3 ms·

Headlines like this count towards slowly eroding my faith in media. Not factually incorrect, but the intent only becomes obvious after reading.

colechristensen 4y ago
Yup, this is why it became so easy to claim any fact you didn’t like was “fake news”. The real news is so often just bullshit.
- jvm___ 4y ago
  Just wait until AI generated articles pollute the internet. Trusted sources only is going to make a more decisive world.
- vba616 4y ago
  If the headline's possible misinterpretation is deflated with the first sentence or two, that seems to me like old school journalism and the opposite of today's typical BS. Most of the headlines that bug me start with an absurd claim (or premise, which is worse) and maintain it all the way through, or until very near the end. There's a difference between making people think A, in order to tell them B, and making them think A until you concede not-A and the whole article is pointless. I think it's not just a difference, but all the difference.
kadoban 4y ago
You only have to read as far as the subheadline to get what it's about, and the literal first two paragraphs make it even more explicit in case you missed it.
- eru 4y ago
  Yes, it's not quite as bad as burying the surprise deep in the article.
- xupybd 4y ago
  Yes but a large number of people don't get that far.
  - fbdab103 4y ago
    So...the headline should be, "Census reclassifies urban to be greater than X"? The current one is accurate and draws in the reader.
    - elefanten 4y ago
      Yes, that's a better headline. When every editor and every publication take it on themselves to "draw in" the reader, it quickly escalates into an arms race of bullshit. Clickbait is lying. It's time and attention theft. Yes, most of marketing could be described that way and it was accepted long ago. But it's still right to call this dishonest bullshit out, over and over.
    - xupybd 4y ago
      I would argue that it is not accurate. You can lie by omission. My initial interpretation of the headline is that America has had a demographic shift. Given Covid that it's plausible. But really it's just a change in classification. You are correct that it draws the reader. Most headlines today are focused on drawing the reader. Many headlines lie by omission and many reader don't get past the headline.
  - tzs 4y ago
    Are any of those people who need to read that far?
- msgilligan 4y ago
  The "And just like that" strongly hints that the change is "at the stroke of a pen" and not something real.

colechristensen 4y ago

Yup, this is why it became so easy to claim any fact you didn’t like was “fake news”. The real news is so often just bullshit.

jvm___ 4y ago
Just wait until AI generated articles pollute the internet. Trusted sources only is going to make a more decisive world.
vba616 4y ago
If the headline's possible misinterpretation is deflated with the first sentence or two, that seems to me like old school journalism and the opposite of today's typical BS. Most of the headlines that bug me start with an absurd claim (or premise, which is worse) and maintain it all the way through, or until very near the end. There's a difference between making people think A, in order to tell them B, and making them think A until you concede not-A and the whole article is pointless. I think it's not just a difference, but all the difference.

kadoban 4y ago

You only have to read as far as the subheadline to get what it's about, and the literal first two paragraphs make it even more explicit in case you missed it.

eru 4y ago
Yes, it's not quite as bad as burying the surprise deep in the article.
xupybd 4y ago
Yes but a large number of people don't get that far.
- fbdab103 4y ago
  So...the headline should be, "Census reclassifies urban to be greater than X"? The current one is accurate and draws in the reader.
  - elefanten 4y ago
    Yes, that's a better headline. When every editor and every publication take it on themselves to "draw in" the reader, it quickly escalates into an arms race of bullshit. Clickbait is lying. It's time and attention theft. Yes, most of marketing could be described that way and it was accepted long ago. But it's still right to call this dishonest bullshit out, over and over.
  - xupybd 4y ago
    I would argue that it is not accurate. You can lie by omission. My initial interpretation of the headline is that America has had a demographic shift. Given Covid that it's plausible. But really it's just a change in classification. You are correct that it draws the reader. Most headlines today are focused on drawing the reader. Many headlines lie by omission and many reader don't get past the headline.
- tzs 4y ago
  Are any of those people who need to read that far?
msgilligan 4y ago
The "And just like that" strongly hints that the change is "at the stroke of a pen" and not something real.