
Ask HN: Why don't you pay for a news website subscription? - malchow
Recently on HN @typpo showcased a slick Chrome extension to identify and shame -- fair diction, I think -- websites that show native ads. [1]<p>ABP, AdDetector. Every stab at making journalism faintly economically productive seems to meet with at least some measure of backlash.<p>Do you pay for news content? Why or why not?<p>[1] http:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.ianww.com&#x2F;ad-detector&#x2F;
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dchmiel
I don't think I would, currently don't pay for any news subscriptions. As
someone, mentioned it's free. Which is interesting because even though I can
get my TV shows and movies for free online I do pay for it with a subscription
to Netflix and Hulu.

Maybe the difference is that I see news as temporary. Once I read it I want
newer information, not really to go back to old news. Certain long form
articles I bookmark but I find I rarely even go back to those. With TV Shows
and Movies I can always go back and get some enjoyment from re-watching. Maybe
the news doesn't have that lasting value that I feel justifies spending that I
do for other forms of medium of information such as books.

I think for me to pay for news it has to not be easily reproduced by someone
else. You just can't easily make a similar hit sitcom or breaking bad as can
others retell what is happening in the world. Though I do want my news to be
written and told by professional objective individuals I haven't been able to
find a model that gets me to pay yet.

EDITs for grammar.

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rahimnathwani
I've subscribed to The Economist for many years. It is the easiest way to get
access to a good quality overview of current affairs, without drinking from
the firehose of daily newspapers. I usually read it using the iPhone app, as
the current issue is available even before the paper edition has been
delivered.

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walterbell
Could you provide some examples of news worthy of payment, which also have a
payment button next to the article?

Flattr implemented conversion from Twitter Favorites/Retweets to payments, but
was blocked by Twitter from providing the service, even after offering to drop
their commission. Why did Twitter block funding to the people who are
providing free content to Twitter?

In answer to the question, yes I pay annually for original analysis of current
and historical events.

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krapp
I don't, because I don't have to, because it's free.

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canterburry
I certainly do. I have both a WSJ and NYT subscription. I probably would also
pay for BBC news if they charged. I definitely value reliable high quality
news sources.

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rholdy
Because mainstream news is garbage.

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BorisMelnik
yes - my local news website 1.99/month moreso to support the newspaper than
anything else

