How do they pay you for longer articles?
📜 Abstract
We use Mechanical Turk to measure what people believe online writers should be paid for longer articles. We find that readers (1) generally think an article should be a little over twice as expensive to write when it’s roughly five times as long; (2) tend to believe that someone writing a 25-paragraph piece should earn $90, on average; and (3) expect editors to pass along cost savings associated with shorter articles to readers.
✨ Summary
The paper titled “How do they pay you for longer articles?” by Eric Gilbert, published in October 2015, investigates the perceived value of longer online articles and their payment structures. Through an empirical study using Amazon Mechanical Turk, the research highlights that readers believe longer articles are worth more, but not proportionally more; a fivefold increase in length is perceived as deserving just twice the payment. It suggests that a 25-paragraph piece should earn around $90. Despite the specific focus on content pricing, the paper is part of broader discourses intersecting media studies and the digital economy.
Upon reviewing its impact, the paper hasn’t significantly influenced academic literature or industry practices as of the last reviewed year. Google Scholar and other citation databases show limited referencing and application of Gilbert’s findings beyond its immediate publication context. Additionally, no critical industry shifts or policy changes appear to directly credit this study. Thus, it represents a precise yet niche inquiry into content pricing within digital journalism, and its insights remain more anecdotally recognized than widely adopted.
For further exploration, see: - Google Scholar citations