Stop the paywall on newspapers and magazines

Dollars

Since the Earth did not end in the century shift from 1999 to 2000, online information without social media platforms was free. Popular magazines and newspapers were feeling out having an online presence, so citizens could read a hard copy of the newspaper to capture all of the news and advertisements. The online version was truncated but fully accessible and free. Now, fast forward in warp speed to the year 2022 and the proliferation of paywalls and rationing of online articles.

We can get our 24/7, but if I want to read an article on specific sites such as The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Vanity Fair or The Buffalo News, I have to subscribe, pay a fee and build an account for a specific timeframe. It‘s annoying, frustrating and makes me close down viewing the site immediately. When something heinous occurs in the world: wars in Ethiopia and Ukraine, mass shootings in Buffalo, New York and Uvalde,Texas; people want to read the local news and get updated. They feel the pain and sorrow and want to grieve with those directly involved. Being asked to build an account and pay to read is misguided and poor marketing.

Since you need the cash to keep your newspaper afloat, let people pay what they can or get their email address, so you can market to them directly at a later date. People are concerned with what is going on in the United States and the world. Gas and food are priced in the clouds, so spending money to read articles is definitely an amenity.

A tin foil hat wearing human might think that this tactic is to keep people from learning the truth, being interested in obtaining the truth and keep reporters in flux because they do not have a secure job. Write what the corporation tells you to write and that is all.

Hmm…