NYT comments are fully moderated. In 2015–6 this meant pro-Bernie comments were suppressed by moderators (I documented this at the time). Pro-Hillary comments were elevated. This obvious bias lead to a huge exodus of subscribers (me included). Trump’s election helped offset that, but the cat was out of the bag, and the masses moved to where they could speak openly. The same thing is happening with Twitter and all over social media. In the immortal words of Princess Leia, “The more you tighten your grip [establishment], the more star systems will slip through your fingers.”