The Fifth Column (A Podcast)
Investor Due Diligence Report
substackMedia
Your weekly rhetorical assault on the news cycle, the people who make it, and occasionally ourselves.
68K
4.5K paid
~0%
Subscriber count is a platform estimate
Insufficient data
29 of 30 days needed
Pricing
$10/mo
$100/yr annual option
$36K
4.5K paid subs
$36K/mo – $36K/mo(±0%)
59.1
91.4
0.22%
(comments + likes) / subscribers
~3x per week
3.5 posts/week
76/100
Consistent (~2.3d avg)
| Newsletter | Subscribers | Weekly Growth | Price | Platform |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Popular Information | 541K | N/A | $6/mo | substack |
| Steady | 538K | -0.1% | $5/mo | substack |
| Big Think | 398K | +1.0% | $15/mo | substack |
| Raw America | 271K | +1.3% | $8/mo | substack |
| Seymour Hersh |
| Month | Subscribers | Est. Revenue | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 2026 | 64K | $33,835.2 | — |
| Mar 2026 | 68K | $35,949.9 | +6.2% |
| Apr 2026 | 68K | $35,949.9 | ~0% |
| May 2026 | 68K | $35,949.9 | ~0% |
Platform Dependency
Uses substack platform
Publishing Consistency
Regular publishing schedule
Key Person
Single-author publication — key-person dependency
Audience Concentration
Some posts outperform significantly
Subscriber threshold
68K subscribers — above the 3K category median for first paid tier
Has paid tier
Active paid subscription offering
Peer monetization
100% of 42 similar-size peers in Media have paid tiers
Pricing position
$10/mo vs $6/mo category median (868 newsletters)
| Date | Monthly | Annual |
|---|---|---|
| Mar 2026 | $10 | $100 |
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 | 51/100 | 30% |
| Paid Subscriber Ratio | 90/100 | 25% |
| Publishing Consistency | 76/100 | 10% |
| 238K |
| N/A |
| $6/mo |
| substack |
Revenue Model
Active paid subscription tier