smith was working on The Melting, a sort of diary about life in the COVID era, when someone at Substack reached out. Smith was intrigued. Rather than pursuing a printed work… Read Full Article