The *Times*, to borrow former executive editor Howell Raines' favorite phrase, is flooding the zone with its coverage of higher ed's online future:
1. ["Remember the MOOCs? After Near-Death, They’re Booming"](https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/26/technology/moocs-online-learning.html) (today)
2. ["The Future of College Is Online, and It’s Cheaper"](https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/25/opinion/online-college-coronavirus.html) (yesterday)
3. ["It’s the Year 2120. MasterClass Is the Only School Left"](https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/25/style/masterclass-secrets.html) (yesterday)
All three pieces have the same upbeat message: Online learning is the future.
That may well be, but will the system remain non-profit? The resurgent MOOC providers (edX excepted) are venture-backed for-profits. The online degrees offered at traditional universities, the ones at Georgia and Illinois touted in two of the articles, are built atop the for-profit Coursera. So we may, if we're not careful, swap out more than the classroom when we make the online shift.