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

2026-01-12 · 87 min · episode 387 · 12 entities

episode page audio

Asserted relationships

→ references The Great Train Robbery book

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PDATE: Cal gives his weekly reading update [1:18:28] Airframe (Michael Crichton)The Great Train Robbery (Michael Crichton) Fantastic Voyage (Isaac Asimov) Links:Buy Cal’s latest book
→ references Fantastic Voyage book

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[1:18:28] Airframe (Michael Crichton)The Great Train Robbery (Michael Crichton) Fantastic Voyage (Isaac Asimov) Links:Buy Cal’s latest book, “Slow Productivity” at calnewport.
→ hosted by Cal Newport person

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Feed author/publisher: Cal Newport
→ discusses Education concept

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Feed category: Education
→ discusses Technology company

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Feed category: Technology
→ discusses Self-Improvement concept

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Feed category: Self-Improvement

Entities found in this episode

books 4

mentioned The Great Train Robbery book

0.91

evidence rules-v5
PDATE: Cal gives his weekly reading update [1:18:28] Airframe (Michael Crichton)The Great Train Robbery (Michael Crichton) Fantastic Voyage (Isaac Asimov) Links:Buy Cal’s latest book
mentioned Fantastic Voyage book

0.78

evidence rules-v5
[1:18:28] Airframe (Michael Crichton)The Great Train Robbery (Michael Crichton) Fantastic Voyage (Isaac Asimov) Links:Buy Cal’s latest book, “Slow Productivity” at calnewport.
references The Great Train Robbery book

0.77

evidence rules-v5
PDATE: Cal gives his weekly reading update [1:18:28] Airframe (Michael Crichton)The Great Train Robbery (Michael Crichton) Fantastic Voyage (Isaac Asimov) Links:Buy Cal’s latest book
references Fantastic Voyage book

0.67

evidence rules-v5
[1:18:28] Airframe (Michael Crichton)The Great Train Robbery (Michael Crichton) Fantastic Voyage (Isaac Asimov) Links:Buy Cal’s latest book, “Slow Productivity” at calnewport.

concepts 4

mentioned Education concept

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evidence rules-v5
Feed category: Education
mentioned Self-Improvement concept

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evidence rules-v5
Feed category: Self-Improvement
discusses Education concept

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evidence rules-v5
Feed category: Education
discusses Self-Improvement concept

0.40

evidence rules-v5
Feed category: Self-Improvement

persons 2

mentioned Cal Newport person

0.70

evidence rules-v5
Feed author/publisher: Cal Newport
hosted by Cal Newport person

0.55

evidence rules-v5
Feed author/publisher: Cal Newport

companys 2

mentioned Technology company

0.50

evidence rules-v5
Feed category: Technology
discusses Technology company

0.40

evidence rules-v5
Feed category: Technology

Episode description as stored

Last year, when columnist Paul Krugman left the NYT, it seemed like yet another example of the traditional media crumbling. But Krugman, as it turns out, is doing great. His popular substack now reaches massive audiences and earns him a seven-figure salary. Inspired by this story, in the ideas segment of today’s episode, we take a closer look at key numbers relevant to whether paid newsletters can replace traditional print media. Then, in the practices segment, we study some viral advice for spending less time on your phone. Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with their timestamps). Get your questions answered by Cal! Here’s the link: bit.ly/3U3sTvo Video from today’s episode: youtube.com/calnewportmedia DEEP DIVE: Can Substack Save Journalism? + Viral Advice for Ignoring Your Phone [0:02] PRACTICES SEGMENT: How to successfully delete social media [50:40] Is it ok to use ChatGPT to try to better understand some classics? [1:04:51] How do I decide what to write down when I use the notebook method? [1:06:10] For professional writers trying to succeed today, isn’t Substack the platform of the moment? [1:12:00] CAL’S READING UPDATE: Cal gives his weekly reading update [1:18:28] Airframe (Michael Crichton)The Great Train Robbery (Michael Crichton) Fantastic Voyage (Isaac Asimov) Links:Buy Cal’s latest book, “Slow Productivity” at calnewport.com/slow Get a signed copy of Cal’s “Slow Productivity” at peoplesbooktakoma.com/event/cal-newport/ Cal’s monthly book directory: bramses.notion.site/059db2641def4a88988b4d2cee4657ba?cjr.org/analysis/paul-krugman-leaving-new-york-times-heavy-hand-editing-less-frequent-columns-newsletter.phpsubstack.com/@paulkrugmannatesilver.net/p/always-be-bloggingreallygoodbusinessideas.com/p/most-popular-substackspewresearch.org/journalism/fact-sheet/newspapers/rnz.co.nz/life/culture/any-attempt-to-simplify-elon-musk-is-futile-the-nz-cofounder-of-substackdaringfireball.net/2024/11/regarding_and_well_against_substackyoutube.com/watch?v=eUSBKj5ZQpo Thanks to our Sponsors: meetfabric.com/deeppipedrive.com/deepfactormeals.com/deep50offmonarch.com (Use code “DEEP”) Thanks to Jesse Miller for production, Jay Kerstens for the intro music, and Mark Miles for mastering. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices