Since the 2016 election, a new left-wing movement has gained serious steam in the United States, largely funded by small-dollar contributions. While candidates like Sen. Bernie Sanders set a new standard for building campaigns a few dollars at a time, popular socialist and intersectional voices have taken to the crowdfunding site Patreon to show that independent media can be sustained in the same way.
Here are six of the top new left creators on Patreon.
1. Street Fight Radio
Often cited as the godfathers of left-wing podcasting, Brett Payne and Bryan Quinby started their show in a place most new podcasters would have trouble imagining: Columbus, Ohio’s WCRS FM, an actual radio station. That was way back in 2011, at a time when both co-hosts were still scraping by with other full-time jobs, and their new show, Street Fight, was just a pipe dream for the two anarchist comedians. But after expanding the show into a podcast, then adding multiple bonus episodes a week, as well as their own monthly zine, live shows and other benefits for those paying between $1 and $12 a month on Patreon, the Street Fight boys are now earning upward of $15,000 per month. The show itself covers a wide array of topics, from frank discussions about labor, police brutality and drugs, to light send-ups of movies and TV shows, often accompanied by other online voices from the left.
2. Citations Needed
Media criticism was once purely the realm of egg-headed academics, right-wing cranks and the occasional legacy newspaper columnist. But thanks to talk radio, blogs and Twitter, now every reporter, pundit and cantankerous Facebook user is registering their take on the news about the news. In a world full of navel-gazing insiders and distrusting outsiders, journalists Nima Shirazi and Adam Johnson’s Citations Needed podcast is a breath of fresh air. Every week, Shirazi and Johnson break down a different topic in media and public relations, including the hidden conservatism within journalistic “objectivity,” anti-Muslim racism in movies and television, and public perceptions of people like Bill Gates and Samantha Power. According to estimates by Graphtreon, an independent website that gathers data on Patreon users, Shirazi and Johnson’s podcast, newsletter and other bonus content bring in between $12,000 and $30,000 a month from nearly 4,000 subscribers.
3. Contrapoints
In the last five years, Natalie Wynn has accomplished something truly amazing: She built a highly trafficked YouTube channel about politics and philosophy that isn’t extremely conservative. Wynn, a former Northwestern Ph.D. candidate, launched her Contrapoints channel in 2016 as a progressive response to the heavily right-wing world of political philosophy videos. In contrast to the middle-aged men berating their webcams who populate much of YouTube’s politics catalog, Wynn creates colorful, choreographed video essays breaking down complicated issues like gender dysphoria and cancel culture. Along with her explanatory work, Wynn’s 12,000-plus Patreon supporters have helped fund her costumed takedowns of popular conservative YouTube personalities like Jordan Peterson and Ben Shapiro, long the dominant voices of the platform—though unlike Wynn, it’s hard to picture Ben Shapiro talking to you in a blown-out pink wig and steampunk goggles.
4. TrueAnon
Conspiracy theories have long been seen as one of the few commonalities between the far right and far left, both imagining a secret cabal of intersecting evildoers. But with the arrest and subsequent jailhouse suicide of billionaire, accused child sex trafficker, and alleged intelligence asset Jeffrey Epstein, many on the left began suddenly to feel like the conspiracy had become real life. Enter TrueAnon, an irony-laced podcast hosted by Liz Franczak and Brace Belden, launched in the aftermath of Epstein’s arrest in 2019. Though the show was initially laser-focused on Epstein and his potential ties to spy agencies and world leaders, Franczak and Belden have run the gamut on other conspiracies, proven and unproven. The show has hosted guests to discuss Operation Gladio, the Qanon conspiracy, and CIA involvement in coups from the Middle East to Latin America. Though just over a year old, the show has gained a cult-like following, with some 15,000 patrons bringing the show an astounding $66,000 a month.
5. Chapo Trap House
Chapo Trap House, the “dirtbag left” podcast started by Will Menaker, Matt Christman, and Felix Biederman in 2016, earns more than $160,000 a month through Patreon. No, that isn’t a typo — not the name of the show, not the description, and not the dollar amount. Perhaps the most lucrative business on all of Patreon, Chapo is easily the most stunning success. A podcast of angry Twitter socialists venting their hatred of B-list journalists and liberal politicos may be a cliche now, but five years ago, hardly anyone could have predicted such a niche show would strike a nerve with so many people. The show’s team — which has expanded to include co-hosts Virgil Texas and Amber A’Lee Frost and producers Brendan James and Chris Wade — has moved mountains on the left, from giving a platform to up-and-coming activists, comedians and journalists, to gaining a sense of legitimacy for its brand of socialism by interviewing major progressive politicians like Bernie Sanders and Cynthia Nixon. Chapo has courted its fair share of controversy, as well, and with the Democrats returning to power, the show will undoubtedly continue to annoy liberals, delight lefties and rake in the cash.
