Newsletter
One Thing Is Clear: We Need Independent Media We started OptOut in 2020, disillusioned with the flippancy with which
corporations, politicians, and their media mouthpieces treated organized labor,
progressive activism, and the biggest public health crisis of our time. Much of
the news being pumped out of corporate outlets simply reinforced the status quo.
And it was clear the status...
by Walker Bragman 1 min read
,
by Alex Kotch 1 min read
newsletter
Dec 22 2023 Originals
Blood Money: How America’s Biggest Charities Are Bankrolling Hate Groups Without Anyone Noticing This piece was written in partnership with The New last few years have seen a wave of anti-trans Republican legislation
introduced across the country, and much of it has become law. To name just a few
examples: In 2016, North Carolina and South Dakota banned transgender kids from
using public bathrooms that correspond with their gender...
Help Us Improve the OptOut News App! Dear OptersOut,
I have exciting news: we're redesigning the OptOut News app! While we are proud
of our beta app, we're planning to develop a lot of major improvements, both in
the design/user experience and the functionality.
In order to make OptOut News v.1 the best it can be, and get the most important
independent reporting out to as...
We're on Patreon! There are about a million publishing platforms these days, and each comes with
its own way for you to subscribe to and support the news that matters to you.
Since we've been only using one subscription-based platform (Ghost CMS), we've
probably been limiting our paid subscriber reach.
So OptOut is now on We'll post everything
we post...
Climate
Meet Amanda Magnani, Your New Climate Editor This week we have some news of our own! The OptOut Media Foundation is excited
to announce that Amanda Magnani is
the new editor of OptOut Climate.
Amanda is a Brazilian journalist and photographer focused on social and
environmental issues. After living in seven countries, she returned to Brazil to
dedicate herself to documenting the...
Newsletter
Trump Indicted 🗞 Historic Israeli Protests 🗞 Starbucks Busted for Union-Busting A current or former U.S. president had never faced criminal charges until this
week. While Trump's indictment is big news, it's not the only thing you should
know. For example, Israel is seeing unprecedented protests again the far-right
government's attempted power grab, and Starbucks' CEO was grilled before
Congress over the company's...
Membership
Your OptOut News Benefits (Members)
Membership
Your OptOut News Benefits (OGs)
Membership
Your OptOut News Benefits (Ballers)
OptOutcast
PODCAST: Janine Jackson on Corporate Media Bias Today we have another edition of OPTOUTCAST for you!
On this edition of OptOutcast, I speak with Janine Jackson, the host and
producer of a weekly radio
show and podcast from national media watchdog Jackson is also FAIR's program
director. She co-edited The FAIR Reader: An Extra! Review of Press and Politics
in the ’90s, and she has...
Newsletter
20 Years After the Iraq Invasion 🗞 Fire The Fed 🗞 Trump's in Trouble Welcome back to OptOut's weekend news roundup! Today we'll look at independent
journalism about the 20-year anniversary of the U.S. invasion of Iraq, the Fed's
blunders surrounding bank regulation and the SVB failure, Trump's legal troubles
ramping up, and lots more.
First, some updates about the OptOut network.
WHAT'S NEW AT...
Newsletter
Nieman Lab Digs OptOut 🗞 Who's Fighting Student Debt Relief? 🗞 Politico Aids Railroad Lobby Did you see the OptOut News Harvard's Nieman Journalism Lab? As we near the one-year anniversary of our
iOS app launch, OptOut is getting major recognition. The well known journalism
analysts at Nieman Lab reviewed our innovative independent news aggregation app
and interviewed Alex Kotch (me), the co-founder and executive director of...
👾 Join our Discord chat community!
OptOutcast
Podcast: Doug Henwood on His Career and Left Media Today On this edition of OptOutcast, OptOut co-founder Alex Kotch speaks with Doug
Henwood, a veteran journalist and author who's the host of BEHIND THE a weekly
radio show and podcast, and the creator of the website LBO Doug tells us about his life
and career, which has included a print newsletter in the 1980s and even a brief
stint on Wall...
Newsletter
Derailmentgate 🗞 The Times' Anti-Trans Crusade 🗞 Big Tech Myths OptOut is holding it first-ever public event next month! On Feb. 27, we are
hosting a 2023 kickoff party and fundraiser in Gowanus, Brooklyn. We hope to
meet you there! Please you're planning to come, and share this with anyone who'd be interested!
OptOut News 2023 Kickoff and Fundraiser
Help the OptOut Media Foundation kick off its...
Newsletter
Black History Month 🗞 News From Africa 🗞 Where Did Our Attention Spans Go? OptOut is holding it first-ever public event next month! On Feb. 27, we are
hosting a 2023 kickoff party and fundraiser in Gowanus, Brooklyn. We hope to
meet you there! Please you're planning to come, and share this with anyone who'd be interested!
🎉 Save the Date: OptOut News Party/Fundraiser in Brooklyn! 🍾
Come to our 2023 kickoff...
🎉 Save the Date: OptOut News Party/Fundraiser in Brooklyn! 🍾 Hey there, OptersOut!
I'm happy to announce our very first public event. We're having a party and
fundraiser in Brooklyn, NY, on Feb. 27. If you're in the area (and even if
you're not but feel inclined to share this event with others), here are the
details:
OptOut News 2023 Kickoff and Fundraiser
Monday, Feb. 27
6:30-9:00 PM
The...
Newsletter
🗞 Union Membership Declines as Big Tech Lays Off Thousands This weekly edition of the OptOut News newsletter is a day late—apologies!—but
we've got an interesting roundup of independent news coverage from the last week
for you. In addition to one of OptOut's first original reports, I've chosen
stories about U.S. labor participation, the fight for abortion rights, the state
of COVID-19 three years
Originals
Candace Owens’ ‘Blexit’ Operation Bankrolled by Wealthy White Conservatives This original reporting from the OptOut Media Foundation was produced in
partnership with newsletter and
the Center for Media and Owens promised big things in October 2018 when she launched her Blexit
Foundation.
“Today, in this room, I’m so excited because we’re going to launch in front of
the world a movement—a movement that will...
by Walker Bragman 7 min read
,
by Alex Kotch 7 min read
originals
Jan 12 2023 Newsletter
Fifteenth Time's a Charm 🗞 Anti-Trust Victory 🗞 State Abortion Ban Struck Down Happy 2023! This is going to be a big year for OptOut and our numerous
independent news outlets. I'll send out another email next week outlining our
exciting plans for this year.
As the co-founder and executive director of the OptOut Media Foundation, I want
to thank everyone involved in our operation: our team of two dozen...
Newsletter
Introducing New OptOut Original Content and Perks! Since launching this newsletter in August 2020, we have sent you over 200
editions, all completely free to the public. During that time, we've built a
network of nearly 180 financially independent, trustworthy news outlets, and
we've delivered their important work to you via our newsletters—which now
include separate Climate, LGBTQ+, and...
Newsletter
A Week of Labor Rights and Protest ✊ This is the general newsletter of OptOut News, a free news aggregation app for
exclusively independent media that's available for Find out more about the app at Over Profit. The OptOut Media Foundation recently launched its
end-of-year fundraising We need to raise
$50,000 in individual contributions by the end of 2022 so we can...
Newsletter
Facebook Is Replacing Its Human News Editors with AI Facebook, the gigantic social media platform/misinformation superspreader, is
removing the human element from its News tab.
Recent reports reveal that Meta, which owns Facebook and Instagram, is axing its
human news favor of artificial intelligence. Facebook, especially, is becoming a fossil
in the rapidly evolving world of social media,
Newsletter
Pre-Election Special • Corporate Media Failures • Cuba & Brazil This is the newsletter of OptOut, a free news aggregation app for exclusively
independent media that's available for Find out more about the app at depends on your support to run our free app, send this newsletter, and a
lot more. We've raised $8,400 since we announced our end-of-year fundraising
goal, but we have a long way to go. Can...
LGBTQ+
🗳️ Election Preview ✊ Fighting Conversion Therapy 🎃 Scary Movies! This is the newsletter of OptOut, a free news aggregation app for exclusively
independent media that's available for Find out more about the app at depends on your support to run our free app, send this newsletter, and a
lot more. We've raised over $7,000 since we announced our end-of-year
fundraising goal, but we have a long way to go....
Promotions
Trust in Media is Near Record Low This is the newsletter of OptOut, a free news aggregation app for exclusively
independent media that's available for Find out more about the app at is out with a new that Americans' trust is media remains near a record low. Just 34% of
respondents have a great deal or fair amount of trust in the mass media
(newspapers, TV, and radio).
>...
Promotions
Help Independent Media Compete with the Corporate Giants This is the newsletter of OptOut, a free news aggregation app for exclusively
independent media that's available for Apple and Android devices. Find out more
about the app at happy to report that the OptOut Media Foundation has made progress towards
our 2022 fundraising goal!
Since we announced our
fundraiser, we've now raised $3,400, or
Newsletter
Human Rights Backsliding • Meet the BIPOC Press • Indigenous Resistance This is the newsletter of OptOut, a free news aggregation app for exclusively
independent media that's available for Apple and Android devices. Find out more
about the app at United States had a federally-guaranteed right to legal abortion for half a
century when the Supreme Court struck down the legal precedent that guaranteed
the right.
by Walker Bragman 11 min read
,
by Alex Kotch 11 min read
newsletter
Sep 25 2022 Newsletter
Scientology's Secret Immigrant Workforce • Anti-Trans Witch Hunts • Brazil on Fire This is the newsletter of OptOut, a free news aggregation app for exclusively
independent media that's available for Apple and Android devices. Find out more
about the app at Over Profit. The OptOut Media Foundation launched its end-of-year
fundraising campaign week. We need to raise $50,000 in individual contributions by the end of
2022...
Promotions
For People, Not Profit. Worthy of your support. This is the newsletter of OptOut, a free news aggregation app for exclusively
independent media that's available for Apple and Android devices. Find out more
about the app at news needs your support.
This month we turned two, and we're proud of what we've built—a sophisticated,
hand-curated news app downloaded on 10,000 devices, a...
Newsletter
SPECIAL LABOR DAY EDITION: Workers Around the World Stand Up This is the newsletter of OptOut, a free news aggregation app for exclusively
independent media that's available for Apple and Android devices. Find out more
about the app at Labor Day! Today's edition of the OptOut general newsletter focuses
entirely on news about workers and organized labor. Numerous outlets in our
independent media...
Newsletter
Small Towns Work to Protect Abortion Rights • Storing Nuclear Secrets at Your Golf Club • Announcing OptOut Climate! This is the newsletter of OptOut, a free news aggregation app for exclusively
independent media that's available for Apple and Android devices. Find out more
about the app at newsletter will take you through independent reporting and analysis on
abortion rights, Trump's legal woes, LGBTQ+ issues, U.S. media, and more. But
first, we have a
Newsletter
NYT Blames Workers for Inflation • A Climate Deal • Labor Solidarity This is the newsletter of OptOut, a free news aggregation app for exclusively
independent media that's available for Apple and Android devices. Find out more
about the app at newsletter is a little different. I'm going to criticize The New York
Times on its portrayal of inflation and then round up some coverage of climate
and labor issues
Newsletter
📲 Android App! • Roe Woes • Dems Want Biden Alternative This is the newsletter of OptOut, a free news aggregation app for exclusively
independent media that's available for Apple and Android devices. Find out more
about the app at week we launched the OptOut app for for everyone's patience. The approval process took much longer than
expected, but we were eventually able to get past the faulty...
Newsletter
Corporate Media Takes Big Oil's Money • SCOTUS' Awful Term • Musk Won't Buy Twitter This is the newsletter of OptOut, a free news aggregation app for exclusively
independent media that's available for iPhone and iPad. The Android version will
be out as soon as possible. Find out more about the app at the OptOut iOS and help us take on the corporate media!
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Climate
Corporate Media Must Stop Making Ads for Fossil Fuel Companies This is the newsletter of OptOut, a free news aggregation app for exclusively
independent media that's available for iPhone and iPad. Find out more about the
app at optout.news Alex Kotch (OptOut and
Maria Bustillos (Popula by Amy Westervelt production and editing by Spencer this video!
WHO’S TO BLAME FOR A LACK OF ACTION ON CLIMATE...
,
by Maria Bustillos 5 min read
climate
Jul 6 2022 Newsletter
Roe Is Gone • Dems Do Nothing • Pride! This is the newsletter of OptOut, a free news aggregation app for exclusively
independent media that's available for iPhone and iPad. Find out more about the
app at optout.news don't have to tell you this, but last week was an absolutely horrible week.
The biggest news wasn't more revelations about Trump's coup attempt. It wasn't
the...
Newsletter
The Gun Epidemic • Who's Bankrolling White Nationalism? • Covid Surges This is the newsletter of OptOut, a free news aggregation app for exclusively
independent media that's available for iPhone and iPad. Find out more about the
app at week the OptOut network covered essential news about guns, climate, the
Covid wave, extremism, and other issues, which we've rounded up for you below.
👕 ICMYI: We've got...
,
by Walker Bragman 9 min read
newsletter
Jun 13 2022 Newsletter
Dem Voters Reject Centrism • Big Money Media • Contraception is Next This is the newsletter of OptOut, a free news aggregation app for exclusively
independent media that's available for iPhone and iPad. Find out more about the
app at weekend we return to our usual Sunday slot for your independent news
roundup. Today's newsletter focuses on several important topics including
extremism, primary election...
Newsletter
Standing with Workers on May Day This is the newsletter of OptOut, a free news aggregation app for exclusively
independent media that's available for iPhone and iPad. Find out more about the
app at May Day, everyone! On International Workers Day, as today is also referred
to, we are devoting this entire newsletter to labor coverage from the OptOut
news network.
All of...
Newsletter
Biden's Hollow Climate Pledge • Amazon Labor Union Pushes Forward • Anti-LGBTQ Violence This is the newsletter of OptOut, a free news aggregation app for exclusively
independent media that's available for iPhone and iPad. Find out more about the
app at optout.news week's independent news roundup features content about climate, labor,
anti-LGBTQ hate, and lots more. But first, let's welcome a new outlet to the
OptOut...
Newsletter
Twerking for Labor Rights • Ukrainians Return Home • The Importance of Bison This is the newsletter of OptOut, a free news aggregation app for exclusively
independent media that's available for iPhone and iPad. Find out more about the
app at optout.news take our short audience edition of OptOut's weekly news roundups covers labor progress, the
Christian right, juvenile justice, the history of oil in Russia, and...
Newsletter
New IPCC Report • Corporate Media's Love of War • Big SCOTUS News This is the newsletter of OptOut, a free news aggregation app for exclusively
independent media that's available for iPhone and iPad. Find out more about the
app at optout.news take our short audience people are asking us: Are you making an Android app? When will it be ready?
YES. We are putting the finishing touches on the Android...
Newsletter
Trans Bodies, Trans Choices • Ivermectin Grifters Owned • Zizek Debates Ideology This is the newsletter of OptOut, a free news aggregation app for exclusively
independent media that's available for iPhone and iPad. Find out more about the
app at optout.news take our short audience in part to an OptOut feature from The Rational National today, our iOS
app is currently at number the Magazines & Newspapers category on...
Inflation Myths • Police Violence • Corporate Media's Worthy Victims This is the newsletter of OptOut, a free news aggregation app for exclusively
independent media that's available for iPhone and iPad. Find out more about the
app at optout.news take our short audience Monday, the OptOut Media Foundation released the app that you've been waiting
for since August 2020, when we launched this newsletter! Our...
Newsletter
A Progressive Response to Ukraine • Texas Elections • Do Police Stop Crime? This is the newsletter of OptOut, a news aggregation app for exclusively
independent media that's currently in beta testing for iOS (download it Find out
more about the app at week's roundup of media content from OptOut's independent, trustworthy news
network includes stories about the war in Ukraine, the Texas primary elections,
police...
Newsletter
Workers Fight Back, Critical Energy Theory, and the 'Don't Say Gay' Bill This is the weekly newsletter of OptOut, a news aggregation app for exclusively
independent media that's currently in beta testing for iOS (download it Find out
more about the app at week's newsletter introduces a new OptOut network outlet and focuses on
labor, climate, and misinformation, among other BOLTS!
Bolts a brand-new...
Spotify and Censorship, Fighting Poverty, and the Colonization of Puerto Rico This is the weekly newsletter of OptOut, a news aggregation app for exclusively
independent media that's currently in beta testing for iOS (download it Find out
more about the app at week's newsletter introduces two new OptOut network outlets and aggregates
independent news about the Spotify controversy, misinformation, definitions...
Newsletter
Over-Policing, the Cost of Being Poor, and Working-Class Candidates This is the weekly newsletter of OptOut, a news aggregation app for exclusively
independent media that's currently in beta testing for iOS (download it Find out
more about the app at to your generous donations and a grant from the Puffin Foundation,
OptOut's full news curation team began selecting content to highlight in our
beta app this
Newsletter
Women's Rights, Local News, Remembering Jake Varghese This is the weekly newsletter of OptOut, a news aggregation app for exclusively
independent media that's currently in beta testing for iOS (download it Find out
more about the app at IN POWER, JAKE begin this edition with some very sad news: Jake Varghese, a talented
developer, gifted policy wonk, and passionate activist, passed away in...
Newsletter
Press Freedom Threatened, Covid Disinfo From the 'Left,' and Web3 This is the weekly newsletter of OptOut, a news aggregation app for exclusively
independent media that's currently in beta testing for iOS (download it Find out
more about the app at could really use your help in spreading the word about OptOut as we prepare
for launch. We'd be grateful if you can forward this to your friends and...
Newsletter
Attacks on Climate Divestment, Sitting Ducks for a Pandemic & Roe in Danger This is the weekly newsletter of OptOut, a news aggregation app for exclusively
independent media that's currently in beta testing for iOS (download it Find out
more about the app at could really use your help in spreading the word about OptOut as we prepare
for launch. We'd be grateful if you can forward this to your friends and...
Help Us Take On the Corporate Media on Giving Tuesday! During the New York City pandemic lockdowns during the spring of 2020, Walker
and I had an idea. In order to compete with the corporate and legacy media
giants, uncompromising independent media outlets need to come together. We
thought that a news aggregation app for exclusively indy publications could
shift the balance in the news...
Newsletter
Racist Immigration Policy, Indigenous Climate Action, and Bari Weiss' Rightwing 'University' This is the weekly newsletter of OptOut, a news aggregation app for exclusively
independent media that's currently in beta testing (sign up Find out
more about the app at could really use your help in spreading the word about OptOut as we prepare
for launch. We'd be grateful if you can forward this to your friends and family
and share it...
Dems Blow It, Labor Strikes Continue, and the Climate Cost of Capitalism This is the weekly newsletter of OptOut, a news aggregation app for exclusively
independent media that's currently in beta testing. Find out more about the app
at optout.news could really use your help in spreading the word about OptOut as we prepare
for launch. We'd be grateful if you can forward this to your friends and family
and share
Newsletter
📺 A Worker-Owned Streaming Service 🗞️ Corporate Media Corruption 💪 the Strike Wave This is the weekly newsletter of OptOut, a news aggregation app for exclusively
independent media that's currently in beta testing. By subscribing to this
newsletter, you'll have a chance to be a beta tester in the second round. Find
out more about the app at could really use your help in spreading the word about OptOut as we prepare
for...
Newsletter
Corporate Dems Block Biden's Agenda, the Media's Climate Narratives, & Pfizer Funds QAnon Candidates This is the weekly newsletter of OptOut, a news aggregation app for exclusively
independent media that's under development. We'll be launching the beta version
of the app for iPhone and iPad very soon! By subscribing to this newsletter,
you'll have a chance to be a beta tester. Find out more about the app at
optout.news could really use...
Newsletter
The American Health Care Debacle, Corporate Democrats' Corruption, and Haitian Migration This is the weekly newsletter of OptOut, a news aggregation app for exclusively
independent media that's under development. We plan to launch a beta version of
the app for iPhone this fall and the full iPhone app in January. By subscribing
to this newsletter, you'll have a chance to be a beta tester! Find out more
about the app at...
Newsletter
The War on Trans People & Other News from OptOut This is the weekly newsletter of OptOut, a news aggregation app for exclusively
independent media that's under development. We plan to launch a beta version of
the app for iPhone this fall and the full iPhone app in January. By subscribing
to this newsletter, you'll have a chance to be a beta tester! Find out more
about the app at...
Newsletter
Weekend Picks: Extremism and U.S. Imperialism This is the weekly newsletter of OptOut, a news aggregation app for exclusively
independent media that's under development. Thanks for subscribing! We plan to
launch a beta version of the app for iPhone this fall and the full iPhone app in
January. By subscribing to this newsletter, you'll have a chance to be a beta
tester! Find out more...
Newsletter
Labor Day Picks! This is the weekly newsletter of OptOut, a news aggregation app for exclusively
independent media that's under development. Thanks for subscribing! We plan to
launch a beta version of the app for iPhone this fall and the full iPhone app in
January. By subscribing to this newsletter, you'll have a chance to be a beta
tester! Find out more...
Newsletter
Weekend Picks: Horse Meds Mania, Afghanistan, and Corporate Media Consolidation Hey there, OptersOut.
Another doozy of a week! There's a lot to cover today. This edition of Weekend
Picks will update you on corporate media consolidation, welcome Defector of the
OptOut family, dissect the horse dewormer craze, and round up 100% independent
media content about Covid-19, Afghanistan, and other topics of the...
Newsletter
Weekend Picks: Climate, Covid, and The Forever Wars This is the weekly newsletter of OptOut, a news aggregation app for exclusively
independent media that's under development. Thanks for subscribing! We plan to
launch a beta version of the app for iPhone in September and the full iPhone app
in January. By subscribing to this newsletter, you'll have a chance to be a beta
tester! Find out...
Newsletter
Weekend Picks: Climate catastrophe, bye bye Cuomo, and NYT union busters This is the weekly newsletter of OptOut, a news aggregation app for exclusively
independent media that's under development. Thanks for subscribing! We plan to
launch a beta version of the app for iPhone in September and the full iPhone app
in January. By subscribing to this newsletter, you'll have a chance to be a beta
tester! Find out...
Newsletter
🎉 Weekend Picks: We're 1! 🎂 This is the weekly newsletter of OptOut, a news aggregation app for exclusively
independent media that's under development. Thanks for subscribing! We plan to
launch a beta version of the app for iPhone in September and the full iPhone app
in January. By subscribing to this newsletter, you'll have a chance to be a beta
tester! Find out...
,
by Walker Bragman 13 min read
newsletter
Aug 8 2021 Newsletter
Help Us Launch the OptOut App!
Newsletter
Weekend Picks: Billionaires in Space, Labor Fights, and Honoring Michael Brooks Happy Sunday, OptersOut!
We have some exciting news to share with you, followed by our weekly roundup of
news coverage from OptOut's growing network of financially independent news
outlets. Let's get right to it!
ANNOUNCEMENTS
This week the OptOut Media Foundation reached a major milestone. We got our
first foundation grant! The...
Newsletter
Weekend Picks: the Climate Crisis, Union Busting & Nina Turner Hey, OptersOut!
Hope everyone is doing ok and not melting in the crazy heat wave. Between the
record heat and the biblical flooding in Europe, climate change is even more
terrifying than before.
On that topic, while conservative Democrat Joe Manchin tries to strip climate
provisions out the budget, President Joe Biden is supporting the...
Newsletter
Weekend Picks: The OptOut Family Is Growing Hey there, OptersOut!
I hope everyone has been well these past two weeks. Apologies for skipping last
weekend's newsletter; Walker and I were both out of town and needed a weekend
off.
A lot is happening in the U.S. and around the world, and our independent news
roundup below features content about anti-trust developments and...
Newsletter
Weekend Picks: Rest in Peace, Mike Gravel We are saddened to learn of the passing of former Alaska Senator Mike Gravel on
Saturday. Gravel was a champion for justice, and his presence on this Earth will
be sorely missed.
Sen. Gravel was unshakably optimistic. He never stopped believing in our better
nature as a nation—despite mountains of evidence to the contrary—and he...
by Walker Bragman 11 min read
,
by Alex Kotch 11 min read
newsletter
Jun 27 2021
Weekend Picks: Juneteenth, the corporate media, and regulating Big Tech Hey there, OptersOut!
I hope everyone has had a good weekend and got to celebrate Black lives and the
Juneteenth holiday. This week's newsletter focuses on the corporate media,
Juneteenth, and U.S. politics.
I recently took a few our app's Livestreams section. Most news apps focus on articles, but OptOut
seamlessly incorporates text, a...
Engineering
Superstack: How to Upgrade From Substack to Ghost After migrating to Ghost, we wanted to share our experience with you. If you're
currently using Substack for your newsletter, we hope this post will help you
decide whether or not such a migration makes sense for you.
WHAT'S WRONG WITH SUBSTACK?
Substack is a quick and easy way to start a newsletter, maintain an email list,
and recruit
by Noah Williams 4 min read
,
by Alex Kotch 4 min read
engineering
Jun 18 2021 Newsletter
Weekend Picks: Billionaires, Climate, and Bipartisan Attacks on Ilhan Omar Hiya, OptersOut!
I hope everyone had a good week. I spent most of it sick (not Covid!), and
thankfully I'm almost back to normal now.
For today's newsletter, I've picked several topics and multiple pieces of
content for each topic.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
BILLIONAIRES
The...
Newsletter
Weekend Picks: Remembering Tulsa, Climate, Labor, and the Media Hey there, OptersOut!
This week we formalized our standards for participating outlets, which you can
read here Our mission is to create a
media ecosystem where people can find the news they need and know that it's
fully independent, accurate, and free of conflicts of interest. Trust in media
is at an all-time low in the U.S., and we...
,
by Walker Bragman 10 min read
newsletter
Jun 6 2021 Newsletter
Weekend Picks: Attacks on Workers and Palestinians Hiya, OptersOut!
I hope everyone is having a relaxing holiday weekend.
If you didn't see last week's all of your contributions are
tax-deductible. Whether you're signed up for this newsletter with a monthly or
yearly donation or you want to give us a different, one-time amount via these
services you'll be able to claim a
charitable tax...
Newsletter
Weekend Picks: Biden's performance, more atrocities in Gaza, and the new podcast oligopoly Hey there, OptersOut!
We hope you’ve had a good week. Today we'll start with some housekeeping and
then discuss the week's news, followed by a roundup of content from our
exclusively independent OptOut media network.
YOUR CONTRIBUTIONS TO THIS NEWSLETTER ARE TAX-DEDUCTIBLE.
Good news: Our legal advisers have determined that your...
,
by Walker Bragman 9 min read
newsletter
May 23 2021 Newsletter
Weekend Picks: Corporate Media's Distortion of Israel-Palestine Greetings, OptersOut!
OptOut co-founders Alex and Walker here! In OptOut news, we had our first
meeting with a potential grantor this week, and we've contacted dozens more. We
need to raise a significant amount of money to launch our forthcoming app and
hire staff for the long term, so if you'd like to help us out now with a
tax-deductib
,
by Walker Bragman 7 min read
newsletter
May 16 2021 Newsletter
OptOut Picks: Mother's Day Edition! Happy Mother's Day, OptersOut!
Today we're going to highlight content about mothers as well as some more news
produced by or about women.
Progress on our app new
website, and the OptOut Media Foundation continues. Your donations are paying
for fundraising consulting as we contact foundations about potential grants. You
gotta spend money
Newsletter
Weekend Picks: May Day, Biden's First 100 Days, and Anti-Trans Hysteria Happy Belated May Day, OptersOut!
Since yesterday was May Day, this week's roundup will get into labor news, as
well as Biden's first 100 days as president, anti-trans bigotry, and other news
from the OptOut network. But first, an OptOut update.
Since last week when we rolled out
this new website and got approved as a 501(c)(3)...
Newsletter
Big News from OptOut! Greetings, OptersOut!
I am thrilled to tell you about not one but two great things that happened this
week.
First, the OptOut Media Foundation has been approved as a 501(c)(3) public
charity!
This way we can raise money through tax-deductible donations, and we'll have a
better chance of landing grants from foundations. Our EIN is...
Newsletter
OptOut Picks: Corporate Power, Monarchs, and Socialist Sex Ed Greetings, OptersOut!
Sorry for the late email. We spent a lot of the weekend working on our new
website, and it’s almost ready for prime time.
If you’re thinking of upgrading to a paid subscription or want to alter your
current subscription, please hang on a little while until we get the new site up
and running. If you have a pressing...
Newsletter
Sunday Picks: Both-Sidesing Crises, Bessemer, and Actual Cancel Culture Hey there, OptersOut!
We’ve got some Sunday content for you from our exclusively independent
participating outlets.
First, some updates.
* The app is in “alpha” phase, the pre-beta phase when we share the app with
select people outside of our development team to get feedback and improve
things as we prepare to get on the app...
Newsletter
Sunday Picks: Anti-Trans Bigots, Labor Fights, and Covid Fails Hey there, OptersOut!
I’ve got a lot of other OptOut work to do today and the weather is great in
Brooklyn, so let’s get right into our weekly roundup of content from the
excellent independent outlets participating in our forthcoming anti-corporate
media app.
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Newsletter
Weekend Picks: Labor Fights, Voting Wars, and Star Trek Greetings, OptersOut!
We’ll begin with an essay from Walker and then get into OptOut participants’
work.
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Another week in paradise. Or maybe not. Despite everyone’s seemingly optimistic
posture about COVID-19 vaccines, there’s probably a whole lot of...
Newsletter
Weekend Picks: The United States of Oligarchy Dear OptersOut,
Apologies for the delay. Substack was down for several hours today. But I wanted
to make sure you got your OptOut links for the week. I’ll jump right into it.
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NEWS
SLUDGE: POWERFUL REPS RELY ON CORPORATE PACS TO PAY THEIR COMMITTEE...
Newsletter
Weekend Picks: Hasty Reopening, Media Woes Greetings, OptersOut!
It’s been an eventful week. We hit the one-year anniversary of the World Health
Organization declaring Covid-19 a pandemic. Biden signed an extremely belated
$1.9 trillion relief bill that will, among other things, significantly reduce
child poverty, supply states with desperately needed funds, and beef up...
Newsletter
Weekend Picks: Corporate Dems & Biden's Bombs Hello again, OptersOut!
It’s been quite a week. Biden is on the verge of signing his first major piece
of legislation more than 40 days into his presidency. The Senate recently passed
a $1.9 trillion COVID relief bill. The good news is that the bill contains
much-needed funds for the states, needy Americans, and vaccinations.
If you...
Newsletter
Weekend Picks: Fight For $15? Greetings, OptersOut!
Welcome to the newsletter of OptOut, the forthcoming news app for exclusively
independent media.
The Biden administration quickly caved on its promise of $2,000 checks, and now
it’s not going to “fight for $15.” This week’s newsletter starts with some
reporting and analysis of the minimum wage situation and then...
Newsletter
Weekend Picks: Criminal Injustice, Forever Wars, and Medicare For All Happy Sunday, OptersOut!
Welp, the Senate decided to endorse future fascist insurrections and a Trump
2024 nomination if he wants it. I’ll be honest, between my own reporting on the
far right and everything else that’s going on in the U.S. and the world, I’ve
had to step back a bit from the constant stream of news and social media. We...
Newsletter
Weekend Picks: Stand With Workers Dear OptersOut!
We’re busy working on our nonprofit application, so today’s news roundup is
going to be a little shorter than normal. First, a quick update: We secured pro
bono legal assistance from Lawyers for a joint project of
the Cyrus R. Vance Center International Justice and the Press Freedom Defense advising us and have connected...
Newsletter
Weekend Picks: Hasty Reopenings, Mega-Pharmacies, and Health Care For Dreamers Hello again, OptersOut!
Well, 2021 certainly seems to be off to an exciting start. This week, a bunch of
people on the Reddit forum r/WallStreetBets took on Wall Street by buying up
stocks of troubled companies that hedge funds were betting against, driving up
their values and ensuring those hedge funds took heavy losses.
In response,...
Newsletter
Weekend Picks: Biden's First Days Hey there, OptersOut!
This week we’re happy to welcome The American Prospect and The Real News Network
as OptOut partners!
Biden’s presidency has begun, and there’s still lots to grapple with in terms of
the insurrection and the Trump administration’s legacy of rightwing extremism,
gutted federal agencies, and a black hole where...
Newsletter
Weekend Picks: Rightwing Extremism, Big Tech, and Labor Hey there, OptersOut,
We’re excited to announce that The Majority Report and The Bitchuation Room have
joined the ranks of OptOut partners! The Majority Report, hosted by Sam Seder
and Emma Vigeland, and Francesca Fiorentini’s The Bitchuation Room are both
video and podcast outlets that examine politics from a progressive perspective.
Be
Newsletter
Weekend Picks: The Insurrection Hey, OptersOut.
Happy New Year! What a wild start to 2021. To give ourselves a little break, we
took two weeks off from this newsletter, but development of the OptOut app
continues to go really well. Here are some recent screenshots.
This is the “Headlines” feed, where OptOut editors handpick news items we think
you should check out....
Newsletter
Weekend Picks: Greedy senators, Facebook fumbles, and our new podcast Hello again, OptersOut!
It’s been a rough few weeks, and we hope you’re all holding up. With stimulus
negotiations still underway after months of no relief, it may not seem as though
there is light at the end of this tunnel. But we must not allow ourselves to
fall into despair or cynicism. We can come through by working together...
Newsletter
OptOut's Weekend Picks (Dec. 12, 2020) Hello, OptersOut!
Another week of desperate coup attempts and rapidly rising COVID-19 deaths is
coming to a close. I hope that these news roundups of content from our more than
80 media partners help you process these wild times we’re hurtling through.
Independent news outlets like the ones below really help me, both as a
journalist and...
Newsletter
OptOut's Weekend Picks (Dec. 6, 2020) Hey, OptersOut!
Welcome, new folks, and thank you so much to everyone who became a paying
subscriber since Giving Tuesday. We’re a small, scrappy group of volunteers, and
every $5 makes a difference. Your contributions are helping us pay for initial
fees like nonprofit incorporation, web hosting, and software building services.
If you...
Newsletter
Help the OptOut Team on Giving Tuesday! Dear OptersOut,
I hope everyone was able to have a good Native American Heritage Day weekend! I
have finally returned to New York from the North Carolina mountains, where I saw
my family for the first time in 18 months. I’m grateful for them and for my
health, and I know so many people in the U.S. are struggling, whether
financially,...
Newsletter
OptOut's Weekend Picks (Nov. 21, 2020) Dear OptersOut,
Welcome back to our weekly news roundup from our independent media If this is your first
OptOut newsletter, we’re a forthcoming nonprofit news aggregation app for
exclusively independent media. We’ll be launching the beta version of the app in
March, and in the meantime, we’re choosing some of the best articles,...
Newsletter
OptOut's Weekend Picks (Nov. 15, 2020) Greetings, OptersOut!
Hello from the mountains of western North Carolina, where I’m spending a few
weeks hiking, cooking, working, and remembering what it’s like to be able to see
stars in the sky.
Despite intermittent bouts of rage tweeting, an addiction I’m working on, I’ve
been able to step back a bit from the toxic world of social...
Newsletter
OptOut of the Corporate Media Tonight! Hello there, OptersOut!
Finally, after a 114-year election season, it’s Election Day. That could mean
you’re deciding which cable news giant you’ll turn to for the results and
painful “both-sides” political analysis.
Well, I’ve got some good news for you. You don’t have to watch CNN, MSNBC, or
any of these other corporate channels!...
Newsletter
OptOut's Weekend Picks (Nov. 1, 2020) Greetings, OptersOut!
We’re sure the election has you all distracted or anxious or hyperventilating
into paper bags...but here are our picks for this week-in-review roundup,
exclusively from our OptOut partner news outlets.
If you enjoy the content, please consider subscribing or donating to them. As
independent sites, podcasts, and...
Newsletter
OptOut's Weekend Picks (Oct. 25, 2020) Dear OptersOut,
I hope everyone had a very normal week during this very normal time. I kid, but
here’s another edition of our weekly news roundup to help you sort through the
never-ending dumpster fire that our world is these days.
First, we have some new independent media partners!
* Pollen Nation
a
Native-led magazine...
Newsletter
How We're Using Your Donations
Newsletter
OptOut's Weekend Picks (Oct. 17, 2020) Greetings, OptersOut!
As you know, our nonprofit news app for exclusively independent media is still
in development. But here’s your week in review—our selection of content from our
partners we felt you should see! If you enjoy the content, please consider
subscribing or donating to these outlets and individuals. As independent...
Newsletter
OptOut's Weekend Picks (Oct. 10, 2020) Hi there, OptersOut!
Another slow news week, huh?
As a white militia plotted to kidnap the governor of Michigan and Donald Trump
tweeted through the early days of his COVID-19 infection while high on steroids,
our more than 70 independent media partners put out some great stories,
podcasts, and videos as always.
The loose theme of this
Newsletter
OptOut's Weekend Picks (Oct. 3, 2020) Dear Supporters,
This week’s been a long year. Republican super-spreader events are taking up a
lot of the media, and for good reason. But if you’d like a respite from the
cascade of GOP politicos who are testing positive for COVID-19 after
congregating without masks at the presidential debate, Amy Coney Barrett’s
nomination event, and...
Newsletter
OptOut's Weekend Picks (Sep. 27, 2020) Greetings, OptersOut!
It’s time for our round-up of the best content of the week from our more than 70
media partners. But first, we want to share a Twitter thread with you about the
changing media landscape.
Many independent writers, including some recently laid off from newsrooms
plagued by budget cuts or recently ravaged by private...
Newsletter
OptOut's Weekend Picks (Sep. 19, 2020) Dear Supporters,
It’s Saturday afternoon, and that means it’s time for some weekly highlights
from OptOut’s media partners!
OptOut is a forthcoming nonprofit news aggregator app for 100% independent
media. Development is underway; we’re a totally volunteer operation so far, but
we’ll need money for hosting, marketing, and hiring. Please
Newsletter
OptOut's Weekend Picks (Sep. 12, 2020) Greetings, OptersOut!
Let’s start with some updates on our forthcoming nonprofit news app for 100%
independent media.
The development is moving forward. The terrific volunteers at the Progressive
Coders Network have done a
lot of work on the backend—the content ingestion and admin system for the app.
The user experience design is nearly
Newsletter
OptOut's Weekend Picks: Special 'Law and Order' Edition Dear Supporters,
Another week has gone by. It’s been a tough one in the U.S., with increasing
fascism and white nationalism from the White House, law enforcement, and their
vigilante allies. I’m going to skip the usual intro and updates and get right
into our news roundup, which will mostly focus on these issues.
Thank you as always for
Newsletter
OptOut's Weekend Picks (Aug. 29, 2020) Hey there, OptersOut!
As journalists, we know that our industry is in crisis. A handful of corporate
media giants dominate the news and inundate us with the banal and the salacious.
Our forthcoming OptOut app will challenge society’s dependance on the corporate
news business. We will curate news picks for you throughout the day and offer
Newsletter
Monday News! Hello, OptersOut! Today we’re adding a news roundup for you that you’ll get
every Monday afternoon with five news and opinion items from the weekend and
today. When we launch the app, you’ll have a constantly updated feed of content,
but until then, we’ll hit you with several roundups per week.
First, I spoke with Indiegraf about this a
Newsletter
OptOut's Weekend Picks (Aug. 22, 2020) Greetings, OptersOut!
I’m Walker Bragman, co-founder of OptOut.
First, welcome to our new partners this week!
* QAnon Anonymous podcast where hosts Jake, Julian, and Travis chop and screw the wildest
conspiracy theories of the post-truth era.
* Staying Home with Josh Fox
filmmaker Josh Fox,
an OptOut adviser, chats with...
Newsletter
OptOut's Weekend Picks (Aug. 15, 2020) Dear Supporters,
It’s been a great week for new media partnerships! Since last week, we’ve added
12 great new partners to the OptOut fam. Word about our forthcoming nonprofit
news app for 100% independent media is spreading, and news websites, podcasts,
and YouTubers are taking note.
Here are our latest additions:
* Belly of the...
Newsletter
Weekend picks from OptOut Dear Supporters,
Since promoting our user Thursday we’ve had 266 respondents! Thank you to those who took the five
minutes to answer our questions—your answers will help us design a user
experience to meet your needs. If you haven’t filled it out yet, please do, and
share widely!
Take the survey Yesterday we hit a landmark: 50 media...
Newsletter
It's Time For That User Survey! What a week so far!
Since publishing our first Substack newsletter on Monday, we’ve gotten over
4,200 views and hundreds of new subscribers, including 67 paid supporters. We’ve
raised nearly $3,000 in immediate revenue, which will help us pay for our logo,
nonprofit incorporation fees, marketing, web hosting, and other initial costs.
We
Newsletter
A nonprofit news app that's 100% free of corporate media narratives. Welcome to OptOut, a forthcoming nonprofit news app where you can completely
bypass the corporate media and read, listen to, and watch exclusively
independent content.
To those who subscribed to this newsletter via the OptOut launch thank you for your
interest in our project! If you haven’t subscribed yet, please do; you can...
