Ask HN: Would you join a paid newsletter with daily uplifting news?

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14760589

by jiblyyyy • 9 years ago

8 22 9 years ago

news.ycombinator.com

I hardly ever follow mainstream news, because of its focus on evil and negativity.

I do find myself however hooked on searching for uplifting news items. Stuff that makes you feel good and slightly restores faith in humanity.

I was wondering if it'd be worth launching a daily newsletter for $3/mo to get uplifting news items sent to your inbox.

Looking forward reading your feedback.

Powerofmene2• 9 years ago

I probably would not want them daily as time is at a premium but would be willing to pay for either a weekly or biweekly newsletter that focused on news that is uplifting.

jiblyyyy• 9 years ago

Ah, good feedback, tnx. What would be a no-brainer monthly price point?

Powerofmene2• 9 years ago

As many have said these are available for free through subreddits etc. if you have time to go search. Personally time is very critical to me so I would not mind paying to have this delivered to me. I would not mind paying $25-$35 a year for it but would much prefer an annual fee to a monthly one and as I said, a biweekly or weekly delivery or update"

I am not sure it is a sustainable business model given how many are out there for free but if you are doing it for side income you might be able to make a little $ at it.

AznHisoka• 9 years ago

why would i pay that when i can get it for free in sites like upworthy.com?

mtmail• 9 years ago

https://www.reddit.com/r/UpliftingNews/ (12m subscribers) goes in that direction.

anmolparashar• 9 years ago

I sort of already do this with #smileMore [1], for free.

[1] https://smile.soochi.co

darrelld• 9 years ago

No, I wouldn't pay for it. As otheres have mentioned there are subreddits for this and some newspapers already have a uplifting section on their websites.

I like uplifting news, but I'm not willing to pay for it.

kronos29296• 9 years ago

Go 9gag yourself. Though 9 out of 10 posts are bad the tenth one always makes my day.

tmaly• 9 years ago

I think if I were to pay for a newsletter, it would be something that gives me a super productive way to learn something new. Maybe some sort of lessons that build on each other, but do not take more than 30 minutes to do.

I would not pay for news, personally it does nothing for me.

maxxxxx• 9 years ago

Honestly no. I think to make this work you have to filter out inconvenient news which opens the path to manipulation.

I would like something like "bare news". Just report what happened but don't try to explain or editorialize.

jacek2• 9 years ago

No. I would, however, pay for a weekly summary of all important information from the world and places that interest me. Just facts, no opinions, no spins. I am sick and tired of clickbaits, sensationalism, tabloid news, blowing things out of proportion and commentary of people who know next to nothing about the particular issue.

Don't get me wrong, I love good commentary, but I want facts first. Then I can choose to read commentary if I think that's worth it.

PascLeRasc• 9 years ago

You might like Up First by NPR. Daily instead of weekly, but it's very well-balanced and informative.

jacek2• 9 years ago

Thanks, this looks great.

paulcole• 9 years ago

No. There are already subreddits for this and I already get enough emails.

corobo• 9 years ago

I too am subscribed to /r/UpliftingNews/ and pondered making a website based on its content at one point

Serious answer though no. I'd not pay for a newsletter with any kind of bias, no matter how good the bias made me feel. Bring me a paper with real journalists and no (or as little as possible) bias and I'll pay for that

deegles• 9 years ago

I feel like monthly is too much cognitive overhead. Why not $25-$30/year? Or have a free version with ads + the paid version without ads. Paid subscribers could also get extra content or access to you.

Also, if you're getting started the priority (after good content) is to get lots of subscribers. Maybe give free premium for X referrals.

agitator• 9 years ago

I personally feel like psychologically i'm more willing to give $3 a month a try, and end up sticking with it since its only $3 a month, than to commit to $25 right of the bat.

mankash666• 9 years ago

No. I'm OK with real news being unpleasant as that's the real world we live in.

mattm• 9 years ago

News is news because it's unusual and not normal. How much of your daily life has anything to do with what's talked about on the news? I'd imagine very little.

qwtel• 9 years ago

appreciate that you go so directly after evaluating a business idea, but it's a bad one. if you were hellbent on making this work, you'd have to approach it from a different angle: Instead of "paying" for a "newsletter" (nobody gets excited about those things), you'd offer "membership" in a "community of uplifting individuals" or something along those lines. Personally, this kind of marketing newspeak turns me off massively, but I still remember a time when some flat design, sans-serif font and copy of this sort would get me excited. Since it's practiced by pretty much every startup, presumably somebody still likes to hear it.

also, i sell a jekyll theme that you can buy here: https://qwtel.com/hydejack/

cheezburger• 9 years ago

how would you chronicle Donald Trump misfortunes with an "uplifting" POV? Risks with "uplifting news" is talking only on details, naives anecdotes that ultimately don't shape as much the world as what's reported in the NYTimes.

Top19• 9 years ago

There is already a service that does this that I pay $5 a month for.

Optimist Daily...I believe it's run out of the Netherlands.

Ask HN: Would you join a paid newsletter with daily uplifting news?

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