I think academia is entirely different from news. This is research often funded with public money where the article fees aren't going to the author. Seems a lot more reasonable to demand that the public should be able to read it for free.

I literally pay money to publish my article. Do journalists pay for publishing an article in the newspaper or do they earn money?

It's crazy how entitled journals feel to receive free content from researchers, extract free labour in the form of peer review, and then just slap their name on the content, and paywall the knowledge. The very knowledge that was generated from tax payer's money.

Then they wonder why the academic community thinks poorly of journals and their lackeys.

I don't mind paying for news. I actually does it.
But I do mind being tracked because I read some news. I mind paying for a content whose access will be restricted to me after some random time. I mind not being able access to knowledge payed for by public money especially when I'm trying to further that research in a way that will benefit to society at least as much as it would benefit me.