I’m not opposed to paying, but I see two issues:

1. I could read a newspaper without a subscription. I could buy just one issue. NYT does that that online

2. A newspaper in a vending machine showed you more than just the headline. Like the subhead, for example. I can’t even see that. The default NYT experience without a subscription gives you only the title. And I have to agree to $25/month to get anything else assuming I’m not using a paywall bypass

“We have stuff, we say you’ll like it, cough up a bunch of money to find out what” is a tough sell for me.

Paywalls that give you at least the first few sentences make far more sense to me.