RSS and Newsreaders

I am NOT enthusiastic about this topic. The thought of getting news without paying for it is a little hard for me to stomach considering my husband Steve's occupation. Steve is an editor at the Deseret Morning News. Like many newspapers throughout the country, the Deseret Morning News is quickly losing revenues. Part of it is because of the economy. Most of it is because of the internet and television. Even with 25 years of seniority at the Deseret News, we have been carefully watching the layoffs. We have been worried about Steve's position for almost a year. Now before you say that newspapers need to keep up with the times, keep in mind that they are trying. Most of them are now online and are actively finding alternate ways to get revenue. However, most internet users want their news FREE. They don't stop to think that someone has to pay for the service that is being provided. Online advertising is the only way for newspapers to get compensation for the service they provide every time someone logs on to their site without a subscription. The scary thing is that most people don't realize that if they eliminate newspapers, the face of news changes tremendously: most television and internet sites rely on newspapers. If newspapers go, the other news sources suffer tremendously, and the public doesn't have the extensive, balanced news that they are accustomed to having.
I understand why RSS and newsreaders are so "valuable" for readers, but the fact that even the 2.0 segment proudly proclaimed that readers can now get news without advertising leaves me to wonder if in their quest for easy, free news, readers are inadvertently and systematically getting rid of news. Just last week two major papers folded. More closures are to come.
I signed up for the RSS just because it was part of the assignment, but I won't be using it. It is a matter of principle: I'd rather have my husband (and all of the journalists just like him) have a job. News without advertising? Somebody has to pay--and it should be the readers--even if their payment means they just have to deal with the advertisements that are posted to the side of the story. What a sacrifice!!!!