
New Yorker Stories to Read Before the Paywall Goes Up - rdcasey
http://www.slate.com/blogs/browbeat/2014/07/22/new_yorker_online_free_for_three_months_what_should_you_read.html
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spenuke
This is good news for those who appreciate the New Yorker.

Not everyone thinks that a world full of advertising and clickbait
"information" is a desirable thing. Think of The Atlantic -- at one time, it
was on par with The New Yorker for quality content. Now, it contains one rare
pearl of compelling and thought-provoking writing (e.g., Ta Nahesi Coates's "A
Case For Reparations") for every thousand transitory blips clamoring to
acquire page-views.

There is such a thing as information which cannot easily be supported by the
info-economy of frictionless social media sharing. I find it disheartening
that this is an unobvious idea to some who preach freedom of information.

~~~
augustocallejas
_Think of The Atlantic -- at one time, it was on par with The New Yorker for
quality content. Now, it contains one rare pearl of compelling and thought-
provoking writing (e.g., Ta Nahesi Coates 's "A Case For Reparations") for
every thousand transitory blips clamoring to acquire page-views._

The paper magazine contains more of the though-provoking articles, hence why I
subscribe and skip reading the online version.

------
jonathansizz
I think it's pretty sad that so many people balk at paying very modest amounts
of money for high-quality material. It's as though everything that's available
on the web should be free, just because it's on the web.

It's the same with people moaning about paying a couple of dollars for an app
or even installing pirated versions rather than paying. There's something
seriously wrong here.

The New Yorker costs $50/year - about the same as a single evening in a bar
with a friend. Or a dozen coffees.

~~~
digitalsushi
We've had this thing to deliver content for 20 years (the web) but in the same
20 years no one has invented a simple way to pay for the content.

I'll balk at 50 dollars a year the same way I'll balk at 3500 dollars worth of
gourmet coffees paid on January 1st. Just let me spend small amounts so I
don't become aware of my own habits.

~~~
IanCal
> no one has invented a simple way to pay for the content.

Single click amazon payments, google wallet? Or gumroad? Or stripe?

How about monthly things like patreon? Flattr? Or things like bitcointip on
reddit?

How much simpler do you want things?

[http://www.patreon.com/](http://www.patreon.com/)

[https://flattr.com/](https://flattr.com/)

[https://gumroad.com/](https://gumroad.com/)

[https://stripe.com/gb](https://stripe.com/gb)

~~~
function_seven
That's just it. You listed 7 different services that provide various ways of
streamlining payment. Should I sign up for all seven? Or can I rely on all
content providers supporting the one I choose?

Just like Visa, Mastercard, Discover, and Amex* are accepted everywhere, this
problem won't be solved until an underlying universal payment network is
established and ubiquitous.

So... BitCoin?

* I know I know, but it's 80%.

------
thathonkey
New Yorker and NYT are two of the only old school media companies whose
content I would still pay for. They have some of the best journalism around
(NYT for straight news, New Yorker for editorial, long-form, & culture
pieces). I think New Yorker's pay wall will probably be a success. I was
already prepared to pay for a subscription when the time came.

~~~
dublinben
On the other side, I rarely read the New Yorker. I enjoy the occasional
article that pops up here, but I wouldn't pay to read any of them. They'll
lose me as a reader by going behind a paywall.

~~~
thathonkey
The pay wall isn't meant to attract people who "rarely read" the New Yorker.
Those are the consumers they are OK with losing because they didn't make up an
appreciable demographic for their business model anyway.

~~~
dublinben
Readers are readers. They now have zero chance of converting me into a paying
subscriber, since I can't read their articles. With a more flexible paywall, I
can be encouraged to subscribe every time I'm linked to an article.

~~~
cshenoy
It's a metered paywall [1]. You'll still be able to read a few articles a
month. IMHO, that's fairly flexible.

[1]: [http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2014/07/28/note-
readers](http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2014/07/28/note-readers)

------
e15ctr0n
I recommend reading the following 2 stories:

Cheap Words: Amazon is good for customers. But is it good for books? By George
Packer | February 17, 2014 Issue

[http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2014/02/17/cheap-
words?cur...](http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2014/02/17/cheap-
words?currentPage=all)

Change the World: Silicon Valley transfers its slogans — and its money — to
the realm of politics. By George Packer | May 27, 2013 Issue

[http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2013/05/27/change-the-
worl...](http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2013/05/27/change-the-world)

This second story was discussed last year in context of Rebecca Solnit's
article on a similar issue.
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=5189580](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=5189580)

------
jstalin
It seems the pendulum is swinging back in the direction of paying for quality.
The explosion of the internet and the effect it had on media destroyed so many
of the traditional outlets that spent money on quality content.

For instance, my local paper has turned from being reliable in reporting on
local issues and having seasoned reporters, to being not much more than an
entertainment company with young, inexperienced reporters who don't spend more
than 10 minutes writing articles.

Now we see outlets like NYT, New Yorker, and others, even bloggers (such as
Andrew Sullivan), going to a paywall model and producing quality content
that's worth paying for. Hopefully this is a trend more people realize that
you get what you pay for.

------
sinak
I'll add my personal favorite from the last few years: "A Murder Foretold" \-
[http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2011/04/04/a-murder-
foreto...](http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2011/04/04/a-murder-
foretold?currentPage=all)

------
sjs382
Also: [http://www.theawl.com/2014/07/all-the-new-yorker-story-
round...](http://www.theawl.com/2014/07/all-the-new-yorker-story-roundups-you-
should-read-while-the-stories-are-still-unlocked-as-well-as-all-the-new-
yorker-stories-they-link-to)

------
contingencies
I just spent a few hours trawling through these and recommend
[http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2007/07/30/swingers-2?curr...](http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2007/07/30/swingers-2?currentPage=all)
(bonobo research), [http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2011/09/05/how-to-be-
good](http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2011/09/05/how-to-be-good) (a
philosopher's defense of moralism) and
[http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2010/12/20/master-of-
play?...](http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2010/12/20/master-of-
play?currentPage=all) (interview with miyamoto of nintendo).

------
tootie
Also, anything form Seymour Hersh. Most of his stuff is timely in that there's
nothing you don't know about already, but this is the guy who broke the My Lai
Massacre and the Abu Ghraib torture scandal. He has access to national defense
people that no other report on earth can get.

I would all throw in The Agent about how the CIA torpedoed the FBI
investigation in Al Qaeda prior to 9/11 as required reading
[http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2006/07/10/the-
agent?curre...](http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2006/07/10/the-
agent?currentPage=all)

------
davidf18
Well, I hope that authors that currently publish in The New Yorker such as Dr.
Atul Gawande, Dr. Jerome Groopman, and Malcolm Gladwell switch to a different
publication such as Slate so that everyone can read their well written, very
important articles about healthcare and other fields.

~~~
mossity
FWIW, it's just going to be a metered paywall, similar to the NY Times (ie
"You have read 1 of your 10 free articles this week."). I for one hope that
people decide their well written, very important articles are worth paying a
little bit of money to support.

------
bjlorenzen
I disagree with the very premise; why go out of your way to encourage bad
behaviour? I stand for freedom of information and will avoid New Yorker from
this point forward.

~~~
tzs
How would you suggest the New Yorker obtain money to finance the creation of
new high quality content?

