Say no to gentry journalism. Independent journalism full speed ahead

Gentry journalists hobnob with political celebrities. Independent journalists serve independent-thinking readers and need their support

Publishing frequently and on time is a key to building up your paid subscription base, say all the Substack pundants.

“Publish or perish,” every writer knows that.

Normally, I spend 40-50 hours a week researching and writing stories, whether I publish them right away or not.

I prefer that my articles are properly prepared before I serve them, so my publishing days and times vary.

Until recently, I had increased my output, posting four or five original stories a month for SoCal Water Wars, this newsletter about water-management politics.

Subscriptions went up, but not enough. In the past month, as credit-card companies flooded my phone with collection calls (call blocking doesn’t work on bankers, of course), I froze.

I couldn’t even think about writing.

Whenever I tried, my thoughts converted to actions that easily created success and peace of mind, like cleaning the house, bathing the dog, and taking naps.

Or riding my bike along the beautiful Silver Strand beach in San Diego County, then turning a bit inland to the pristine shores of the South Bay where I parked and laid out on the sand to read and sleep.

I was mentally and physically exhausted, a direct result of overwork, sleep deficiency, unstable finances, and—at almost 69-years-old—doubts about what I will leave behind for loved ones and the world.

I tried, but was unable to ignore the big question any longer: why am I still doing this?

A big part of the problem, as I see it, is that many news junkies still believe that gentry-class journalists bred by corporate pimps are uniquely qualified to report hard news.

Gentry journalists hobnob with favored politicians. More partners than adversaries, the two groups form exclusive clubs in their mutual self-interests, validating each other’s professional credentials and snubbing competition from independent journalists, the underclass.

Gentry class journalists who go to Substack find it easier to make money than most independent journalists because at first their large reader-base follows them from their corporate platforms.

Readers who buy into gentry-journalism are much less likely to give their money to independent journalists.

But there are other potential readers who consider themselves independent thinkers, who feel snubbed by gentry-class journalism and resent it.

They are the independent journalist’s chance for salvation—both spiritually and, just maybe, financially.

All of which reminds me of Poseidon Water’s giant ocean desalination scam and my brief interview with former U.S. Senator Barbara boxer at the Sacramento Press Club on September 27 of 2017.

That memory allowed me to gain enough momentum these past two weeks to slowly emerge—one sentence at a time—from the grips of my writer’s malaise; I hope that I can inspire other downtrodden journalists and readers on substack when I tell all about it next week.

Photo: SoCal Water Wars

I’m sticking with it and here are a few of the stories I’m working on:

• What’s not being said about the rise and fall of the Cardenas political machine

• Meeting water conservation and loss prevention goals: what works and who’s dragging their feet?

• Inequity + arrogance = budget crisis at SDCWA

• What does the war in Gaza have to do with your local water district?

• Surf City fascism

• Water reuse progress in the Inland Empire

• Sweetwater’s dam problems

• San Diego County’s River of Shit