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The Business of Content with Simon OwensAuthor: Simon Owens
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Why an NPR reporter left his job to launch a media outlet in Ukraine
Thursday, 9 July, 2026
My newsletter: https://simonowens.substack.com/ The war in Ukraine has given rise to an entirely new generation of independent media organizations, but few have a backstory as unusual as The Counteroffensive. Founded by veteran journalist Tim Mak after more than a decade covering politics, national security, and investigations for outlets including NPR, Politico, and The Daily Beast, the publication began as a one-man Substack chronicling life inside wartime Ukraine. In just a few years, it has evolved into a growing media company with multiple publications, a team of reporters across Europe, and an expanding portfolio that spans consumer journalism, defense intelligence, and postwar reconstruction. In our interview, Mak explained how an unexpected career pivot led him to launch a newsroom from Kyiv, why he believes text-based journalism—not podcasts or video—remains the strongest engine for paid subscriptions, and how he's building a diversified media business designed to outlast the war itself.
