> The net has transformed a lot of people's assumptions about writing -
> they want it all for free. Which is fine if you're a blogger getting a
> paycheck from a university or a think tank, but what about us hacks who
> aren't so well-situated? Stuff posted on the web looks costless to the
> user, but it takes a lot of time and effort to get it there in many cases.
This is very true, as some of us who run popular radical websites understand.
But I'd rather live with the free and open nature of the Internet than see it balkanized and priced out of reach of us independent producers. Fundraising was a challenge before the Internet existed.
We've been able to raise some funds at Infoshop over the past years, but never enough to do the things we want to do. Looking at fund drives at other progressive websites, it's obvious that most people who visit websites aren't donating money. The "it looks free therefore it must cost nothing" attitude has plagued organizations using the web. I remember that during my tenure at AAAS, they were very worried about making Science magazine available online. They were very aware of this "free" mentality.
On a related note--I noticed that there was a question in that religious survey sent to the list that had a question about tithing. Evidently churches see similar low percentages when it comes to people giving money.
Perhaps there really isn't much difference between a sermon and a website.
Chuck