Should NYT Ask Readers To Pay for News? - Analysis of the Paid-Content Model

Bobbie Johnson of Guardian (UK based newspaper) thinks:

I understand that news operations are expensive things (I know, I work in one), but the NYT - which has a prestigious standing on the web - seems to be intent on undermining its own credibility with abandon.

What I was expecting from him was to outline, given his mention of his knowledge of the news industry and the associated costs, a plan of action for New York Times.

Obviously the so called “credibility” doesn’t directly equate to dollars, otherwise NYT wouldn’t have gone this route.

We will analyse this “credibility” aspect in further details and why for New York Times going for-pay was the best option available. But first lets see what TechDirt, a well visited (and hence credible?) online blog has to say on this issue.

TechDirt comments in an article titled “NY Times Online Tries To Lose Relevance: Will Charge For Opinion Pieces”:

While plenty of people explained why this would be a very bad idea, putting it in the company of the Wall Street Journal, who is losing its relevance with many influencers, it appears the folks at the Times didn’t get the message. While they’re not locking up everything, they admitted today that op-ed pieces and columnists will all go behind a paid wall starting this fall.