Will Warren, senior project manager at the News Revenue Hub, says there are two big reasons to take down a paywall: because it aligns with a news organization’s mission and because it is a smart financial move.
“High-quality information is essential for communities to thrive,” Warren said. “Making that information free and accessible to everyone is important from a mission perspective.”
For the Forward, making all its coverage free for everyone proved to be a good move from a business perspective:
“We know from research that a growing number of people simply aren’t willing to be forced to pay for news,” said [News Revenue Hub founder and chief executive officer Mary] Walter-Brown. “Many will, however, give voluntarily once they’ve had a chance to build habit and loyalty. A paywall keeps newsrooms from building that relationship with would-be supporters.”
The Forward found this to be the case. In the first three months since dropping the paywall, the newsroom welcomed 1,254 new donors who hadn’t previously paid to access their coverage. From December 5, 2023 to March 15, 2024, the Forward received nearly $583,000 in donations under $5,000 — a 37% increase over paid subscription revenue during the same time frame the previous year.