Tired of news that leaves you anxious, angry, or politically exhausted? The Pour Over delivers the biggest stories of the day in a quick, digestible email — summarized clearly, presented without political spin, and paired with Scripture and an eternal perspective to keep you grounded in Christ.^1
Founded in 2018 by Jason Woodruff — a pastor's kid with an MBA who found his own news consumption "unhealthy" — The Pour Over started as a personal exercise summarizing headlines for friends and has since grown to over 1.6 million readers.^2 The newsletter lands in inboxes on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, written by a team of more than a dozen staff writers and reviewed by two advising editors from opposite sides of the political spectrum to keep coverage balanced.^4 Each issue follows what the team calls the POUR method — Perspective, Openness to correction, Unconditional love, and Response — pairing every story with a biblical nudge rather than commentary or preaching.^5
Beyond the main newsletter, The Pour Over offers Decaf — a weekly family-friendly edition with conversation prompts for parents — a companion podcast hosted by Joe Kim, a Lent devotional called the News Cleanse, and a partnership with BibleGateway.^6^8 The entire operation runs ad-supported (always free to readers) and has grown to seven-figure annual revenue without any outside funding, using a referral program and targeted social ads to fuel growth.^3
Why People Love It"I used to dread the news. It would bring on anxiety and feelings of sadness. With the Pour Over I can get a small dose of national and international news along with the HOPE of Jesus." — Jennifer^4
"The Pour Over has changed my ability to absorb news and stay informed without feeling defeated, frustrated or politically triggered. The Christian perspective following each news topic centers me and focuses my gaze on Christ." — Casey^4
"Finally. News I can trust from a source I don't feel weird telling other people I subscribe to." — Jake C.^1
Notable- Founded by Jason Woodruff in 2018; grew from 10 subscribers to 1.6M+ readers without outside funding^2^1
- Advising editors from across the political aisle — one medical provider, one lawyer — review every story for balance^4
- Decaf edition for families with ~50,000 readers; includes conversation prompts for parents^9
- Podcast with 15,000–20,000 downloads per episode, hosted by Joe Kim^9
- BibleGateway partnership for reaching readers through the world's most-used Bible platform^8
- Featured on Theology in the Raw with Preston Sprinkle, Religion Unplugged, and beehiiv^10
- Team of 20+ staff based in Iowa, including writers, editors, a multimedia producer, and a social media coordinator^4
- Revenue model: ad-supported, always free to readers^1
