CM2017_12_Stop
Newspapers are struggling to make money online, so paywalls make sense I get it.

But if your whole story is about a couple of tweets then that story does not belong behind a paywall. Here’s what inspired this post.

A story came up on facebook, I clicked on the link and saw this;

screen-shot-2016-10-12-at-16-28-05
From the story description and preview I could find enough keywords to find the story on Yahoo.

I could also find the original tweets;

screen-shot-2016-10-12-at-16-33-15

and then JK Rowling’s genius response which I think is probably what attracted the Telegraph to report it; screen-shot-2016-10-12-at-16-33-25

I do pay for a couple of online subscriptions, where the content is extraordinary, quality, original, researched and well-written. This story is none of those things, it’s a witty aside to the real news. Telegraph did not create the content, it’s not unique to them, they have no ownership rights to it, but feel entitled to put it behind a paywall. Just stop it.

Image:  Stop  |  Kenny Louie  |  CC BY 2.0

Published by Louise McGregor

I've worked in digital at the intersection of communications, technology and business for more than a decade. And I'm still crazy about digital.

One thought on “Just Stop Putting Public Content Behind a Paywall”

  1. Pingback: Digital Dispatch 9 – Fantail Consultancy

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