Simon Owens
@simonowens.bsky.social
Media industry journalist who runs a newsletter and podcast. You can reach me at [email protected]
I just think Apple has done too little too late to stop its podcast app from bleeding market share. Both Spotify and YouTube have user lock in because billions of people are already opening these apps to seek out non-podcast content. Meanwhile, the Apple Podcasts app only serves up podcasts, and it'
Apple Just Officially Ushered in Podcasting’s Generational Shift
Apple Podcasts’ fresh leap into video podcasts refocuses the audio medium on visuals
www.bloomberg.com
February 18, 2026 at 8:06 PM
I just think Apple has done too little too late to stop its podcast app from bleeding market share. Both Spotify and YouTube have user lock in because billions of people are already opening these apps to seek out non-podcast content. Meanwhile, the Apple Podcasts app only serves up podcasts, and it'
Occasionally people whine to me about the existence of online paywalls, so I’ve started asking them what news they actually pay for.
February 18, 2026 at 6:58 PM
Occasionally people whine to me about the existence of online paywalls, so I’ve started asking them what news they actually pay for.
I'm noticing more and more successful news publishers doing away with metered paywalls and just placing most of their content behind a hard paywall. I think metered paywalls only work if you're producing an enormous volume of content that can keep readers coming back over and over again until the me
Irish Times journalism now fully funded by subscribers
Editor interview as revenue generated by subscribers to The Irish Times is now fully funding its journalism for the first time.
pressgazette.co.uk
February 18, 2026 at 6:10 PM
I'm noticing more and more successful news publishers doing away with metered paywalls and just placing most of their content behind a hard paywall. I think metered paywalls only work if you're producing an enormous volume of content that can keep readers coming back over and over again until the me
Co-founder Nathan Thornburgh explained how the magazine Roads & Kingdoms rebuilt itself after Anthony Bourdain's death.
youtu.be/Qbgh8p_vdqg?...
youtu.be/Qbgh8p_vdqg?...
He Shut Down Time’s Moscow Bureau. Then He Built His Own Magazine
YouTube video by Simon Owens
youtu.be
February 18, 2026 at 4:42 PM
Co-founder Nathan Thornburgh explained how the magazine Roads & Kingdoms rebuilt itself after Anthony Bourdain's death.
youtu.be/Qbgh8p_vdqg?...
youtu.be/Qbgh8p_vdqg?...
I have to post a screengrab here because Bluesky has dumb fucking character restrictions (why it's stopped gaining ground on Threads and Twitter).
February 18, 2026 at 3:58 PM
I have to post a screengrab here because Bluesky has dumb fucking character restrictions (why it's stopped gaining ground on Threads and Twitter).
Yeah, I know a several liberals who are pro-AI. In fact, I know hardly anyone in real life who is super anti-AI.
the discourse on the transformer piece i do think shows that the debate over ai is breaking down political labels and boundaries faster than a lot of other issues we've seen before
"right" and "left" are sort of useless terms when talking about ai politics imo
"right" and "left" are sort of useless terms when talking about ai politics imo
February 18, 2026 at 2:32 PM
Yeah, I know a several liberals who are pro-AI. In fact, I know hardly anyone in real life who is super anti-AI.
If I text you this photo, I’m six months behind on my child support payments and need a ride to my job at Dunkin Donuts because my car was impounded after my third DUI
February 18, 2026 at 3:56 AM
If I text you this photo, I’m six months behind on my child support payments and need a ride to my job at Dunkin Donuts because my car was impounded after my third DUI
PAINKILLER OLD FASHIONED
February 18, 2026 at 3:39 AM
PAINKILLER OLD FASHIONED
A growing number of influencers are creating “sponsored” content that isn’t actually sponsored — they’re merely trying to signal to the marketplace that they work with major brands in order to make themselves look credible when pitching other brands for sponsorship.
Specfluencing: How ‘unofficial’ brand mentions are changing influencer credibility - Exchange4media
Specfluencing refers to creators tagging brands and producing content that resembles a paid partnership, without any formal association
www.exchange4media.com
February 18, 2026 at 1:42 AM
A growing number of influencers are creating “sponsored” content that isn’t actually sponsored — they’re merely trying to signal to the marketplace that they work with major brands in order to make themselves look credible when pitching other brands for sponsorship.
How many signals does the market have to send that Tesla makes shit products and has shit sales before the stock price comes crashing back to earth? No other company is given this much leeway with shareholders.
There is no longterm bull case for Tesla. None.
There is no longterm bull case for Tesla. None.
Tesla Robotaxis Reportedly Crashing at a Rate That's 4x Higher Than Humans
Tesla Robotaxis Reportedly Crashing at a Rate That's 4x Higher Than Humans
The incidents bring the robotaxi service to a total of 14 crashes since launching last summer.
gizmodo.com
February 18, 2026 at 1:23 AM
How many signals does the market have to send that Tesla makes shit products and has shit sales before the stock price comes crashing back to earth? No other company is given this much leeway with shareholders.
There is no longterm bull case for Tesla. None.
There is no longterm bull case for Tesla. None.
The reason this is potentially interesting is that Snapchat already has a somewhat successful subscription offering called Snapchat+. Theoretically, this means millions of users already have their credit card information uploaded to the platform, which reduces the friction for any creator looking to
Snapchat launches creator subscriptions in the US | TechCrunch
Snapchat will let creators set their monthly subscription price.
techcrunch.com
February 17, 2026 at 11:19 PM
The reason this is potentially interesting is that Snapchat already has a somewhat successful subscription offering called Snapchat+. Theoretically, this means millions of users already have their credit card information uploaded to the platform, which reduces the friction for any creator looking to
Although most Western social media platforms are blocked in China, many U.S. creators are still crossing the country’s “Great Firewall” to upload their content to Chinese apps. Some of the biggest creators are even traveling to China to cultivate their fan bases in person. Meanwhile, a cottage indus
Why Internet Stars Are Chinamaxxing
On the other side of the Great Firewall, there is no YouTube, but there are more than half a billion people who watch streamers. What happens when America’s top creators introduce themselves?
www.gq.com
February 17, 2026 at 10:25 PM
Although most Western social media platforms are blocked in China, many U.S. creators are still crossing the country’s “Great Firewall” to upload their content to Chinese apps. Some of the biggest creators are even traveling to China to cultivate their fan bases in person. Meanwhile, a cottage indus
Brands aren't eager to work with AI influencers, but any creator can set up affiliate accounts on ecommerce websites. Scammers are now creating deepfake versions of real influencers and then using their avatars to hawk beauty and health products -- often putting some ad spend behind a video to give
How Fake AI Influencers Generate Real Cash
From deepfakes to affiliate links, producers of AI influencers are finding ways to make money even if brands aren’t interested in working with them.
www.businessoffashion.com
February 17, 2026 at 9:16 PM
Brands aren't eager to work with AI influencers, but any creator can set up affiliate accounts on ecommerce websites. Scammers are now creating deepfake versions of real influencers and then using their avatars to hawk beauty and health products -- often putting some ad spend behind a video to give
The Creator Economy space is getting a little frothy when it comes to VC raises. What's the fundamental difference between an influencer marketing agency raising $70 million today vs Vice raising $70 million a decade ago? They're both subject to the same media economics.
Manager of Internet’s Biggest Stars Raises $70 Million to Expand
Night Media Inc., the talent management firm that represents social media celebrities such as popular Twitch streamer Kai Cenat, has raised $70 million to fund acquisitions and expand into gaming, spo...
www.bloomberg.com
February 17, 2026 at 8:41 PM
The Creator Economy space is getting a little frothy when it comes to VC raises. What's the fundamental difference between an influencer marketing agency raising $70 million today vs Vice raising $70 million a decade ago? They're both subject to the same media economics.
There’s a cafe in DC that charges a 10% “service fee” and then the default suggested tip on the screen is $5.
February 17, 2026 at 7:21 PM
There’s a cafe in DC that charges a 10% “service fee” and then the default suggested tip on the screen is $5.
An editor at the Cleveland Plain Dealer says the paper now directs its reporters to upload all their reporting “materials” to an AI writing assistant that then writes a first draft of an article. The reporters/editors then read over and edit the draft before it’s published to the web. He claims this
Journalism schools are teaching fear of the future: Letter from the Editor
Journalism schools lag in teaching AI, crucial for modern reporting, which aids in efficient news gathering and frees reporters for fieldwork.
www.cleveland.com
February 16, 2026 at 10:52 PM
An editor at the Cleveland Plain Dealer says the paper now directs its reporters to upload all their reporting “materials” to an AI writing assistant that then writes a first draft of an article. The reporters/editors then read over and edit the draft before it’s published to the web. He claims this
Reposted by Simon Owens
Absolutely enraging headline.
There's another world leader who has a lot more power and actually stumbles quite a bit more than AOC. Really curious why the Times doesn't frame his comments as having "some stumbles" as well!
There's another world leader who has a lot more power and actually stumbles quite a bit more than AOC. Really curious why the Times doesn't frame his comments as having "some stumbles" as well!
February 16, 2026 at 10:06 PM
Absolutely enraging headline.
There's another world leader who has a lot more power and actually stumbles quite a bit more than AOC. Really curious why the Times doesn't frame his comments as having "some stumbles" as well!
There's another world leader who has a lot more power and actually stumbles quite a bit more than AOC. Really curious why the Times doesn't frame his comments as having "some stumbles" as well!
I think just about every news publisher should have some kind of video podcast offering. From a production standpoint, it’s a relatively light lift, and it creates multiple new entry points to journalism you’re already producing in text form. Audiences can engage with the full-length podcast or vide
Exclusive: The Guardian debuts new flagship video podcast
The show is meant to compete with the likes of The New York Times and NPR.
www.semafor.com
February 16, 2026 at 9:57 PM
I think just about every news publisher should have some kind of video podcast offering. From a production standpoint, it’s a relatively light lift, and it creates multiple new entry points to journalism you’re already producing in text form. Audiences can engage with the full-length podcast or vide
I know this is an unpopular opinion on this app, but Bluesky would be 10X more popular if it simply did away with its super strict character restrictions. It's currently incredibly difficult to share an entire coherent thought without breaking it up into unreadable post threads.
February 16, 2026 at 9:26 PM
I know this is an unpopular opinion on this app, but Bluesky would be 10X more popular if it simply did away with its super strict character restrictions. It's currently incredibly difficult to share an entire coherent thought without breaking it up into unreadable post threads.
This is pretty much the Streisand Effect in action. In a place like Russia, it's relatively easy for Putin to intimidate journalists because they know he can have them killed. In the US, any arrest of a media figure will simply result in them growing more popular -- especially if they operate their
Trump officials condemned Don Lemon. He’s bigger than ever after arrest.
The administration’s attacks on Lemon and independent journalists have boosted their online attention and revenue.
www.washingtonpost.com
February 16, 2026 at 9:22 PM
This is pretty much the Streisand Effect in action. In a place like Russia, it's relatively easy for Putin to intimidate journalists because they know he can have them killed. In the US, any arrest of a media figure will simply result in them growing more popular -- especially if they operate their
There's an entire media ecosystem of podcasts now that can get big tech titans to come on as guests partly because those titans know the podcasters aren't going to ask them any tough questions.
Honestly, I can't fault the podcasters for this -- mostly because they never claimed to be producing hard
Honestly, I can't fault the podcasters for this -- mostly because they never claimed to be producing hard
Meet Molly O'Shea, the VC-turned-podcaster who gets execs like Alex Karp and Palmer Luckey talking
Molly O'Shea's network helped her land interviews with Palantir and Anduril leaders. "A lot of these people really trust me," the Sourcery host said.
www.businessinsider.com
February 16, 2026 at 9:15 PM
There's an entire media ecosystem of podcasts now that can get big tech titans to come on as guests partly because those titans know the podcasters aren't going to ask them any tough questions.
Honestly, I can't fault the podcasters for this -- mostly because they never claimed to be producing hard
Honestly, I can't fault the podcasters for this -- mostly because they never claimed to be producing hard
Reposted by Simon Owens
FRIEND WHO I HAVEN'T SEEN IN A WHILE: your kid's gotten so big! what is he, four?
ME: i have no idea what he's for
ME: i have no idea what he's for
February 16, 2026 at 8:37 PM
FRIEND WHO I HAVEN'T SEEN IN A WHILE: your kid's gotten so big! what is he, four?
ME: i have no idea what he's for
ME: i have no idea what he's for
The only way vertical videos will gain real traction on streaming apps is if studios commission original programming specifically optimized for mobile viewing. More likely, though, they’ll use these vertical feeds to recycle clips from existing TV shows and films. If that’s the case, they’ll just en
Hollywood wants to beat TikTok at its own game — but faces hurdles
Netflix, Disney, and Paramount are turning to short-form video as YouTube and TikTok take viewership time. But these quick clips aren't a cure-all.
www.businessinsider.com
February 16, 2026 at 8:41 PM
The only way vertical videos will gain real traction on streaming apps is if studios commission original programming specifically optimized for mobile viewing. More likely, though, they’ll use these vertical feeds to recycle clips from existing TV shows and films. If that’s the case, they’ll just en
Living in DC, there’s no worse day to go to the gym than a federal holiday.
February 16, 2026 at 6:57 PM
Living in DC, there’s no worse day to go to the gym than a federal holiday.
For decades, Diane Salvatore helped lead some of America’s most recognizable magazine brands, including Consumer Reports, where rigorous product testing and consumer safety were core to the mission. Now, as executive director of the MedShadow Foundation, she’s applying that same watchdog mentality t
How a small journalism nonprofit is holding the largest pharma companies to account
YouTube video by Simon Owens
youtu.be
February 16, 2026 at 6:06 PM
For decades, Diane Salvatore helped lead some of America’s most recognizable magazine brands, including Consumer Reports, where rigorous product testing and consumer safety were core to the mission. Now, as executive director of the MedShadow Foundation, she’s applying that same watchdog mentality t