Why I Started Inkstick — And Why It Still Matters

I don’t usually write fundraising notes in my own voice, but as the year comes to a close, it feels important to slow down and speak directly to you.

When I started Inkstick, it was out of a deep frustration with how national security is so often covered: abstract, elite-focused, and disconnected from the people most affected by it. I wanted to build something different — journalism that asks who pays the price for war, whose voices are missing, and how power really works.

Things That Go Boom grew out of that same impulse. Over the years, it’s become a place where we can take our time, listen closely, and tell stories that don’t fit neatly into headlines — stories about communities shaped by weapons contracts, surveillance systems, and political decisions made far away from home.

This year, our team did some of the most ambitious work we’ve ever done. We reported deeply, followed stories to unexpected places, and tried to be honest about complexity, even when it was uncomfortable. Whether reporting on Gaza amid a flood of competing narratives and profound human suffering, or on the US border, where shifting policies and enforcement decisions carry real consequences for people’s lives. We aimed to slow the story down, ask harder questions, and resist the pull of easy answers.

I’m incredibly proud of what we’ve done. But none of it would exist without reader and listener support.

Right now, NewsMatch is doubling every donation through the end of the year, which means your tax-deductible gift has twice the impact in helping sustain Inkstick and Things That Go Boom into the next year.

If our work has informed you, challenged your thinking, or simply helped you feel less alone in trying to make sense of the world, I’d be deeply grateful if you’d consider making a tax-deductible contribution.

Support Inkstick & TTGB

Thank you for being here, truly. And Happy New Year!

Laicie