Someone asks does Rolling Stone have a paywall?
In 2020, it launched its so-called "semi-permeable paywall" .
It is actually a soft paywall, some even call it a free paywall.
There are more than ten ways you can read Rolling Stone web articles without an account.
In this post I am just showing you one easy trick to read its articles about music, politics, and popular culture.
For the rest of them, just click each of the techniques, it would direct to the tutorial.
Rolling Stone uses a soft paywall, meaning the content is often loaded in your browser before the paywall appears.
Even by using the Chrome Incognito mode, you can get past many paywalled websites.
That's the reason why it is possible to bypass paywalls of most websites.
Is removing paywalls illegal?
The legality of bypassing paywalls is a complex and often debated issue, with different interpretations and varying degrees of enforcement.
It's a grey area where you're technically doing something the website doesn't allow.
Thus it could have consequences like getting your IP address blocked, but it's very unlikely to lead to severe legal trouble for a single person.
Plus curated content and exclusive first-hand looks behind the scenes.
Welcome to another post from The DiGiztal Bypass Paywalls Tips series.
Now let's check how people could read Rolling Stone website articles for free.
How to bypass Rolling Stone paywall
Here is the list of methods that definitely can roll through its digital paywall.
- Reader View/Reading Mode
- Disable JavaScript
- 13 feet Ladder
- 12ft Ladder
- Bypass Paywalls Clean extension
- Archive.Today
- PrintFriendly
- Google Translate
- JavaScript bookmarklet
- Private browsing
- Clear This Page
- Texify.it
- Textise
- Hover Paywall extension (enabled Block Ads)
In this post, I am just showing you the first method to read Rolling Stone web articles for free.
Reader View/Reading Mode
For a start, they are already available built-in tool of your browsers.
No need to install any browser extension or tinkering around with your browser.
All you need to do is click your mouse or tap your phone.
Yes, I am talking about Reader View in Firefox or Reading Mode of Chrome browser.
They strip away distractions like ads, pop-ups, and sidebars, leaving only the main article text and images.
This often works because soft paywalls load the full article, then use JavaScript to obscure it.
Reader View can bypass or block this blocking code.
For example, you want to read the movie review, "Wes Anderson’s ‘The Phoenician Scheme’ Is One of His Best".
Just click the Reader View (at address bar) or Reading Mode icon (at toolbar).
Boom! you can view the full content right there.
This is from Chrome Reading Mode:
This is from Firefox Reader View:
The difference between these two tools is Chrome Reading Mode does not provide any images or pictures.
The Reader View and reading Mode are not designed specifically to bypass paywalls, but these features can often do so indirectly.
They either implicitly disable JavaScript or are built to parse only the core content of a page, effectively bypassing soft paywalls.
Soft paywalls
In fact many websites use soft paywalls, like The New Yorker, Chicago Tribune and The Atlantic.
The full article content is actually downloaded to your browser, but with the help of JavaScript code, it hides it from view.
This is how tools like 12ft Ladder or Txtify.it function, by simply disabling the JavaScript, that blocks the article.
In short, all you need to do is disable the JavaScript that enforces the soft paywalls to hide content that's already loaded in your browser.
That's why you can also use Clear This Page bookmarklet or Textise to get around Rolling Stone paywall too.
Both of these tools also used the disabling JavaScript function.
Why do these publishers still use soft paywall, when people can easily get through it?
It might seem counterintuitive to most of you.
Soft paywalls help content to show up in search results, aka as flexible sampling.
Even if an article is hidden, it's still loaded in your browser, so Google can find and list it.
This means more new readers can find the content through search, social media, or shared links.
If the visitors do not know how to bypass its digital barrier, they might also perceive the content as premium, and worth paying for it.
A soft paywall, particularly the metered one, which it allows visitors to read a few free articles.
It is meant to let the potential subscribers to experience the quality and value of the content, hoping to get them over to sign up.
It can also collect data to track the visitors behavior (what they read, how often).
In short, it is a win-win strategy.
They do know people could sneak into their paywalled content, but it is a small price they have to pay.
They want to their content easy to find, plus getting all the traffic or visitors to their sites.
NOTE: These methods may not involve direct hacking or unauthorized access, they can still violate anti-circumvention laws and terms of service. Consider using the legal and ethical ways to access paywalled web articles.
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DISCLAIMER: This post is for educational purposes only. It aims to help you better understand web technologies and digital security. It does not endorse breaking website rules or illegal activity. Use responsibly; the author is not liable for misuse or legal issues.