I tend to read articles via aggregating apps such as Apple News, SmartNews, and Flipboard (RIP Zite, which was previously my favorite). I’ve noticed a growing trend of sites with content behind a paywall, but you are given a certain number of stories to read for free each month. Medium is another example, with free stories still available but the option for writers to publish members-only content to receive compensation.

Maybe I am spoiled, but I do not feel the need to pay for articles when so much content is available for free on the internet. If I click a story and get the message that I have no more free articles remaining, then I just move on to another story. Half the time I don’t even pay attention to the site or entity that actually published the story.

This feels like a paradox. As a consumer, I don’t want to pay for online articles. As an aspiring writer, I would hope one day to be compensated for the quality content I produce. 

In reality nothing is free. I may not be paying to read free articles, but I’m getting bombarded with all sorts of advertisements. The same with radio. Terrestrial radio is free, but the price you pay is to listen to the ads unless you turn the channel. Isn’t it interesting how books do not have any ads sprinkled throughout the pages? That makes sense to me since you’ve already paid for the book. But you also pay for a magazine and yet 30-40% of the pages are replete with ads.