Speaking as a former journalist, I would say: It's the job of reporters to do more than explore a question. Their job is to surface new and useful information

Speaking as a former journalist, I would say: It's the job of reporters to do more than explore a question. Their job is to surface new and useful information for readers, and then prioritize it. And the job of the headline is to telegraph to readers what that information may be, reflecting their priorities. It is a sign of a failed process of reporting if one can do no more than explore a question, and present a collection of dead ends. If the reporter can't name the oldest language, then she might write a piece focused on why it's so hard to determine which language is oldest. Or she might tell the story of how nationalism drives scholars of Chinese, Sanskrit and Tamil to stake the claims they do. There are probably several great stories there. That is, part of the process of reporting is framing a question that can be answered in a way that allows her to present new and relevant information. The reporter of this piece, and her editors, did not meet that standard.