# The Ankler

> The Ankler (Ankler Media) is an independent, subscription-driven media company covering the business of Hollywood and the collision of entertainment, media and technology. Founded as a one-man newsletter by Richard Rushfield in 2017 and expanded into a full media company with former Hollywood Reporter/Billboard chief Janice Min as CEO in 2022, it has grown into a multi-platform operation of roughly 15 newsletters, podcasts, video and live events - read by studio chiefs and moguls it covers, raised $1.5M at a $20M valuation via Y Combinator, and reportedly aiming for $10M in annual revenue in 2026.

- **Founded:** 2017
- **Headquarters:** Los Angeles, United States
- **Founders:** Richard Rushfield (Founder & Editorial Director), Janice Min (Co-founder (Ankler Media), CEO & Editor in Chief)
- **Team size:** ~18-21 full-time staffers and contributors worldwide
- **Products:** The Ankler (flagship newsletter), Series Business, The Wakeup, Prestige Junkie, The Optionist
- **Notable:** Ranked a top-three business publication on Substack (2021), Raised $1.5M at a $20M valuation via Y Combinator (June 2022), Webby Award nominee for Best Independent Publisher (2023 and 2024)

## Products & services

- **The Ankler (flagship newsletter)** — Richard Rushfield's sharp, opinionated coverage of Hollywood's business, politics and dysfunction; the publication that started it all in 2017.
- **Series Business** — TV industry coverage from Elaine Low, Lesley Goldberg and Manori Ravindran.
- **The Wakeup** — Sean McNulty's Monday-Friday morning round-up of Hollywood and media news.
- **Prestige Junkie** — Awards-race analysis from awards editor Katey Rich.
- **The Optionist** — A standalone publication from Andy Lewis tracking available IP for film and TV adaptation.
- **Like & Subscribe** — A standalone trade publication on the creator economy from Natalie Jarvey, launched January 2025 at $129/year.
- **Entertainment Strategy Guy** — Data-driven streaming and entertainment business analysis.
- **Podcasts (The Ankler Podcast / Ankler Agenda)** — Interview and analysis podcasts hosted by Elaine Low with Sean McNulty, Richard Rushfield and colleagues.
- **Live events** — Industry events including documentary spotlight programming at the Toronto International Film Festival and awards-season gatherings.

## Achievements

- Ranked a top-three business publication on Substack (2021)
- Raised $1.5M at a $20M valuation via Y Combinator (June 2022)
- Webby Award nominee for Best Independent Publisher (2023 and 2024)
- Grew from one newsletter to roughly 15 newsletters plus podcasts, video and live events
- Subscribers and revenue reportedly up every month since the company's 2022 launch
- More ad revenue in the first six weeks of 2026 than in all of 2022

## Latest updates

- **2026-04** — The Ankler moved its publishing and subscription operations off Substack to Passport, the platform created by Ben Thompson.
- **2026-02** — Reported that its first six weeks of 2026 ad revenue exceeded all of 2022; subscribers up 13% year over year.
- **2026-01** — Richard Rushfield distributed 'Block the Merger' buttons at CinemaCon opposing a Paramount-Warner Bros. merger; Paramount pulled advertising.
- **2025-01** — Launched Like & Subscribe, a standalone creator-economy trade publication by Natalie Jarvey, at $129/year.
- **2024-09** — Expanded live events with documentary spotlight programming at the Toronto International Film Festival.
- **2024-01** — Signed a radio partnership with NPR's LAist.

## Links

- Website: https://theankler.com
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-ankler
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/TheAnkler
- YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@The-Ankler
- Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/theankler.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theankler/
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/TheAnkler

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/the-ankler
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-07-02