Many of you have asked me since our September launch whether I’d start another podcast, or what would become of Positively Dreadful, and I’ve always responded with vague, annoying answers like “stay tuned!”
Well, now all can be revealed.
Starting in January, I’ll be cohosting a new, weekly 2024 election podcast called Politix with
of Slow Boring.That covers the Who, What, and When. Now for the Why: Well there are a bunch of reasons!
Matt and I have been friends for nearly 20 years now, and it’s no stretch to say my career wouldn’t be what it has been without his support and guidance. That very much includes teaching me the ins and outs of launching a make-or-break solo venture on extremely short notice.
But we’re not launching Politix for me to show him gratitude. We’re doing it because:
We really enjoy talking about politics (sorry—Politix) together, and we think our conversations about it are pretty engaging.
There’s an important election coming up! We’re both covering it closely already, and we bring distinct perspectives to election news that we think people will find valuable both individually and in a ~~~dialectic~~~.
Relatedly: We don’t always agree with each other about politics, particularly in the Trump era. But we also both believe that the best way to handle those disagreements isn’t by sweeping them under the rug, or engaging in the kind of bitter denunciation that social media encourages, but through vigorous, good-faith debate. It’s the foundational principle of Off Message, and it’s sorely need right now, as liberals enter the election season divided and on the hind foot.
That’s all a high-minded way of saying we look forward to covering the 2024 race, debating tactical and substantive disagreements within the Democratic coalition, and (to borrow from
) staying laser focused on the stakes rather than the odds.In addition to all those things, we’ll also bring on guest panelists who have their own unique perspectives that you won’t typically find on other political podcasts or cable news segments.
Now for the Where:
Like all good shows, Politix will be available Wherever You Get Your Podcasts. But the feed will run through Politix.fm, which is its own Substack. That means listening to episodes in their entirety will require a subscription.
I know, I know, but unfortunately it’s the only practicable way to do this.
Podcast economics no longer support niche programming on an ad-based model. The bubble has burst.
Hosting the show on our existing Substacks would make it impossible to track and share revenue fairly.
We’ll be putting a lot of extra time and resources into this, including hiring a real producer to create a professional-quality product, so we can’t just tack it on to our existing programming as an afterthought.
Podcasts aren’t for everybody, and neither of us wanted to underwrite something for some of you by raising prices for new subscribers, or cutting back on existing output. Off Message is and will remain my primary gig, so nothing will change for those of you who aren’t Politix-curious.
But if you like Off Message, please do check out the first two episodes, which will be free. In the meantime, if you have questions, leave them in the comments or save them for tomorrow’s chat and I’ll answer as many as I can.
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Introducing Politix, A Podcast About The 2024 Election