Why I Am Here Instead of Substack
## Metadata
- Author: [[Doc Searls Weblog]]
- Full Title: Why I Am Here Instead of Substack
- Category: #articles
- Document Note: ```markdown
---
tags: [Open Web, Blogging, Platforms]
author: [Doc Searls Weblog]
source: [doc.searls.com]
reference: [https://doc.searls.com/2025/10/01/why-i-am-here-instead-of-substack/]
date created: 2025-10-01 00:00
---
# 🏷️ Title: Why I am Here Instead of Substack
## 🧭 Table of Contents
- [📝 Summary](#-summary)
- [📖 Main Content](#-main-content)
- [🗒️ Notes](#️-notes)
- [📚 References](#-references)
- [🗣️ Paraphrase](#️-paraphrase)
- [📰 Newsletter](#-newsletter)
- [✅ Action Items](#-action-items)
- [🧪 Hypotheses](#-hypotheses)
- [📊 Methodology](#-methodology)
- [❓ Questions](#-questions)
- [🔮 Future Research](#-future-research)
- [💡 Implications](#-implications)
- [🧠 Learning Styles Assessment](#-learning-styles-assessment)
- [📊 Accessibility Assessment](#-accessibility-assessment)
- [🌍 DEIB Assessment](#-deib-assessment)
- [✅ Logical Validity](#-logical-validity)
- [🛡️ DARVO Analysis](#-darvo-analysis)
- [🎯 Conclusion](#-conclusion)
### 🔗 References
- Doc’s blog emphasizes self-hosted independence and RSS. https://doc.searls.com/2025/10/01/why-i-am-here-instead-of-substack/
- Hamish McKenzie frames Substack as a social app. https://substack.com/ (Exact post may require account access; accessibility may vary.)
- Dave Winer on open blogging and RSS interop. https://scripting.com/
- RSS background and ecosystem context. https://www.rssboard.org/
- Ghost as an alternative publishing platform. https://ghost.org/
## 📝 Summary
- Doc affirms blogging on his own site with RSS.
- He rejects Substack after it called itself a social media app.
- Stakeholders include independent bloggers, Substack, and open web advocates.
- Risks include platform lock-in and social feed incentives.
- Bottom line: Own your publishing; syndicate openly; avoid silos.
## 📖 Main Content
- Core argument: Blogging is open publishing with interoperable syndication.
- He values location independence, portability, and control.
- He views social media apps as siloed with misaligned incentives.
- He cites Dave Winer as a guide for the open blog ecosystem.
- He notes email subscriptions exist without ceding platform control.
- Uncertainty: Whether Substack can fully interoperate like blogs claim.
### 🗒️ Notes
### [H1] Blogging operates as open publishing ecosystem
> [!quote] [Why I am Here Instead of Substack](https://doc.searls.com/2025/10/01/why-i-am-here-instead-of-substack/) by [[Doc Searls Weblog]] via [[doc.searls.com]]. Published 2025-10-01. Accessed 2025-10-01.
> “This blog is mine. While it is hosted somewhere, it could be anywhere.”
Ownership and portability define independence. Hosting location should not matter.
[view highlight](https://doc.searls.com/2025/10/01/why-i-am-here-instead-of-substack/) #articleseed #xref ID:rw_[MISSING]
### [H2] RSS enables interoperable distribution without platforms
> [!quote] [Why I am Here Instead of Substack](https://doc.searls.com/2025/10/01/why-i-am-here-instead-of-substack/) by [[Doc Searls Weblog]] via [[doc.searls.com]]. Published 2025-10-01. Accessed 2025-10-01.
> “I publish it on my own, and syndicate it through RSS.”
RSS sustains an open network effect beyond silos.
[view highlight](https://doc.searls.com/2025/10/01/why-i-am-here-instead-of-substack/) #xref ID:rw_[MISSING]
### [H3] Open ecosystems differ from platform silos
> [!quote] [Why I am Here Instead of Substack](https://doc.searls.com/2025/10/01/why-i-am-here-instead-of-substack/) by [[Doc Searls Weblog]] via [[doc.searls.com]]. Published 2025-10-01. Accessed 2025-10-01.
> “Blogging is an ecosystem because it’s open… not… in somebody’s silo.”
Openness fosters resilience and choice; silos restrict agency.
[view highlight](https://doc.searls.com/2025/10/01/why-i-am-here-instead-of-substack/) #articleseed ID:rw_[MISSING]
### [H4] Substack identifies as social media app
> [!quote] [Why I am Here Instead of Substack](https://doc.searls.com/2025/10/01/why-i-am-here-instead-of-substack/) by [[Doc Searls Weblog]] via [[doc.searls.com]]. Published 2025-10-01. Accessed 2025-10-01.
> “Substack is a social media app, by Hamish McKenzie.”
This framing signals silo incentives and engagement algorithms.
[view highlight](https://doc.searls.com/2025/10/01/why-i-am-here-instead-of-substack/) #xref #addendum ID:rw_[MISSING]
### [H5] Platform framing reduces perceived independence
> [!quote] [Why I am Here Instead of Substack](https://doc.searls.com/2025/10/01/why-i-am-here-instead-of-substack/) by [[Doc Searls Weblog]] via [[doc.searls.com]]. Published 2025-10-01. Accessed 2025-10-01.
> “Calling Substack ‘a social media app’ is… a huge downscale move.”
Independence and portability matter more than social features.
[view highlight](https://doc.searls.com/2025/10/01/why-i-am-here-instead-of-substack/) #articleseed ID:rw_[MISSING]
### [H6] Email subscriptions work without ceding control
> [!quote] [Why I am Here Instead of Substack](https://doc.searls.com/2025/10/01/why-i-am-here-instead-of-substack/) by [[Doc Searls Weblog]] via [[doc.searls.com]]. Published 2025-10-01. Accessed 2025-10-01.
> “Get New Posts By Email… subscribe.”
Email can complement RSS and preserve ownership.
[view highlight](https://doc.searls.com/2025/10/01/why-i-am-here-instead-of-substack/) #xref #share ID:rw_[MISSING]
## 📚 References
- Dave Winer on the blogging ecosystem and RSS interop: https://scripting.com/
- RSS specification and best practices: https://www.rssboard.org/
- Ghost platform overview: https://ghost.org/
- Substack product and positioning: https://substack.com/
## 🗣️ Paraphrase
- The author prefers self-hosted blogging with RSS for independence.
- He rejects Substack’s social app framing and chooses open interop.
## 📰 Newsletter
- Doc Searls argues for owning your blog and using RSS.
- WordPress excels here with feed by default and full control.
- Consider Feedly, Follow, and newsletters from your own site.
- Resource: WordPress RSS guides and Ghost export tools.
- Read Doc’s rationale: Why self-host beats platform silos.
- Links: WordPress Feeds https://wordpress.org/support/article/wordpress-feeds/ • Dave Winer https://scripting.com/
## ✅ Action Items
#### DevRel
- Publish a guide on WordPress RSS and email from your site. #articleseed
- Demo moving from platform to WordPress with redirects. #articleseed
- Create examples for IndieWeb, WebSub, Micropub integrations. #xref
- Run office hours on content portability strategies. #share
- Add success metrics for owned-audience growth and retention. #articleseed
#### OSPO
- Draft an open publishing position and procurement checklist. #addendum
- Define platform exit criteria and content export requirements. #xref
- Recommend RSS/WebSub for official communications. #articleseed
- Establish policy on avoiding engagement-optimized silos. #policy
- Report portability KPIs and risks quarterly. #xref
#### Community
- Host a meetup on owning distribution and feeds. #share
- Build a starter pack for email + RSS on WordPress. #articleseed
- Pair contributors to add feeds and signup blocks. #xref
- Publish transparency notes on platform dependencies. #addendum
#### WordPress
- Documentation: Improve RSS/email tutorials and examples. #articleseed
- Core: Validate feed defaults and WebSub plugin guidance. #xref
- Marketing: Campaign on “Own your content, syndicate openly.” #share
- Training: Lesson plans on portability best practices. #articleseed
- Meta: Highlight feed discovery in .org profiles. #xref
- Plugins: Curate export, newsletter, and WebSub options. #xref
#### The WPCC
- Fund microgrants for portability tooling and docs. #articleseed
- Sponsor governance clinics on platform dependency risk. #addendum
- Publish impact reports on open distribution adoption. #share
### FAIR
- Define portability covenants and anti-capture clauses. #addendum
- Ship scorecards for platform export and syndication. #articleseed
- Provide signing and provenance patterns for feeds. #xref
## 🧪 Hypotheses
- Blogs with RSS grow more resilient audiences than silo-only.
- Platforms framed as social apps increase lock-in risk.
- Email plus RSS reduces churn versus social-only feeds.
- Portability policies correlate with higher contributor retention.
###
- Summary: This blog is mine. While it is hosted somewhere, it could be anywhere. The main thing: it isn’t on a platform, and doesn’t have to be. I publish it on my own, and syndicate it through R…
- URL: https://doc.searls.com/2025/10/01/why-i-am-here-instead-of-substack/
[](https://flickr.com/photos/docsearls/54825806433/i)This “here” is one of my favorite spots in the world: Mt. Wilson, overlooking Los Angeles. Maybe there’s a better visual to head what I’m trying to say in this post, but I can’t think of one right now.
This blog is mine. While it is hosted [somewhere](https://pressable.com/), it could be anywhere. The main thing: it isn’t on a platform, and doesn’t have to be.
I publish it on my own, and syndicate it through RSS.
This puts me in a publishing ecosystem that is wide open and full of interop. If you want to know more about how the blogging ecosystem works, [read Dave](http://scripting.com/). He’s the blogfather, and pioneering in many useful and fun directions.
Blogging is an ecosystem because it’s open, as are ecosystems in nature. It’s not sitting on somebody’s platform or contained in somebody’s silo.
Substack is a platform. I am told that one can move from Substack to Ghost or wherever. And, if that’s the case, that means it operates in a larger ecosystem, which is blogging. At least that’s how I’ve tended to think about it.
But then today by email came the newsletter version of [Substack is a social media app](https://post.substack.com/p/substack-is-a-social-media-app), by [Hamish McKenzie](https://substack.com/@hamish). My instant response was a mix of *Huh?* and *Yuck*. Because I thought they were a form of blogging. Meanwhile, all of social media as we’ve known it is silo’d and in deep ways very icky. Calling Substack “a social media app” is, at least for me, a huge downscale move.
Blogging is just publishing, plus whatever grows naturally around that. It’s a *how*, not a *where*, which makes it a much better *what*. And that *what* isn’t “a social media app.”
Anyway, my thinking isn’t complete on this, and may never be. But what Hamish wrote in that newsletter turned me off to ever blogging on Substack. I like my freedom and independence.
By the way, if people want to subscribe to my blog in newsletter form, they can do that. Look on the right (or on mobile, at the bottom) for “Get New Posts By Email,” and subscribe. I have 92 subscribers so far. Just remember that I almost always keep editing what I write. For example, my [last](https://doc.searls.com/2025/09/23/the-continuing-end-of-ota-tv/) [two](https://doc.searls.com/2025/09/30/on-the-continuing-end-of-ota-tv-part-2/) blog posts started as one, and I’m still not happy with either of them., Why I Am Here Instead of Substack, Doc Searls Weblog, 01k6gjegs4ezxyrkp93141zet8.