The Miami Herald pay wall -- euphemistically titled Miami Herald Plus+ -- hit yesterday.
It means you get 15 articles free a month on your computer and as many as 60 each month on a mobile app. For the newspaper, it is a way to fill the gap -- as more than 50 percent of print advertising has fallen away in the past four years.
Only about 240 of the nation's 1,500 daily newspapers have pay walls, according to the Poynter Institute. Interestingly, readership drops little when they go up. The New York Times has long had such pay walls. The Sun Sentinel started one in May, and the Philadelphia Inquirer and Washington Post recently announced they would add one.
New Times has suffered a similar but less steep drop in revenues. But we have no intention of establishing a pay wall. We have always believed in a free press. And hey, our readership -- as well as our national award total -- is booming.
If you still feel like you have to read the Herald or Sentinel, here are some tips on how to avoid the pay wall.
1. The biggest trick in dealing with these pay walls is to use different gizmos and IP addresses. Work computer, home computer, phone, you name it.
2. Use Google to read its articles.
3. Get rid of cookies and try different browsers.
4. Follow links on social media like Facebook and Twitter. Most Herald reporters have their own feeds. This can confuse the damned gizmo.
5. Try IP Faker. You gotta know what you are doing, but this has worked for those who know what they are doing.
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