Paid subscribers receive our Behind the Scenes posts — reflections, observations, and moments from stories in progress. Sometimes it’s what didn’t fit into a column. Other times, like this one, it’s simply something extra we wanted to share. Today’s column, we are sharing with everyone.

It’s taken us about two years to get to this point.

I remember the early Zoom calls with Therese — conversations about writing, creative freedom, and what we wanted to build together. We tossed around business names, shaped ideas, and now here we are: Writing with full creative freedom under the name My Jungle Rules.

I LOVE My Jungle Rules.

When I was a kid, we’d play basketball, tag, four-square — every game had a 'jungle rules' version. Someone would call it, and suddenly the rules shifted. Looser, bolder, freer. That’s the spirit we’re channeling now.

My Jungle Rules means we can write about what matters to us, in ways that feel true to who we are. We’ve spent the last few months building this from the ground up.

We shifted our platform from a website to a newsletter, because that format feels more personal and direct. We tested podcasting gear, learned new platforms, picked up new skills. It’s been intense — but incredibly fulfilling and just fun.

While we’ve been building, we’ve also been writing. Therese and Steve have been publishing; I’ve been writing and waiting, holding back until launch. I’ve also been deep in design work, campaign planning, and shaping our monetization strategy.

But here’s the crux — why are we doing this?

Sure, I could’ve stuck with writing and editing books. Therese could write books. Steve could do something completely different.

But we’ve been watching the media landscape on Guam. I stepped away from it for a while, but I’ve been paying close attention over the past year.

Coverage has been ... fine. Mostly reactive. Following the obvious stories. What we haven’t seen much of is enterprise work — the stories behind the stories. Few lifestyle pieces that go beyond the press release. Few business stories that actually explore how people are coping with the cost of living, or what economic shifts mean for everyday life.

And with an election season on the horizon, people will be making important choices. About jobs. About healthcare. About their future.

That’s where we hope to come in.

We want to bring meaningful journalism back to the island. Not to compete. Not to criticize. But to complement.

We believe everyone is doing the best they can. We just believe we can do better.

Bold words? Maybe a bit savage?

Yah — we’re playing jungle rules.

Thank you for supporting us.
Tell a friend.

— Ri