> I've perused the "new" page a number of times, and generally interesting submissions (i.e. what HN finds interesting) DO make it to the front page.

Some do and some don't. Certainly, many interesting articles never make it to the front page. Due to lack of exposure rather than some failing intrinsic failing of the article.

It raises an interesting question of priorities; Is it more important that every interesting article spends some time on the front page, or that no non-interesting article spends some time on the front page?

In other words, given that there are lots of interesting things in the world, does it matter if a particular interesting thing never makes it to the front page, so long as the front page is full of interesting things?

Very many bad articles make it to the front page (sensationalist title and/or link bait about Bitcoin), however, the flag option is so much more powerful than the up vote that it counteracts false positives immediately.