Here's my two cents worth:

Split the revenues 80/20 between the writers and pub owners.

Then Medium will have more committed pub owners. They will create better pubs, which should be a filter for readers to read the stuff they want to read.

If the writers do not like this, then they can publish independently or create their own pub.

I used to contribute to a political pub. I really appreciated the time and effort the owner and his helpers put into enhancing my work. But now, I don't ask other people to do the editing for free anymore.