Oliver Darcy on Status, Bari Weiss, and Why Media Reporters Are Too Soft

Two years ago, Oliver Darcy left CNN and launched Status, a paid newsletter focused on the media business. The basic bet was that readers would pay for the scoops and insider reporting he had been producing at CNN. That bet appears to be working. Status now has four full-time employees, more than 130,000 people on its email list, and “many thousands” of paying subscribers. Darcy has also added advertising, a podcast and YouTube show, and an upcoming live conference. He says subscriptions alone support the newsroom—and that he wants to build a media company that can eventually thrive without him. I asked Darcy how the business has evolved, what actually converts readers into paying subscribers, and why he’s spending money to expand a simple and profitable newsletter operation. We also talked about the story Status has covered more aggressively than any other over the past year: Bari Weiss’s takeover of CBS News, the upheaval at 60 Minutes, and what David Ellison may do with CNN if Paramount completes its Warner Bros. Discovery deal. And Darcy explains why he thinks much of the media press is too soft—and why he thinks the Status house style isn't hyperbole, but candor. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices