Media Clickbait Incentives

This cluster critiques how news media prioritizes clicks, views, engagement, and ad revenue through sensationalism, outrage, and hype rather than accurate or balanced reporting.

📉 Falling 0.3x Politics & Society
3,964
Comments
20
Years Active
5
Top Authors
#9559
Topic ID

Activity Over Time

2007
9
2008
26
2009
70
2010
77
2011
88
2012
95
2013
157
2014
125
2015
123
2016
202
2017
273
2018
325
2019
342
2020
342
2021
490
2022
369
2023
393
2024
231
2025
207
2026
20

Keywords

BBC SEO US StackOverflow NYT HN AOL wikipedia.org PG WaPo news media clicks journalism news media eyeballs press news source journalists facts

Sample Comments

user5994461 Jan 12, 2018 View on HN

That's what media articles would have you believe. How else would they get clicks?

vorpalhex Aug 6, 2020 View on HN

The news doesn't exist to inform us of the truth, it exists to get clicks which generate revenue.

beachstartup Apr 10, 2016 View on HN

this might come as a .. surprise to you, but the entire news and media business basically exists for this purpose.

anoncake May 26, 2021 View on HN

The media is aiming for the most clicks.

raziel2701 Aug 1, 2023 View on HN

It's because it's a piece of news that doesn't cause outrage and polarization so they don't know how to profit off it.

hashberry Mar 26, 2019 View on HN

It's more profitable to make news than report on the news.

currymj Feb 11, 2018 View on HN

this mainly has to do with the incentives of journalists in an attention-based industry, I think.

ducttape12 Feb 24, 2020 View on HN

So it's what I'm thinking, it's the news hyping it up to get clicks, ad impressions, etc? Seems kind of irresponsible to get the public into a frenzy just to make money.

president Feb 16, 2021 View on HN

News companies are in the business of getting views and clicks, that's all.

seb1204 Jun 16, 2021 View on HN

The media rush for clicks and advertising is not the right driver for such kind of news.