DETROIT -- Wow, what a start!
A week ago in this space, we launched our annual Military Drive with a goal of giving out 1,000 free subscriptions to those who've served in our Armed Forces, this with a deadline of Veterans Day Nov. 11, and we've already received 170 of those commitments! With six weeks to go!
Look, I promise I won't lead Site Stuff with this subject every week in the interim, but this was a pleasant surprise. In the past, the Drive has started very slowly and required a real push at the end to finish. It'd be nice this year to establish a consistent pace and, heck, maybe even exceed the goal. We used to hit 2,000 regularly, but the pandemic kinda ended that.
Either way, thanks to everyone!
Here's how it works: You buy a military subscription for $20, enough to cover a full year for any veteran. That's one-third of the regular price. However many you'd wish to donate, even if it's just one, email me directly at DK@DKPittsburghSports.com to let me know, and Dali will do the processing.
And most important, please pass along the word to all active-duty military and veterans that we're here for them. To receive their free one-year subscription, they just need to visit our Subscribe link and choose the 'Military' option. With OUR gratitude, always.
HELP ON HOCKEY
There'll be a new byline to the hockey coverage beginning today, with Hannah Kirkell formally joining us in staffing the Penguins' morning skate in Cranberry, Pa. She'll do that, while I drive to Detroit for the preseason game tonight, and while Taylor Haase flies to Sudbury, Ontario, for the preseason game up there tomorrow.
Hannah loves her hockey, and we're happy to have her. She'll be part-time, helping on practices/skates as needed, pitching in wherever she'd like on the Feed, the live files and so forth.
INSIDE THE WORKS
• I switched up the recently installed Site Stuff Feed into what I'm calling a DK's Grind Feed, and I'm enjoying this way, way more. It's all my stuff, written and spoken and everything else, all in one spot. It'll all still appear in the team feeds -- most of it, anyway -- but it'll all be here without exception, large and small.
• In the middle of this past week, our friends at BoomPress launched what they're calling a 2.0 version of the site ... except that very few of us can see it yet. There's a beta version we're testing as a staff, after which we'll choose a few longtime readers to do their own testing. There's just too much important stuff going on right now to find out anything the hard way. We'll keep you updated.
• No hiring for the foreseeable future. We'd for-real weighed adding to the baseball beat, presuming the Pirates looked like they could generate more interest in their product in 2025, but that's apparently not the case.
• Everyone loving being ad-free? If you're not there yet, it's only for paying subscribers. If you aren't subscribed yet or if your subscription's expired: This is our subscribe page. From there, make sure you're logged in, tap on the link, and thumb down to the bottom for the SUBSCRIBE button to buy/renew at the monthly or annual level. We also offer mega-discounts, as ever, for student subscriptions and senior subscriptions.
• If you believe you have an active subscription AND you're seeing ads, just log back in, and they go poof. If you have any issues with this at all, email: Help@DKPittsburghSports.com
• Grateful that so many of you continue to leave us good reviews on outside platforms. For anyone who hasn't yet, feel free to add your own on our Google business listing, our Apple and Spotify podcast channels and, arguably most important, our own app, whether it's the Apple or Android version. These make a very real difference.
BACK TO BUSINESS
• Our page-view numbers for the past week were 1,032,393, with 47,951 unique users over the most recent full seven-day span, Sept. 20-26. Our most-read original piece was my Steelers-Chargers column from Acrisure Stadium, at 22,577, though my all-Pirates Friday Insider yesterday will obliterate everything for the month by the time it's counted up.
• On the multimedia front, our podcast downloads for the past week were 105,146, and our YouTube video views were 213,492.
• Our company social media accounts are at 57,316 followers on X, 45,287 on Facebook, 33,040 on YouTube, 15,548 on Instagram, 5,242 on Threads, and 1,277 on TikTok.
• We make mistakes. If you see one, email: Typos@DKPittsburghSports.com
• Our HQ/shop merch is available online. The Downtown shop itself's open Tuesday-Saturday, 12-6 p.m.
• Anything you need, email: Help@DKPittsburghSports.com
• Thanks for reading and, as ever, for your support of this proud independent venture.
