Substack, May 6–7 May 11, 2025
Filed by M.S. Faust Sr. | Substack Paid User
View Erasure Logged as Exhibit 004
I didn’t go looking for this.
I was just watching the numbers like any writer who’s trying to understand if his work is reaching real people.
But something felt off. I couldn’t put my finger on it at first. Then, on the night of May 6 into May 7, I watched my 30-day view count drop from 2,046 to 1,795.
No deleted post. No big unsubscribe event. No change in open rate.
Just gone.
251 views erased overnight.
And when I asked Substack why, I got what too many of us get: a friendly, programmed wall. A bot.
“This is part of a known technical issue. Your engagement is unaffected. Stats may take time to update.”
But I didn’t ask about lag. I asked about removal.
So I asked again.
“We can’t send email notifications about reporting issues. Please monitor your dashboard.”
Still no answer. So I asked to speak to a human.
“Your case has been forwarded. Due to high volume, we can’t guarantee a response.”
A month later, I still hadn’t heard from anyone with a name.
So I opened up GA4. I checked the Google Analytics data. There was no dip. No drop in sessions, clicks, behavior, or bounce.
Substack -251. GA4 -0.
That’s not lag. That’s a platform rewriting your reality.
And calling it normal.
I’m not the only one seeing this. But most folks don’t document it. They just walk away or try to play nice.
I don’t.
I logged it. I archived it. And I filed it as Exhibit 004 in what is becoming a full suppression record, spanning from March through now. A series of drops, flatlines, and denials that paint a very clear picture:
You can pay. You can build. You can follow every rule they give you.
And still, they can pull the rug—quietly, without notice, and call it a glitch.
This isn’t about my views. This is about your future as a writer, a reader, or a citizen in a digital system run without oversight.
And here’s the latest:
As of this moment, we are shut down.
Not slowed. Not quiet. Zero feed. Zero exposure.
Everything I’ve published in the last 24 hours has received no reach. Not a single recorded view, open, or click.
This isn’t theoretical. It’s active. Ongoing. Verified.
The full case file is below. It includes the analytics, the bot logs, the visual evidence, and the pattern. Not to make noise. But to make a record.
Because if they can take 251 and defend it with silence, they can take 10,000 tomorrow and defend it with applause.
And nobody will know unless someone writes it down.
So I did, and here is the evidence: you need to know what they don’t tell you.
Read the Full Record: Exhibit 004 – View Suppression Log
#TribunalOfTruth • #Exhibit004 • #TheOldGuardIsWatching
Tribunal Log
EXHIBIT DROP: THEY TOOK 251 — AND CALLED IT NORMAL
Tribunal Log Entry No. 5
Filed May 7, 2025
By: M.S. Faust Sr.
Substack Paid User | Witness to Retroactive Data Suppression
.#TribunalOfTruth#Exhibit004#DataErasureIsSuppression#TransparencyIsAccountability#DigitalGaslight<!– A4G-MONITOR: tribunal-entry-005-watchpoint –> #TheOldGuardIsWatching
🔴 THE OVERNIGHT CUT (EXHIBIT 004)
On the night of May 6 into May 7, 2025, Substack reduced my 30-day view count from 2,046 to 1,795.
- 251 views removed overnight
- 12.3% reduction in visible metrics
- No corresponding unsubscribe activity
- No post deletions
- No dip in open rate (remained steady at 5.53%)
This was not a drop in traffic. This was a retroactive data erasure.
No timestamp. No notification. No justification.
✅ GA4 CONFIRMATION: NO MATCHING DROP
Google Analytics 4 (GA4) confirms no correlated drop in page traffic, user behavior, or engagement events.
- Substack -251
- GA4 -0
That difference is now logged and archived. Full screenshots on file.
🧰 BOT RESPONSE LOG (EXCERPT)
User: Why did 251 views vanish overnight?
Substack Bot: This change is part of a known technical reporting issue. Your actual reader engagement remains unaffected. Stats can take up to 2 hours to update.
User: When will it be resolved? Notify me by email.
Bot: We cannot send emails about reporting issues. Please check your dashboard.
User: Then escalate me to a human.
Bot: We have forwarded your case. Due to high volume, a response is not guaranteed.
User: You have not responded in over 30 days.
Bot: Please know our team is responding as quickly as possible…
Outcome: No human reply. No correction. Same copy-paste language for weeks.
🔐 EVIDENCE CHAIN
- EXHIBIT 001: Tree Day Suppression Chart (Mar 16 – May 7)
- EXHIBIT 002: Pre-Monetization Suppression Record
- EXHIBIT 003: Real Reader Post-Paywall Window (GA4)
- EXHIBIT 004: This Drop — Retroactive View Erasure May 6–7
- ATTACHMENT: Full chat transcript with Substack Bot (Redacted)
- VISUALS: GA4 traffic charts, Substack dashboard screenshots, daily view log sheets
All confirmed discrepancies have been recorded, backed up, and archived.
⚡ FINAL REFLECTION
Substack has stopped answering questions.
They’ve started removing numbers.
They’ve given the same reply four different ways.
And now they’re ghosting their paying users.
This is not a glitch. This is a decision.
If they can take 251 today—and call it “normal”—what can they take tomorrow?
This is the record.
We’re not imagining it. We’re documenting it.
And now we’re showing it to the world.
🔍 TO WHOM THIS IS SENT
This Exhibit has been prepared for:
- Doomberg (independent analysis requested)
- Other writers under suspicion of suppression
- Substack staff and developers (via BB drop)
- Readers, journalists, and legal observers
To request a full copy of the audit files, charts, and transcripts, contact:
micvicfaust@gmail.com
Tribunal No. 5: Documented View Suppression – Intelligent People Assume Nothing