Episode Details

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Traditional media is dying. Journalists are being laid off en masse. Trust in news is at historic lows, suppression has led to self-censorship. Are we witnessing the end of teh free press, or a rebirth. On tonight’s FiveStack, Substack co-founder Hamish McKenzie laid out a vision that could save journalism itself—and it's already working.

"This Has Absolutely Saved My Life"

Dean opened our exclusive interview with words you rarely hear directed at tech founders: "This is not another app. This is saving lives and families and free speech. It has absolutely saved my life."

He's not being dramatic. Both of us are living proof that Substack's model works. After years struggling in traditional media and social media platforms that rewarded sensationalism over substance, we found a platform that actually allows independent journalists to thrive. Dean gained 25,000 subscribers in two months. I've built a sustainable journalism business. But the numbers don't tell the whole story—it's about freedom.

From Tesla's Megaphone to Media's Revolution

Hamish's journey to building media's salvation began in an unlikely place: working for Elon Musk at Tesla. He reached out through the most unconventional networking strategy ever—emailing Elon's mom via her nutritionist website. It worked.

But Tesla taught him what not to build. "Elon really needs and wants to be the person who's effectively the editor of all of Tesla's communications," Hamish revealed. Instead of being an independent journalist inside the company, he became Tesla's voice—writing everything from blog posts to earnings reports.

This experience of being controlled, of having your editorial voice managed by a single powerful figure, directly influenced what Substack would become: the anti-Twitter, the anti-corporate media, the anti-everything that's wrong with today's information ecosystem.

The Death and Rebirth of Media

Hamish broke down media's evolution into three critical phases:

Phase 1: The Aristocracy (Traditional Media)A few powerful institutions controlled all information flow through ownership of printing presses, broadcast towers, and distribution networks. Built on a 100+ year old business model that the internet destroyed.

Phase 2: The Oligarchy (Social Media Era)"Everyone can have a voice," but power still flows to the top—Zuckerberg, Musk, the Chinese Communist Party. Writers dance for algorithmic peanuts while tech billionaires control the narrative.

Phase 3: The Democracy (The Substack Model)True ownership for creators. Direct relationships with readers. Economic power distributed to independent voices. "It's not about hoarding power, but distributing power."

The Algorithm That Builds Trust Instead of Division

Here's what most people don't understand about Substack: it has algorithms, but they're designed for the opposite purpose of social media.

While Facebook and Twitter use algorithms to trap users in addictive doom-scrolling sessions to serve more ads, Substack's algorithms "are trying to drive people into deeper relationships." They help readers discover writers they might "fall in love with and learn to trust over time."

The result? As I've experienced firsthand, you don't see the irresponsible journalism that floods Twitter. There's "upward pressure on quality because you get paid from your audience and then you have to hold on to their loyalty over time."

The Network: The Future of News

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