Other articles trending on The Daily Beast: > "The Alabama Granny Murder-For-Hire Plot" > "Attack Of The Kate Upton Clones" > "The Internet Is Just Broken" ..

Other articles trending on The Daily Beast: > "The Alabama Granny Murder-For-Hire Plot" > "Attack Of The Kate Upton Clones" > "The Internet Is Just Broken" ...oh wait, that last one... It's not an issue with the internet, Freddie Starr Ate My Hamster style intriguing/bizarre stories have always been popular. Hyperbole brings people in, and it's not just about clicks – people will read stupid stories in The Sun or The Mirror depending on their political leanings, and feel entertained. Because they're fun, silly stories. I'd hate to write one myself but that's a personality trait I have, and not necessarily a positive one. Also: > Advertisers have wised up a little bit. There are now party tricks like branded content—wherein advertisers pay for stories that are sort of about their product, but are also about, say, travel or sports—and advertisers sometimes take into account unique visitors within specific demographics, based on age, race, and location. > Tony Haile, the CEO of Chartbeat—the kings of metrics on the Web—tried to warn us about this last year. I'm inclined to think this is a Daily Beast writer and Chartbeat being a bit cheeky! Hiding in plain sight. Not that I would begrudge them at all. It was a fun read. Although I disagree with the central premise behind writing it, most of the actual ideas seemed fine. Time on site is hardly a new concept though, and engagement in general has been somewhere on the priority list for (for example) Google for quite a while now.