News Items Secures $1.5m in Friends and Family Round of Fundraising


SOUTHPORT, Conn., March 28, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- SmithEllisItems, Inc., the holding company that produces News Items and Political News Items, newsletters covering global politics, financial news, advanced technologies and science, announced it has raised $1.5 million during a friends and family round of equity funding. The newly secured backing will be used to expand News Items’ staff and amplify its visibility.

"I am grateful for the support of our investors and for their confidence in the enterprise,” said John Ellis, founder and editor. “The money raised enables us to attract top talent, expand the reach of the newsletters and increase awareness of what we do every day.”

Mr. Ellis launched News Items in 2016 as a morning brief for executives and editors at Fox and News Corp. It was later distributed as the morning newsletter of The Wall Street Journal’s CEO Council.

Today, News Items is an independent newsletter on the Substack platform. It is distributed six days a week to subscribers. Coverage areas include (1) the world in disarray, (2) the financialization of everything, (3) advances in science and technology, and (4) electoral politics, both foreign and domestic.

“The filter that we use for story selection -- ‘items’ we call them -- is ‘interesting, important or both,’” said Ellis. “If they’re not one or the other (or both), they don’t make the cut.”

Ellis continued: “The value proposition is this: News Items brings you the most important and interesting news from around the world by 6:45am Eastern time; it makes you aware of important news you might otherwise miss, it draws from the highest quality news sources and is resolutely unbiased. Our subscribers greatly appreciate how News Items helps them cut through the clutter and save time.”

Some of the world’s most influential people are News Items subscribers. One of them, former US Secretary of the Treasury Larry Summers, recently had this to say about it: “If I could only open one thing each morning, it would be John Ellis’ News Items newsletter.”  

Political News Items is (presently) distributed twice weekly and (sometimes) includes analysis and commentary by Ellis. It covers campaigns and elections in the United States and around the world. “With Pax Americana coming unstuck, technology disrupting everything, science accelerating and massive debt looming over all,” said Ellis, “politics haven’t been this volatile since the 1930s. Those are the stories we cover in Political News items.”

A respected journalist and political analyst, Ellis worked for NBC News, The Boston Globe, CNBC, FBN and News Corp. at different points throughout his career.

Visit News Items to subscribe and learn more.

About News Items
News Items is a daily newsletter covering global politics, financial news, advanced technologies and science. Since launching, News Items quickly gained a loyal readership among politicians, diplomats, academics and journalists. News Items was founded by John Ellis, best known for his work as a journalist and political analyst. For more information or to subscribe, please visit news-items.com.


 

Contact Data