I don't think anyone wants to read it for its own sake though, rather its something that's been shared and in that context its annoying. Not to mention people aren't exactly interested in subscribing to countless content outlets.

Is anyone working on a meta-level a-la-carte subscription system? Pay 3d party, which grants per-article access to journalist websites at a lower price point than full subscription to any or all of them. Bonus if the system shields identity so as not to allow publisher to personalize ads, etc.

we've been waiting for this for... 20 years? Apple's "news" thing might get the closest, perhaps, but I still have to subscribe to that.

3 different people suggested this story to me (originally from Detroit area, and have had family in Russia for a spell). I'm not subscribing to the whole site for this one story. If I could have paid, say, 15-30c to get it, I would have done so.