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The Ankler moves to new publishing platform created by Ben Thompson

Axios · · 556 words · By Sara Fischer
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What to know about The Ankler moves to new publishing platform created by Ben Thompson

The entertainment media startup The Ankler is migrating its publishing operations from Substack to Passport, a new subscription management platform created by Ben Thompson. The move is intended to provide the company with more control over audience data and greater flexibility in bundling its various media products.

Propaganda risk 10%
Claims checked 11
Techniques found 0
Topics 0

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage
Left0%
Center80%
Right20%

5 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

The Ankler, an entertainment media startup led by veteran Hollywood editor Janice Min and insider columnist Richard Rushfield, is moving its publishing operations from Substack to a new subscription management platform called Passport that was created by Ben…

Why it matters

Why it matters: While Substack does offer enterprise solutions for bigger publishers, it's used primarily by independent creators with less complex subscription offerings.

Common ground

As The Ankler's subscription business matures, it wants to find more ways to customize its subscription offerings and marketing efforts, Min told Axios in an interview alongside Rushfield.

Perspective signals

No major persuasion pattern has been attached yet, so the source, headline, and evidence should carry most of the weight for readers.

The entertainment media startup The Ankler is migrating its publishing operations from Substack to Passport, a new subscription management platform created by Ben Thompson. The move is intended to provide the company with more control over audience data and greater flexibility in bundling its various media products.

open_in_new Read the original article: https://axios.com/2026/04/28/the-ankler-substack-passport

analyticsAnalysis

10%
Propaganda Score
confidence: 95%
Low risk. This article shows minimal use of propaganda techniques.

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 11 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

check_circle Corroborated 5
info Single Source 3
help Insufficient Evidence 2
schedule Pending 1
schedule
Claim 1: “According to Substack, the company has "tens of thousands" of paid subscribers.”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
info
Claim 2: “The Ankler is its first major publishing partner besides Stratechery, the popular subscription newsletter written by Thompson since 2013.”
SINGLE SOURCE
The evidence confirms The Ankler is using Passport and that Stratechery uses it, but the specific claim that they are the 'first major publishing partners' is not independently corroborated by multiple sources in the provided text.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — The Ankler’s departure isn’t being treated as an isolated case. According to reporting in The Wrap and Status newsletter, several other major Substack publishers have privately expressed frustration a…
https://quasa.io/media/substack-s-growing-pains-why-top-publ…
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web search NEUTRAL — Passport is the new back-end for Stratechery. Stratechery, in a literal sense, is a website; you can choose to receive content from that website via email and, as of a year ago, podcast. Stratechery i…
https://stratechery.com/2021/passport/
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — The Ankler’s ready for its close up. The media company that covers the entertainment business just hired two new employees to double its staff to 14 from a year ago.
https://www.amediaoperator.com/profile/the-ankler-to-launch-…
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Claim 3: “The outlet will maintain a presence on Substack, including a weekly newsletter and live video product from Rushfield.”
CORROBORATED
Confirmed by The Ankler's own announcement and the Axios report that they will maintain a presence on Substack with a weekly newsletter and video content from Rushfield.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — The outlet will maintain a presence on Substack, including a weekly newsletter and live video product from Rushfield.
https://www.axios.com/2026/04/28/the-ankler-substack-passpor…
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web search NEUTRAL — We’ll maintain a presence there, including a weekly newsletter and live video. And yes, you heard it here first, Richard will continue to represent Ankler Media on Substack with a new, even more unfil…
https://theankler.com/the-anklers-next-chapter/
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — The Ankler defected from Substack this week… except for a free newsletter & some video content. They’re going to Ben Thompson’s new platform.Simon Owens pointed out that The Ankler will still be tappi…
https://www.linkedin.com/posts/tylermorin_the-ankler-defecte…
info
Claim 4: “The new Passport platform is being built in partnership with Automattic, the creator of the popular publishing platform WordPress.”
SINGLE SOURCE
While the move to Passport is corroborated, the specific partnership with Automattic/WordPress is mentioned in one web result ('The lens premium'), but not explicitly confirmed across multiple independent news reports in the provided evidence.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Passport acceptance facilities like post offices, clerks of court, and libraries have special passport fairs across the United States to help you get your passport. Adults who are first-time applicant…
https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/passports.html
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Use this service to apply for, renew, replace or update your passport and pay for it online. This service is also available in Welsh (Cymraeg). If your passport is burgundy or has ‘European Union’ on …
https://www.gov.uk/apply-renew-passport
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Cutout.Pro is the perfect online passport/visa/id photo maker, auto change background with proper sizes, e.g. 2''x2'', 4''x6'', etc.
https://www.cutout.pro/passport-photo-maker
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Claim 5: “The Ankler, an entertainment media startup led by veteran Hollywood editor Janice Min and insider columnist Richard Rushfield, is moving its publishing operations from Substack to a new subscription management platform called Passport”
CORROBORATED
Multiple sources confirm The Ankler is moving from Substack to Passport. This is explicitly stated in the Axios report and the official 'Our Next Chapter' announcement from The Ankler.
check_circle
Claim 6: “Moving forward, The Ankler will publish its content on an owned-and-operated site, supported by Passport's subscription infrastructure.”
CORROBORATED
Confirmed by the official announcement from The Ankler and the Axios report that they will use an owned-and-operated site supported by Passport's infrastructure.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Moving forward, The Ankler will publish its content on an owned-and-operated site, supported by Passport's subscription infrastructure. Its coverage focus, products and editorial voice will not change…
https://www.axios.com/2026/04/28/the-ankler-substack-passpor…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Instead, The Ankler is going back to the future with a fairly standard publishing stack built off WordPress. The PR made a big deal about the use of Passport, a payments tool developed by Ben Thompson…
https://www.therebooting.com/p/the-lens-premium
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Our rapid growth fundamentally has changed what The Ankler — and Ankler Media — are. Which brings us to today: The Ankler has moved off Substack and on to a new, independent platform — with our own ow…
https://theankler.com/the-anklers-next-chapter/
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Claim 7: “Passport... was created by Ben Thompson, an influential independent tech journalist.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple independent sources (Axios, The Ankler, and other web results) identify Ben Thompson as the creator of the Passport platform.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Yes! Create a Stratechery Passport account, go to Delivery Preferences, and add your personalized RSS feed. Free accounts will have access to Weekly Articles, while subscribers will have access to the…
https://stratechery.com/2026/microsoft-earnings-apple-earnin…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Does the Viral Passport Woman's Country Have Any Geographical Proof — or Is It Purely Fictional? From Taured to Torenza: Old legends in a new digital age.
https://www.ibtimes.co.uk/where-torenza-does-viral-passport-…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Pi7 Passport Photo Maker: Easily create personalized passport size photos with cropping, editing, and outfit customization for online submission. Try now.
https://image.pi7.org/passport-size-photo
help
Claim 8: “Launched in 2022 as a single newsletter product, The Ankler has expanded to become a multiplatform media company with 15 newsletters, podcasts, video products and a live events business.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was provided in the search results to verify the 2022 launch date or the specific count of 15 newsletters, podcasts, and video products.
info
Claim 9: “Ben Thompson has written the subscription newsletter Stratechery since 2013.”
SINGLE SOURCE
The provided web search results for 'Ben Thompson' were largely irrelevant (Ben 10, Ben Azelart) or focused on current Passport usage. There is no specific evidence in the provided results confirming the 2013 start date for Stratechery.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Benjamin Kirby "Ben" Tennyson, commonly known as Ben 10, is a superhero and the titular protagonist of the Ben 10 franchise.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ben_Tennyson
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Ben 10 is an American animated television series that serves as a reboot of the 2005 Cartoon Network series of the same name created by Man of Action. The series is served as a parallel world, and unl…
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ben_10_(2016_TV_series)
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — INSTAGRAM: @BenAzelart https://www.instagram.com/benazelart/ YOUTUBE: Ben Azelart https://www.youtube.com/benazelart/ SNAPCHAT: @BenAzelart
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwVg9btOceLQuNCdoQk9CXg
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Claim 10: “The Ankler is one of several news organizations, including The Bulwark and The Dispatch, that started out on Substack but have since migrated to broader platforms to scale.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple sources discuss the trend of publishers leaving Substack, specifically mentioning The Bulwark and others migrating to different platforms.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — The Ankler, an entertainment media startup led by veteran Hollywood editor Janice Min and insider columnist Richard Rushfield, is moving its publishing operations from Substack to a new subscription m…
https://www.axios.com/2026/04/28/the-ankler-substack-passpor…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — The Ankler is migrating to Passport, a platform developed by tech journalist Ben Thompson, a move that The Ankler chief executive Janice Min characterized as less as a rejection of Substack and ...
https://finance.yahoo.com/sectors/technology/articles/substa…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — They include the Bulwark, Zeteo and Feed Me, outlets that represent a significant share of Substack's top-performing business and politics verticals. Substack's standard 10% cut of subscription revenu…
https://www.networkisa.org/the-wrap/view/substack-faces-exod…
help
Claim 11: “The company has been profitable since it launched out of Y Combinator with a $1.3 million seed round.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was provided regarding Y Combinator, the $1.3 million seed round, or the company's profitability status.
info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.