Unfortunately, ads pay for a lot of web content just like they pay for most TV content.
The 5% (of which pretty much all of HN is a part of) can probably afford to pay for the cost of creating that content. The 95%, consisting of not just hourly wagers but also salaried folks generally can't afford to. The trade off is ad supported content.
Something like 2/3 of millennials are blocking ads which means Google has already encountered just about everyone willing to consume their advertising. Ad-supported websites would be unprecedented if anyone really cared about them not having to find a new way to make money. Nothing truck drivers want is going to make driving trucks a career forever either.
The 5% (of which pretty much all of HN is a part of) can probably afford to pay for the cost of creating that content. The 95%, consisting of not just hourly wagers but also salaried folks generally can't afford to. The trade off is ad supported content.
So it's very unlikely to die off.