Elon Musk looked about buying Substack in 2023, a year after he bought Twitter (now X). The New York Times claims that Musk came up with the concept in April over the phone with Chris Best, the CEO of Substack. Musk had a plan to combine Twitter’s premium service, Twitter Blue, which he has been aggressively marketing, with Substack, a blogging platform that requires a membership.
Elon Musk went so far as to offer Best the CEO post for the merged business. Best, however, turned down the offer, demonstrating Substack’s wish to maintain its independence. Substack began concentrating more on political material shortly after this discussion.
Musk Criticizes Substack’s ‘Twitter Clone’ Feature
In 2023, Substack launched a new feature called Notes, which allowed contributors to post brief updates to their followers. Musk was quick to criticize this move, calling it a “Twitter clone.”
Since Musk’s acquisition of Twitter, he has positioned the platform as a “digital town square,” emphasizing free speech as one of the key reasons behind his purchase. He even reinstated former President Donald Trump’s Twitter account in 2022. However, Substack has become a competitor in the realm of political commentary, particularly with the upcoming 2024 US presidential election.
Substack’s Rising Political Influence
Substack co-founder Hamish McKenzie expressed his ambition for the 2024 election to be “the Substack election.” This vision seems to be coming to fruition, as several notable political commentators have joined the platform. Notably, pollster Nate Silver, who was dismissed from ABC and FiveThirtyEight, signed up with Substack, lending credibility to the platform.
Substack, which takes a 10% commission from subscriptions, has seen an increase in political content, especially as the election cycle intensifies. This surge in political discussions has boosted the platform’s popularity, particularly in the lead-up to the 2024 US elections.