87 Comments
Dec 24Edited

Merry Christmas Ken to you and your family. A couple of comments I'd like to offer:

1. I think your Substack benefits considerably from you doing actual reporting with sources instead of just opinion pieces.

2. I also think you were wise to bring in Bill Arkin as an editor. A lot of other substacks could use a good editor.

As a subscriber, I feel I get good value for the money I spend here. Where else can you get tomorrow's news today.

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Thanks, Joe! Yeah, I really didn't want this to become The Ken Klippenstein Show. Bill has decades of experience and expertise that I don't.

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Looking forward to what you do in 2025, Ken! It is great to consume journalism that doesn’t feel like I’m being force fed someone else opinion. You rock

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Thanks, Kate!

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Merry Christmas enjoy the precious time with your loved ones.

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Likewise, Jannice!

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I got tears in my eyes and felt some hope reading this, so I subscribed. Have to keep you writing, Mr. Klippenstein! 😁😁

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Thank you Susan! I will do everything I can to live up to deliver for you and other subscribers.

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Nice post!

I think about journalism quite a bit as I am up against what is called journalism here at a local level.

I have been picketing with my "Palestinian Lives Matter" sign for six weeks now. I composed a letter to the local newspaper telling of the mostly positive responses by the public passing on the street and sidewalk. Only a few yell profanities.

The paper will not publish my letter. I have pointed out to them that my letter meets all their guidelines for submissions. Silence from them.

In addition, I wrote the city council including the mayor asking each person to respond by telling me they stand for liberty and justice for all and not for ethnic cleansing by Israel. It is impossible to support both as one negates the other.

Not a single response. I mention this failure to respond in my letter to the newspaper. To have this published would put the council and mayor in a uncomfortable position for their hypocrisy.

A man stands alone in front of a synagogue with a sign saying Palestinian lives matter while displaying a Palestinian flag. Quite a story, I'd say! Both local papers are ignoring me, though a real journalist would jump on this topic.

It's nice to have you as an example of the real thing.

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"(although for some reason it’s okay for the media to circulate these things among themselves)."

This.

I remember all the tut tutting over whether it was appropriate for BuzzFeed News to release the Steele Dossier and the moment it came out and could be subjected to outside scrutiny is when it all fell apart. When it was just Harry Reid saying how serious it was to reporters, it seemed a lot more impressive.

I really appreciate you releasing actual source documents that you obtain so people can review them for themselves. Among other things, it helps one become a better consumer of the MSM because you can compare the actual source document with how it's characterized in the news pieces.

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Thank you, Ken, I am a relatively new subscriber and appreciated reading your background story. I’m glad your courageous move has paid off. Stay safe and take care of yourself. Good luck and continued success in 2025.

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Paid off more than I could have imagined. The freedom to say exactly what I think is so liberating. Happy holidays, Jean.

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Just upgraded. Thanks for all you’re doing.

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Thanks so much, Chantal. Really.

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As a former daily newspaper reporter, and even a Columbia University J-school grad, it's heartening to me that so many excellent and dedicated journalists like you have chosen to go independent and that platforms like Substack and Patreon are available allow you to do that and me to support you and others like you as you begin to replace the sadly compromised and unreliable establishment/corporate media that have left me and many others in desperate need of alternative sources of more relevant, penetrating and truthful news and information. Until perhaps two years ago, even after the DNC trashed Bernie Sanders, I was still putting my hopes for some positive change in our electoral system, making campaign contributions to selected candidates. That's now over for me. The deeply big donor-dominated and corrupted two-party duopoly is incapable of positive change, in fact, cannot be changed through normal electoral politics, including third-party politics. About 18 months ago I decided to stop making contributions to any political candidates, no matter their virtues, and to devote the few thousand dollars a year I had been putting into political donations and partisan advocacy groups (at least 10 percent of my retirement income) into supporting independent journalists, mostly through Substack and Patreon. I believe this, along with selected donations to specific non-partisan adjacent advocacy groups, is currently the best and perhaps only effective way of financially supporting positive change in our nation. Thank you for helping make this possible.

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Thanks for sharing your Christmas miracle story, Ken. Now I feel like the a-hole for being so hard on you in my comments 😂 it’s only that I share your frustration and disillusion, though I’ve been watching the decline of “journalism” and the mendacity of those in power for far longer. I am being ruthless with my media support dollars and you make the cut each month partly due to your attitude and sincerity. I appreciate your desire to shed light on what is withheld, even when I disagree with your take on things and I enjoy the comment section too. The path forward requires us to relinquish our complacency and step into our collective power. Your story shows how we can all go beyond what we once believed was possible. Hope, faith and joy are the words of the season - keep them close to your heart and you will have an amazing New Year!

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Disagreement is totally fine! Journalism isn't a science so you're often making judgment calls which naturally people disagree about. I can't promise I won't make mistakes but what I can promise is to always be straight with you about what I think and why. Happy holidays, Dana.

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Cheers!

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Merry Christmas and a Good New Year - which it will be because of writers, journalists, professors and lawyers here on Substack who find the facts, explain them so we all can understand, and supply us with the knowledge needed that turns into the power to fight back for change. Thank you for all you do.

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Thanks, Kimberly! Merry Christmas

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Holding power to account. That's the job of a journalist. No one does it better. I've noticed you have broadened the spectrum of those you hold accountable. Enjoy your holidays and keep bringing it.

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We were mutuals on Twitter years ago when you were still a relatively small account (I was @MsWildhack back then), so I feel personally invested and I couldn't not become a paid subscriber when you struck out on your own. So happy for you & grateful for your work.

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Thanks for getting in at the ground floor!

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Very glad to be a contributor to your excellent work. Happy holidays!

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Very glad to have you as a contributor. Happy holidays to you as well!

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Thanks for all your excellent journalism Ken. I am more than happy to see your work and and be a part of helping you keep up your productivity.

Peace…Manny

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Three words: way to go, and three more: keep it up!

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