I've had to turn off my Substack notifications over the last month. Constantly being pinged by journalists going live was becoming ridiculous. But here's what's actually happening: traditional media is getting disrupted in real time.

Yes, going live isn't new. What's different is who's doing it. You've got recognisable names—Katie Couric, Jim Acosta, Dan Rather, Tim Miller, Jessica Yellin—all independent journalists who used to work for legacy outlets. They're broadcasting from their living rooms, talking to sources on the ground where things are actually happening. Meanwhile, CNN is still switching on the studio lights.

Substack Live has quietly become the best breaking news service around.

If you want to understand the current U.S. political landscape through the lens of history, Anne Applebaum is essential. She's a Pulitzer Prize-winning historian and staff writer for The Atlantic who spent her career documenting the rise of 20th-century autocracies. Now she's applying that expertise to modern American "democratic backsliding."

Where to find her:

This month: Paper Girl by Beth Macy and Young Once by Nigel Planer.

In her 2025 memoir Paper Girl, Beth Macy (Dopesick) returns to her hometown of Urbana, Ohio, to care for her mother and investigate the divisions hollowing out rural America. Using her childhood job as a newspaper delivery girl as a metaphor for the "civic glue" that once held communities together, Macy blends rigorous reporting with personal vulnerability. She explores how economic decay, the opioid crisis, and political polarisation have fractured local life. https://a.co/d/052Z9QC

Young Once: A Life Less Heavy. I listened to this one. Nigel Planer, best known as "Neil the Hippy" from The Young Ones, delivers a hilarious and evocative account of his journey through the 1980s alternative comedy revolution. He blends personal history with a sideways love story, recounting his transition from university dropout and gravedigger to finding his tribe alongside Rik Mayall and Adrian Edmondson at the legendary Comic Strip. https://bit.ly/3Z78cm1

My eldest daughter is currently living and working in London. Here's her recommendation:

"The Cotswolds during Christmas, more specifically Burton-on-the-Water. So magical and just three hours out of London. Make sure you rug up and get one of their famous gelatos."

This month's recommendation comes from my eldest daughter (yes, the same one). The song is Postcard by David Dallas—a favourite of mine too, and it feels appropriate with her being so far away.

Scarlett and I went to the 10-year anniversary show of the album Rose Tint, which features this track. It was a great night at the Powerstation, one I'll never forget.

https://open.spotify.com/track/5r1LvL4Ap7XIxgieQaofnH?si=2342c55fb9bd4ff0

Send me your recommendations for next month. What's caught your attention? What's worth sharing?