I think everyone misses the real problem: there's a ton of content out there and it's only growing in number, as are the various types of content.
For anyone to expect even the conventional SEO-to-pageview-to-revenue model to work ALONE is just plain unrealistic.
That's why many publications are working with PR people to push their content out... to other media outlets. Trouble is, many PR people don't get social media and wind up failing at the task unless they can get their client TV coverage.
I think the NYT has done a great job of becoming a quasi-giffen good. In economics, a Giffen Good is one that consumers will pay a premium price for - in fact, they expect to do so. Brands that fall into this category are Rolls Royce Motorcars, Aston-Martin Mortorcars, Coach bags, and to a comparative degree Vanity Fair Magazine and the NYT. In this way, the NYT is not a standard newspaper - it's an institution; the normal economics of media don't exactly apply to it.
For anyone to expect even the conventional SEO-to-pageview-to-revenue model to work ALONE is just plain unrealistic.
That's why many publications are working with PR people to push their content out... to other media outlets. Trouble is, many PR people don't get social media and wind up failing at the task unless they can get their client TV coverage.