[Alberta's Child]

Great post. I would add this point about most forms of mass media:

You know you're in a terrible business when fewer and fewer people are even willing to read or watch your bullsh!t at no cost.

[relictele]

Thanks. It’s funny you mention cost because MOST news sites have implemented the cheapest, laziest paywall technology - which reflects their cheap/lazy mindset but also their arrogance.

Using browser extensions that block JavaScript, manage/delete cookies and/or block ads, most paywalls are easily defeated and/or the silly ‘free article limit’ and incessant popups moaning about adblocking or subscribing can be wrangled. It’s not uncommon to see the adblock counter tick over 60+ ads (and trackers, beacons, etc.) on a single page!

For better or worse, some paywalls actually work, notably the Wall Street Journal which wages a constant war against Google backdoor access, Facebook access, URL spoofing, etc. It’s fairly airtight...they’ve even started blocking Outline.com.