Originally posted by Hoovtrain:
I didn't assume anything. They changed their protocol and required you to sign up for a membership to be able to post replies there for a while. Maybe that's changed now.
It was never like that. The other versions of the articles have always been there. What they did was started publishing a preview page with a few paragraphs that had a comment section, which starts with "https://49ers.pressdemocrat" and then a link on that page that leads to the full article, where you get the pay gateway, which starts with "https://www.pressdemocrat".
You just didn't know because either you never scrolled down to the comments on the "49ers.pressdemocrat" link or you just never knew if its existence.
But I was posting comments the very first DAY they switched to the pay gateway, because I hit the back button in rage and it took me to the "49ers.pressdemocrat" link and I happened to scroll down.
All that said, it is 100% about money, not Cohn's fragile ego. He responds to live questions when he does a podcast, so if he was so soft he certainly wouldn't be doing that. They just want your money.