I don't disagree, but the problem with the paid model is that people need a sense of the value of the item before they buy it. It is hard to sell someone a news

I don't disagree, but the problem with the paid model is that people need a sense of the value of the item before they buy it. It is hard to sell someone a news product with the promise that it will be worth what they spend. This approach does work with how-to books (how to program X language), but not with news.