This is a Very important issue to bring forward and I want to thank the Almanac for expressing it.
I have worried for years about the local advertising revenue pressures brought to bare on the local Press --most all of it driven solely by real estate and development interests.
The forth estate would much better serve the broader public interest with a lot less "real" estate involved.
It has been long acknowledged, but not yet resolved, that campaign finance reform is a parallel example of how special interests can skew both perception and reality by undermining democratic process----with or without intention.
I will happily subscribe to any campaign that might finally set the Press free.
But please Almanac, sell only one ten dollar subscription to the APOA.

Both Murdoch and Price (PA Daily Post) have already stumbled upon this issue and have different, but apparently effective solutions.

Murdoch ("The Daily", WSJ, etc) has started putting up pay walls. You get some content for free, but if you want more, you have to pay.

Price simply doesn't put anything on the Internet. You've got to go find his paper. People do. He, therefore, gets businesses to pay for his advertising space.

I get the Sunday paper for $20/year, but rarely read it. The notion of a relaxing morning with coffee and the paper is appealing, but the iPad is so much more convenient. I get their content online despite having the paper version available.

I think the answer for the Almanac is to erect a pay wall. The voluntary subscription model might induce some payments, but it won't generate the revenue they need.

A voluntary payment feels like donating to charity. A subscription feels like I'm purchasing a product or creating a contract where they promise to provide me with something of value. They don't have any obligation for a donation.

There's nothing like being faced with having to read an article which is inaccessible on the web and being given the option to pay. Impulse wins every time, especially for a few bucks a month. Pay wall is the answer.

I agree about a pay wall for the Almanac, but it seems too early to create one now. Let the idea take hold.