Deep Questions with Cal Newport

Ep 387: Can Substack Save Journalism? + Viral Advice for Ignoring Your Phone

Date: January 12, 2026 | Host: Cal Newport

Episode Overview

In this wide-ranging episode, Cal Newport explores two main themes:

1. The transformation of journalism in the digital age, centered on Substack and the rise of paid newsletters as possible replacements—or supplements—for traditional print media.
2. A "practices" segment analyzing viral advice (his own, in fact) about reducing phone and social media use, aiming to help listeners cultivate more depth and less distraction in their lives.

The episode blends careful statistical analysis, practical advice, and Newport’s signature reflections on technology, attention, and human thriving.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Substack Explosion: Is Paid Email Journalism Our Future?

[00:02–51:10]

A. The Paul Krugman Substack Story

• Context: Traditional journalism is struggling as digital distractions and free information flood our phones.

• Newport recounts Paul Krugman’s departure from the New York Times after editorial clashes led him to launch a Substack newsletter.

• Newport learned from a Krugman associate that far from fading into obscurity, Krugman’s Substack now has a paid subscriber count comparable to the Times’ Sunday print circulation, and his income has “leaped comfortably into the seven figure range.”

  “Paul is killing it. His subscriber count rivals the Times’ Sunday print circulation…earnings have leaped comfortably into the seven figure range.”
  — Cal Newport (summarizing a source), [00:04:00]

• Krugman’s Substack numbers, as analyzed:

  • 505,000 subscribers ([03:30])
  • Ranked #6 in US Politics newsletters
  • Posts almost daily; one subscriber-only post per week
  • Subscription fee: $7/month or $70/year

• Estimated financials (using Substack’s formulas & conversion rates):

  • 10% paid conversion: ~$4M/year
  • 5%: >$2M/year
  • 3%: >$1.25M/year

  “In every reasonable scenario, his seven day a week Substack has him doing much better financially than he could have been doing at the New York Times.”
  — Cal Newport, [08:00]

B. Is Newsletter Writing Sustainable as a Profession?

• Drawing on Nate Silver’s advice for Substack success (“Always Be Blogging”), Newport highlights:

  • Consistent output: at least 3 articles/week, often 40–50 hours of work (standard “full time” job).
  • Key to success is timeliness, unique takes, and ongoing skill in monetizing content.
  • Flexibility is a perk; you’re your own boss but need creative stamina.

  “You gotta be writing a lot...I take most nights off, I travel...but it’s a lot of work.”
  — Nate Silver (paraphrased), [12:10] “It’s more or less comparable to a full-time journalism job [...] not a lot less, not a lot more. It’s flexible.”
  — Newport, [16:07]

C. How Many Writers Are Succeeding on Substack?

• Top “Krugman-level” newsletters with >500,000 subscribers: ~34 total (2025 data)

• Broader “good living” threshold ($150K/year): Newport estimates ~500–1,000 writers across categories.

  “How many Substack millionaires are there? It’s like 34.”
  — Newport, [20:50]

D. Comparing Substack (and Paid Newsletters) to Legacy Newspapers

• US Newspaper “peak” (1980–2000s):

  • 60 million daily circulation
  • ~$50 billion annual revenue
  • 56,000 journalists/editors

• Today:

  • ~20 million daily circulation
  • ~$10 billion revenue
  • ~25,000 industry reporters/editors

• Substack (2025):

  • 5 million paid subscribers
  • $450M revenue
  • ~500–1,000 full-time newsletter writers

Projection:

• Substack’s co-founder Hamish McKenzie’s goal: “No laws of physics prevent Substack from reaching 50 million paid subscribers.” (i.e., possibly matching legacy media’s scale in the coming decades).

  “There is a sense of a little bit of a replacement being possible.”
  — Newport, [34:40]

E. Is Newsletter Media Better or Worse Than Newspapers?

Drawbacks of newsletters:

• Lack institutional fact-checking, copyediting, and legal oversight of newspapers
• Less on-the-ground reporting
• Tend to stronger, niche biases due to paywall incentives

Advantages:

• Bias is more transparent (aligned to personalities, not institutions)

• Star-making system drives quality writing

• More insulated from corporate/political pressure

• Competitive, audience-driven marketplace selects for the best communicators

  “You’re actually better off from a bias perspective with an individual writer...Paul Krugman is classically left [...] You can just adjust for what you’re hearing from Krugman. I’m not mad at him—that’s just who he is.”
  — Newport, [40:50] “The newsletter economy also has a really good star making system [...] In a competitive, infinitely scalable marketplace, the winners are going to be really good.”
  — Newport, [42:08]

F. The Risks: “Enshittification” and the Platform Trap

• Jon Gruber’s critique: Don’t let “Substack” become the brand instead of individual authors.

• Platforms chase mega-profit, risk turning into endless, algorithmically curated “slop” (like Facebook/Twitter/TikTok).

  “My number one concern is...I have a hard time imagining Substack cares about trying to create an alternative to print media. They want 50 million users that use it constantly.”
  — Newport, [46:38]

• The open web offers a safeguard—there’s a need for open-source, lower-friction alternatives for paid newsletters.

  • High friction (cost and complexity) makes going indie hard today.

  “We need a low-friction, indie Substack, or open source Substack, that isn’t interested in being a hundred-billion-dollar unicorn.”
  — Newport, [48:00]

2. Viral Advice for Ignoring Your Phone: The Psychology of Digital Distraction

[51:10–64:51]

A. The “Practices” Segment: Reaction to Newport’s Viral Huberman Clip

• Newport reviews a clip from a previous appearance on Andrew Huberman’s podcast, titled “How to Successfully Delete Social Media,” which exploded in popularity (1M+ views).

B. The Insights (with Commentary & Key Points)

1. You won’t realize the drag of phone/social media until you take a break.

   • Removing it initially feels brutal, but returning after abstinence makes the problems clearer.

   “You don’t know how much negativity being on your phone...injects into your life until you actually spend time away from it.”
   — Newport, [53:07]

2. Phone/social media often fills a psychological void, not just a time or productivity gap.

   • Many overuse digital distractions to “paper over” misalignment, boredom, or dissatisfaction.

   “For a lot of people, it’s papering over the void...unmet potential, unmet interest, living in misalignment with things you care about.”
   — Newport, [54:53]

3. Lasting change isn’t about willpower (“white-knuckling”).

   • Newport’s 1,600-person experiment: those who succeed in a 30-day “off social media” trial fill their time with new activities and interests, not just willpower.

   “The ones who succeeded...aggressively pursued alternatives...learn new hobbies, join things, get really involved...The others just white-knuckled it.”
   — Newport, [59:17; summarized]

4. Don’t start with phone settings—start with your life.

   • Instead of focusing on notification hacks or gray-scaling your phone, pursue a more meaningful, “activated” life, and “the shallower alternative is not going to be as appealing.”

   “The best advice about using your phone less...has nothing to do with your phone...It’s about everything else in your life.”
   — Newport, [61:44]

C. Takeaway Principle

• “If you’re worried about your phone, start worrying about making the rest of your life better. Then return to the phone and your habits. Don’t white-knuckle it. Make your life good, and the shallower alternative will be less appealing.”
  — Newport, [63:10]

3. Listener Q&A Highlights

[64:51–76:59]

On Using ChatGPT to Help Reading Classics
— Don’t interrupt focus while reading; queue up research before/after chapters. Use external sources to boost understanding, but stay in “deep” mode during the reading itself. ([65:01])

On Capturing Ideas in Notebooks
— Value comes from review and filtering, not obsessing over quality on the spot. Let raw ideas accumulate, then extract the gems later. ([66:19])

On Writing Revenue and Substack’s Role
— Substack is attractive because few other platforms let writers both reach and monetize sizable audiences—but the biggest risk is having only one (corporate-controlled) platform. ([72:24])

“Whenever we get new media forms, it doesn’t actually lead to a huge explosion in the number of people who can make a living...It just changes the way they can do it.”
— Newport, [73:15]

On the “Enshittification” of Platforms
— Platforms start as useful, then shift to “slop” as they chase maximal profit, degrading the experience; Substack could fall into this trap. ([77:23])

4. What Cal’s Been Reading: Thriller December

[77:59–End]

• Newport shares three thrillers he enjoyed in December: Michael Crichton’s Airframe (his favorite: “perfectly executed thriller”), The Great Train Robbery, and Isaac Asimov’s Fantastic Voyage.
• Airframe praised for pacing and technical detail; Fantastic Voyage for its quick-moving, classic adventure structure.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “It’s more or less comparable to a full-time journalism job...but it’s flexible. As Silver says, you can go play poker, do other things because you are your own boss.” — [16:07]

• “How many Substack millionaires are there? It’s like 34.” — [20:50]

• “You’re actually better off from a bias perspective with an individual writer...You can just adjust for what you’re hearing from Krugman. I’m not mad at him—that’s just who he is.” — [40:50]

• “My number one concern is...I have a hard time imagining Substack cares about trying to create an alternative to print media. They want 50 million users that use it constantly.” — [46:38]

• “The best advice about using your phone less...has nothing to do with your phone...It’s about everything else in your life.” — [61:44]

Timestamps for Key Segments

• 00:02 — The Krugman Substack story and the decline of legacy media
• 06:17 — Substack’s subscriber and paywall model explained
• 10:30 — Money: estimated Substack earning calculations
• 13:56 — The work required for newsletter success (Nate Silver’s advice)
• 22:10 — Number of successful Substackers
• 31:12 — Comparative analysis: Substack vs newspapers (circulation, revenue, jobs)
• 41:47 — Pros and cons: Can newsletters truly “save journalism”?
• 46:20 — Risks: Platform “enshittification”
• 51:10 — Practices segment intro: Viral phone/social media advice
• 53:07 — The emotional drag of social media revealed by abstinence
• 59:17 — Newport’s 30-day “off social media” experiment: Success factors
• 61:44 — Life first, digital hygiene second: The secret to lasting change
• 64:51–77:59 — Listener Q&A: books, note-taking, indie web, the “enshittification” cycle
• 77:59–End — Newport’s “Thriller December” reading roundup

Tone and Style

Cal Newport’s tone throughout is measured, analytical, and optimistic—but also skeptical of techno-utopianism and corporate hype. He weaves in dry humor, references to his collaborations/interviews, and a clear desire to ground practical advice in lived human experience and good data.

Summary Takeaways

• Paid newsletters like Substack offer a surprisingly robust (if not infinitely scalable) alternative to traditional journalism, with hundreds—possibly thousands—of writers able to make a good living.
• Newsletter journalism changes the flavor of bias and expertise: bias becomes more transparent, but institutional guardrails diminish.
• The greatest risk to this new ecosystem is platform “enshittification”: a single company chasing engagement and profit at the expense of quality and the creator economy.
• Real change in digital habits starts with building a deeper, more meaningful life—not merely tinkering with phone settings.
• The creator economy is still a tough pyramid: broad access to audiences doesn’t guarantee broad access to income.

For those seeking to navigate a distracted world, Newport’s message is clear: build depth, foster independence, and, when in doubt, look for the cracks where optimism can thrive—even as technology shifts under our feet.