It's a fine line sure, but between the archive sites and an honest subscription being $5 a month the "i hate paying" is overwrought. My local newspaper? Sure, $15/month is too much to know which municipality Comcast is currently shitting on when Comcast is literally hanging the unsolicited info on my door handle.
By-the-by your moralizing is also out of date (unsurprisingly since you cheap out at less than $5/month) you literally just hit "manage my account" -> "cancel account" -> "cancel online" and Bob's your uncle.
I am a subscriber to the NYT, but I can confirm it is not so easy to cancel. I can do as you suggest, but am directed to a page asking me to call a number or chat w/ an agent. Apparently some "eligible" accounts can cancel online, but most (including me) cannot.