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Friday, March 29
The Indiana Daily Student

opinion

COLUMN: The internet audiences need to support online publications

Many independent publications are closing down due to an unsustainable readership and online environment.

"The Toast," a blog known for its eclectic essays and riffs, is officially gone from the internet. The website was distinct in its hilarious and insightful posts, providing internet classics like “Two Monks Invent Medieval Art.”

 Co-founders Nicole Cliffe and Mallory Ortberg announced in 2016 that the website was no longer financially sustainable in the current environment due to insufficient traffic and readership. The archives were available for a while, but unfortunately, they are no longer accessible as of this month. This is just one example of the tragic downfall of small, independent publishing online for emerging writers.

Last month, online publication "The Awl" announced its closing for similar reasons, along with its sister publication, "The Hairpin." "The Awl" started in 2009 and became famous for its humorous commentary, essays, gossip and asides. Many writers were able to experiment and submit their work, which became a starting point for them to get noticed. Contributors went on to write for "The New Yorker," "New York Magazine," "Vox" and more.

Max Linsky tweeted, “For many years when promising young writers asked me for career advice I told them to apply for jobs at alt-weeklies. For years after those jobs disappeared I told them to pitch 'The Awl.' No idea what to tell them these days.”



Online publications are limited in how they can bring in revenue. The main method is running a lot of advertisements, which can be extremely inconvenient and drive away readers. Another method is generating more content to appeal to the mainstream news cycle that currently dominates media. 

This is what destroys small and independent publications. Pieces such as “Two Monks Invent Medieval Art” do not fit anywhere into the mainstream news cycle, and changing and targeting content destroys the heart and spirit of these independent publications. This is essentially what lead to the downfall of "The Toast," "The Awl," and "The Hairpin." The original content could not survive in an online universe dominated by sensationalized political media.

All of this is not to say small, independent publishing is dead. There is a lot of amazing content being written if you know where to look. My personal favorite publication, "The Niche," provides creative pieces on random little elements of media, pop culture and life in general. 

It obviously started as an inside joke between friends, but has gained a loyal and dedicated following in the past year. "The Niche" has provided many genius pieces such as “Tell Us How You Ended Up Marrying Your Way Into A Creepy Mansion That Definitely Has A Haunted Attic And We’ll Guess Which Malevolent Spirit Is Haunting It!” and “Paddington 2 vs. Every 2017 Oscar Nominee: A Deathmatch.” 

What makes "The Niche" incredibly special is its contributors are writing and generating content for no other reason than the pure love of writing and sharing their ideas as well as their humor. At the same time, it is sad extremely talented writers have to settle for sharing their content as a hobby without gaining any profit. In a perfect world, aspiring and independent writers could make a living writing about their passions without having to sell to the mainstream news cycle. 

With  internet users and media doing everything it can to drive out independent writers, we need your voices now more than ever. Submit to blogs and start your own, post your work everywhere, and share it with absolutely anyone who will listen. Passionate writers will never be silenced.

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