There are a few reasons such articles usually do not get flag killed.
1. Most of the paywall news sites allow free viewing of a few articles per month and so many here do not hit the paywall.
2. It is often very easy to get around the paywall if you are over the monthly limit. Sometimes it is as simple as searching for the article by title in Google and clicking Google's link.
3. If you cannot get around the paywall, it is often the case that you can find coverage of the same event at another site that is not paywalled, which will give you enough information to meaningfully enjoy and participate in the HN discussion.
4. Even if you cannot find free coverage of the thing under discussion, it is often the case that the HN discussion is entertaining and enlightening. HN discussion often goes off on tangents inspired by the article, and those tangents can be appreciated without having read the article.
5. Many people here don't see the paywalls because they subscribe to the paywalled sites.
6. Most here do not have such big egos or senses of entitlement that they are bothered by others reading and discussing something that they have not been able to read.
1. Most of the paywall news sites allow free viewing of a few articles per month and so many here do not hit the paywall.
2. It is often very easy to get around the paywall if you are over the monthly limit. Sometimes it is as simple as searching for the article by title in Google and clicking Google's link.
3. If you cannot get around the paywall, it is often the case that you can find coverage of the same event at another site that is not paywalled, which will give you enough information to meaningfully enjoy and participate in the HN discussion.
4. Even if you cannot find free coverage of the thing under discussion, it is often the case that the HN discussion is entertaining and enlightening. HN discussion often goes off on tangents inspired by the article, and those tangents can be appreciated without having read the article.
5. Many people here don't see the paywalls because they subscribe to the paywalled sites.
6. Most here do not have such big egos or senses of entitlement that they are bothered by others reading and discussing something that they have not been able to read.