Comments on: More paywall retardedness http://burden.ca/blog/2009/01/more-paywall-retardedness/ Newspapers, their websites, and their future Sun, 06 Dec 2009 20:20:26 -0500 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.6 hourly 1 By: Gerry Storch http://burden.ca/blog/2009/01/more-paywall-retardedness/comment-page-1/#comment-563 Gerry Storch Mon, 18 May 2009 23:56:49 +0000 http://burden.ca/blog/?p=128#comment-563 I wish I had seen the above article before today (May 18). I've gone all these months without knowing I was officially a nitwit. Not just someone you can debate and discuss with ... no, not that ... but a nitwit amidst a "chorus of nitwits." Sometimes I am a nitwit ... but I don't think so on this one. In the time since then, what has happened is that all sorts of people have disobeyed the brilliant Tim Burden and actually dared to continue developing paywalls.He had forbidden this as an ongoing topic ... he called it a "no-go" ... but those nitwits, they can be so goshdarn disrespectful.The nitwits have been formulating online subscription plans, micropayments, premium content plans, the meter plan ... nitwits would "park" on a site and feed the meter.Now there's talk by the nitwits of adapting the British model in which papers make a lot of money by having Bingo, sports betting and other gaming on their sites.And can you imagine this, a nitwit like Steve Brill risked the brilliant Tim Burden's stern censure to begin a venture called Journalism Online whose specific purpose is to allow nitwit publishers to make money off articles they submit to the site.Gordon Crovitz, who rose to become publisher of the Wall Street Journal though the brilliant Tim Burden could have done that job much better if only he had been given the chance instead of having to stay home alone in his basement, joined to help run the venture.Those nitwits, you just can't keep 'em down. They don't realize how inferior they are. They don't understand the argument by the brilliant Tim Burden that when you buy a newspaper you are buying a delivery system because when they go to a newsstand for a paper they still have to pay for it even though they have delivered themselves to it, not it to them.They don't appreciate, this sorry lot, just how brilliant Tim Burden would be leading a newspaper.Brilliant editor Burden: "Sorry, staffers, you'll have to go without money again this week because despite my brilliant leadership we didn't make any money because we don't have a pay web site."Nitwit staffers: "But Mr. Burden ... er, sir ... er, your highness ... we're hungry!"Brilliant editor Burden: "All right, I will give you links. As I once told that nitwit Gerry Storch, 'The web is built upon documents and links between documents.' "Nitwit staffers: "Oh thank you, sir, at least we can have breakfast!"And so here we are ... another chance for us nitwits to be educated, to have our consciousness raised, to be put in our place. P.S. Only a nitwit would have a comment box where you can't space out your paragraphs. I wish I had seen the above article before today (May 18). I’ve gone all these months without knowing I was officially a nitwit. Not just someone you can debate and discuss with … no, not that … but a nitwit amidst a “chorus of nitwits.” Sometimes I am a nitwit … but I don’t think so on this one. In the time since then, what has happened is that all sorts of people have disobeyed the brilliant Tim Burden and actually dared to continue developing paywalls.He had forbidden this as an ongoing topic … he called it a “no-go” … but those nitwits, they can be so goshdarn disrespectful.The nitwits have been formulating online subscription plans, micropayments, premium content plans, the meter plan … nitwits would “park” on a site and feed the meter.Now there’s talk by the nitwits of adapting the British model in which papers make a lot of money by having Bingo, sports betting and other gaming on their sites.And can you imagine this, a nitwit like Steve Brill risked the brilliant Tim Burden’s stern censure to begin a venture called Journalism Online whose specific purpose is to allow nitwit publishers to make money off articles they submit to the site.Gordon Crovitz, who rose to become publisher of the Wall Street Journal though the brilliant Tim Burden could have done that job much better if only he had been given the chance instead of having to stay home alone in his basement, joined to help run the venture.Those nitwits, you just can’t keep ‘em down. They don’t realize how inferior they are. They don’t understand the argument by the brilliant Tim Burden that when you buy a newspaper you are buying a delivery system because when they go to a newsstand for a paper they still have to pay for it even though they have delivered themselves to it, not it to them.They don’t appreciate, this sorry lot, just how brilliant Tim Burden would be leading a newspaper.Brilliant editor Burden: “Sorry, staffers, you’ll have to go without money again this week because despite my brilliant leadership we didn’t make any money because we don’t have a pay web site.”Nitwit staffers: “But Mr. Burden … er, sir … er, your highness … we’re hungry!”Brilliant editor Burden: “All right, I will give you links. As I once told that nitwit Gerry Storch, ‘The web is built upon documents and links between documents.’ “Nitwit staffers: “Oh thank you, sir, at least we can have breakfast!”And so here we are … another chance for us nitwits to be educated, to have our consciousness raised, to be put in our place.

P.S. Only a nitwit would have a comment box where you can’t space out your paragraphs.

]]> By: Tim Burden http://burden.ca/blog/2009/01/more-paywall-retardedness/comment-page-1/#comment-378 Tim Burden Fri, 30 Jan 2009 07:45:56 +0000 http://burden.ca/blog/?p=128#comment-378 Steve, you seem to miss the actual arguments above. The debate is not legitimate. Paywalls are no-go. Steve, you seem to miss the actual arguments above. The debate is not legitimate. Paywalls are no-go.

]]> By: Fagstein http://burden.ca/blog/2009/01/more-paywall-retardedness/comment-page-1/#comment-377 Fagstein Thu, 29 Jan 2009 22:34:14 +0000 http://burden.ca/blog/?p=128#comment-377 I think there's a legitimate debate to be had about the use of paywalls. Until we find a viable business model, nothing should be rejected outright. And journalism *does* have a high production cost. Some media owners think that cost should be minimized, but professional journalism still costs money. I think there's a legitimate debate to be had about the use of paywalls. Until we find a viable business model, nothing should be rejected outright.

And journalism *does* have a high production cost. Some media owners think that cost should be minimized, but professional journalism still costs money.

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