Best digital newspaper subscription these days (US focus)?

June 3, 2024 3:22 PM

I've been a digital subscriber to the Washington Post for several years, and I'm wondering if I'm better off spending money elsewhere. Are any of you happier with the mix of regional, national, and features with one of the other major papers, along with a handy daily dose of headlines to your inbox?
posted by TwoStride to Media & Arts (16 answers total)

Christian Science Monitor. Don't let the name scare you. 7 Pulitzer prizes.
posted by Czjewel at 4:15 PM on June 3

I subscribe to five newspapers, and while all of them are great, I find WaPo the one I want to get push content from (morning news update, mid-day news update).
posted by NotMyselfRightNow at 4:48 PM on June 3

I get WaPo, but also subscribe to the Guardian, which also has great coverage of US news as well as, I think, better coverage of global news.
posted by gingerbeer at 5:23 PM on June 3

IMHO, the Washington Post is the gold standard. I also have a paid subscription to the NYT which I'll probably be dropping in the near future given how it's changed for the worse. The WaPO has remained consistent.
posted by mdrosen at 5:55 PM on June 3

I have subscriptions to NYT and WaPo. I like WaPo best. Also, did you know that federal employees can subscribe to the Washington Post for free?

Christian Science Monitor is also good, especially for detailed content.
posted by mulcahy at 6:08 PM on June 3

It is not a general news outlet, but I am very happy to be a paid subscriber to Talking Points Memo for left-of-center, cut through the bullshit political news and analysis.
posted by Winnie the Proust at 6:34 PM on June 3

I enjoy WaPo, but they got a new exec. editor today. It's a bit personal, and less circumspect that NYTimes, which won't come out and say the orange fascist is a lying, corrupt, crook who wants to be fuhrer. WaPo gets much closer, because it's true. Also, WaPo has advice columns and Miss Manners. The kids aren't a patch on Miss M, but still.

Subscribe to as many as possible. Journalism is having a tough time and needs support. Subscribe to your local paper if it's all okay.
posted by theora55 at 7:05 PM on June 3

I also subscribe to WaPo along with Wired and also (for free) The Morning Brew daily which I find is worth skimming. YMMV.
posted by forthright at 9:18 PM on June 3

I would consider Ground.news.
posted by terrapin at 7:44 AM on June 4

I have a pretty old fashioned media diet, which is that I subscribe to the WaPo for national and global news, and I subscribe to my local paper for local news. I usually try to augment global news by searching for articles on specific global topics in non-US sources. And I read a few magazines. I find this approach serves me well, and the ambient Internetness of everything will tend to keep me abreast of things that bubble to the pop-cultural surface.
posted by kensington314 at 9:24 AM on June 4

Check your public library. I get free subscriptions to the NYT, WSJ, and WaPo, plus access to the PressReader app, which has more US and international newspapers.
posted by elphaba at 10:16 AM on June 4

I am a leftist in the midwest who likes to keep tabs on what the ruling class is up to. I have a digital subscription to my local hometown newspaper, the Guardian, and the Wall Street Journal. I supplement these with some news-y magazine subscriptions (Belt Magazine, New Yorker, and the Atlantic). I feel pretty well-informed, and co-sign subscribing to as much as you can afford since journalism needs all the help it can get.

I no longer subscribe to the New York Times, and on principle refuse to ever do so again, because I found their journalistic coverage of the midwestern electorate during the 2016 utterly appalling and bordering on journalistic malfeasance. When I want to read some NYT articles, I go through my public library.
posted by mostly vowels at 1:22 PM on June 4

Thanks, all! Looks like I won't write off WaPo just yet.
posted by TwoStride at 6:57 PM on June 4

WaPo is it! Cancelled NYT last year and don't really miss it. I also have a subscription to Scribd (about $12 a month) which gets me digital access to magazines like The Atlantic and Harper's, and probably maybe others (but I can only ingest so much).
posted by missmobtown at 7:33 AM on June 5

ungated NYT article about WaPo editor drama
posted by theora55 at 11:47 AM on June 6

I cancelled my WAPO subscription in January 2024 after a very bad George Will column. I can't take their right wing columnists any longer. I subscribed to the Guardian instead and recently, Defector, for their commentary.
posted by andreap at 4:04 AM on June 9