[avian]

To be honest, I was thinking more about art, science and technology content that is primarily published on the web rather than traditional journalism like you would find in New York Times.

I can't speak for on-the-ground or wide-ranging reporting of breaking events, but for instance I know of a local investigative journalism website that does not depend on ads and is often praised for the quality of its content. (http://podcrto.si/about).