Here's the thing, most of the worthwhile current affairs coverage comes from paywalled publications. Should we only limit ourselves to clickbait? No, of course not, not when there's alternatives.
The problem isn't HN, it's the publications. It's a problem to solve at a publication level.
Is it really a problem? Journalism costs money, and directly funding it rather than tying it to advertisers avoids some potential conflicts of interest and misalignment of incentives.
You tell me. People can either pay for access or scumbag it with a relevant link. Either their business works, or it doesn't. Either users are happy with those choices available to them or they're not. If they're not happy, take it up with the publication. It isn't HN's place to solve a publication's business model.
The problem isn't HN, it's the publications. It's a problem to solve at a publication level.