Pay the Sources?

I'm reminded of the fact that colleges make a lot of money from athletic programs without paying the players (scholarships don't count as disposable income) who bring the money in. Dave Winer on sources eliminating "middle-man" journalists by sourcing themselves:

The news people talk about paying for news, but the suppliers of news, the sources, are never paid. So if we can find a way to do what reporters do, without paying reporters, then voila, we can have our news for free.