We're not discussing the risks of advertising vs subscriptions. The long-tail of websites and niche content only exists because of advertising. There are way too many sources of content for even the best theoretical and fair payment solution to handle. Advertising is the primary viable business model for internet content.
And yes, publishers still allow content to be viewed even with adblockers because its hard to defend against, they can claim higher reach/users numbers and they might benefit from shares. It doesn't mean they want to and I'd bet every one of the creators you talk to understand why adblockers exist but would rather they not apply to the content they produce. Ask them that specifically if you haven't already. A small anecdote about the gaming community does not apply to the entire internet when for most publishers, their financial success is exactly tied to how many ads they serve and how much revenue they generate.
What I feel you're missing or just actively ignoring is that just because you can do something, does NOT make it right. Technology has made it very easy to find, download and filter exactly what you want but this enabling has lead to things like massive piracy.
Let me just ask you this: Do you think it's "right" to just download a movie without compensating all the work that went into it? Because consuming written content without paying and blocking the ads is exactly the same thing.
This is a strawman because you need to go out of your way to download a movie without paying for it, and in most countries, that is illegal.
You're completely missing this very important difference: It's legal to block ads and view free content. It's not legal to download things you're supposed to pay for.
As for whether it's "right" or "ethical" to block ads, that's a decision the industry you work for would love to get its hands on. Fact is, it's all take and no give with for-profit businesses. You mentioned HBO Go, well how about all those pay-for services which still show ads? How about the TV channels that still show ads? How about all the services on the web that you pay for and still don't have the decency to disable ads? They're common, and all the strawmen you're bringing into the discussion are carefully avoiding that little factoid.
> taking something from them without something in return, unless it was a gift, is stealing
Oh I've had enough with you already. The websites are gifting the content with the understanding that a part of their revenue will come from ads. With that understanding is also the understanding that there's also people who don't block ads. To those who do, they're eyeballs. Non-paying eyeballs, but still eyeballs, and there's a lot of content producers out there who would kill to have this huge segment of the population reading, viewing, listening to their stuff.
You go on a lot about how "people always want all their content for free". Ignoring the fact that it's a bullshit claim, with you specifically and the advertising industry in general, it's all take and no give. If the users are not seeing ads, they're STEALING!
Maybe they're not giving you, as the advertiser, business. But they're not stealing from the business they actually deal with. You want to claim they steal from you? Fine. That's debatable but it at least has some merit. But don't try to paint yourself as this white knight in shiny armor who would defend those poor mom&pop sites whose monies are being plundered.
PS: You wanna know why I'm so bitter? Just two weeks ago I was right in front of an ad network who asked one of the gaming fansites I deal with (a major French fansite), listening to them making demands on how the site should be redesigned to fit their worthless ads and how we should start blocking people who use adblock and telling them to turn it off. This is your fucking game. You want people to disable adblock, you don't care about our users.
I work with content creators in the gaming community on a regular basis and I am well aware of the "content creator's perspective". Believe it or not, a lot of content creators fully understand why someone would use adblock. They also understand that their success isn't measured in how many ads they print, but how much reach they have; and if you start pissing on people who block ads (Who are going to be a huge part of your userbase), you will suffer for it. ESPECIALLY in the gaming community, which holds grudges like you wouldn't believe.
The only ones who believe blocking ads is in a "grey area of morality" are advertisers. You can't just claim something is unethical because it hurts your business. I boycott Paypal for example, and I'm sure Paypal would make the case that it's unethical to boycott them.
Entering the business of giving free shit in exchange for the good will of people to funnel them advertising revenue is, and should be, a calculated risk.
There is no such thing as an "exchange of content for ad impressions". The "exchange" between the user and the content producer is free, and the real exchange happens between the content producer and the advertiser. The interaction between the business and the user is limited to the content they offer, and anti-value added by the advertiser (which is then an exchange between the user and the advertiser).
As a user, I choose to make an exchange with the business (in most cases not involving money), and I choose not to make an exchange with the advertiser because I don't trust the advertiser. I don't want the advertiser anywhere near me or my children. Work on that image and we can talk.