> There was a time when subscriptions formed a much greater proportion of journalistic income.
Actually, that is totally false. Historically, print advertising formed a far greater proportion of newspaper revenue than subscription revenue did.
In fact, only in the digital age (and the collapse of advertising revenue) has subscription revenue overtaken advertising for some publications. [0]
You're mythologizing an imagined past which never existed. Every kind of journalism, from The New Yorker to the NY Post, has consistently been heavily subsidized by advertising to survive, with advertising forming the bulk of revenue.
> or other income, like, say, Al Jazeera
Personally, I find advertising a much more palatable funding source than pollution from a dictatorship.
> There was a time when subscriptions formed a much greater proportion of journalistic income than they do now.
You're clearly intent on ignoring my argument, because otherwise you would actually check the citation which I offered. It directly refutes this point. Taking the NYT as an example, only in the last few years has subscription revenue formed a greater proportion of revenue than advertising.
> You seem intent on building up straw men and tearing them down. I'll let you do it in peace.
I think you're the one building a straw man. If you want to engage in an actual argument, offer some counter-citations.
> Pollution from a dictatorship? What?
Al Jazeera is only able to produce journalism without relying in advertising because the Qatari government funds it with oil money.
The world would be a better place if ad blockers did win, anyway. Journalism in particular seems to be much better under a subscription based model.