The Ankler.
Investor Due Diligence Report
by Richard Rushfield
substackMedia
The business of entertainment.
Investor Due Diligence Report
by Richard Rushfield
The business of entertainment.
146K
6.2K paid
-0.2%
+1.0%
net growth
Pricing
$19/mo
$169/yr annual option
$87K
6.2K paid subs
$61K/mo – $113K/mo(±30%)
0.3
36.2
0.03%
(comments + likes) / subscribers
Daily
26.5 posts/week
91/100
Very Consistent (~1.2d avg)
| Newsletter | Subscribers | Weekly Growth | Price | Platform |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| User Mag | 99K | +0.5% | $8/mo | substack |
| FRESH HELL Tina Brown's Diary | 90K | +0.6% | $6/mo | substack |
| The Fucking News | 48K | N/A | $9/mo | substack |
| The Bureau | 36K | +1.8% | $11/mo | substack |
| So What |
| Month | Subscribers | Est. Revenue | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 2026 | 142.8K | $84,953.17 | — |
| Feb 2026 | 144K | $85,695.3 | ~0% |
| Mar 2026 | 146.5K | $87,179.57 | ~0% |
| Apr 2026 | 146K | $86,885.51 | ~0% |
Platform Dependency
Operates on custom domain (theankler.com)
Publishing Consistency
Regular publishing schedule
Key Person
Single-author publication — key-person dependency
Audience Concentration
Consistent engagement across posts
Subscriber threshold
146K subscribers — above the 3K category median for first paid tier
Has paid tier
Active paid subscription offering
Peer monetization
100% of 23 similar-size peers in Media have paid tiers
Pricing position
$19/mo vs $27.39/mo category average (839 newsletters)
| Date | Monthly | Annual |
|---|---|---|
| Jan 2026 | $19 | $169 |
Disclaimer: This report is generated automatically based on publicly available data and proprietary estimation models. Estimated subscriber counts are derived from engagement patterns and should be verified through direct disclosure. Revenue estimates are based on known pricing and estimated paid subscriber counts. This report is for informational purposes only and should not be the sole basis for investment decisions.
Score based on available components only.
| Component | Score | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| Engagement Rate | 50/100 | 30% |
| Paid Subscriber Ratio | 100/100 | 25% |
| Publishing Consistency | 86/100 | 10% |
| 33K |
| N/A |
| $6/mo |
| substack |
Revenue Model
Active paid subscription tier