Most of our news consumption has moved online from traditional print media. The amount of news that one can consume through these traditional mediums is limited. With the change in the way news is consumed, we have gotten numerous options of news outlets to consume from. Local, niche-specific, national, international – all sorts of news channels are at our disposal, allowing one to devour unlimited content at any time from anywhere.
And with such easy access to information, comes fake news. It is important to protect ourselves from consuming such false news that is all over the internet. It affects us and the world more than one imagines. To know more, refer “link the previous article here”.
Why does fake news persist?
Online channels thrive on getting clicks. And fake news is usually more novel. People are more likely to consume novel news than one that is not novel (or most of the real news).
News that we consume online is free in most cases, without a subscription charge. So, the way these channels make money is through advertisements on their pages. To make the most of it, they need more people to visit their sites. And they do this by luring in readers with fake news.
Role of catchy (usually untrue and exaggerated) headlines – Clickbaits
First, let’s try and understand the various attributes that go into an article. Understanding these attributes can help us detect the ways that each attribute can be manipulated on the online medium.
- The source: The source is the person who has written the article or the publisher of the article.
- Headline: The headline is supposed to give a gist of the complete article that the reader uses to decide on reading or not.
- The Body: It is the main text that elaborates on the story or a claim. It gives the reader a comprehensive idea of the subject being talked of.
- Visuals: Visuals are images or videos that are present along with the article. They generate interest and make it easier to consume content.
The above mentioned are some basic attributes of an online article. One can only imagine how these must be manipulated into something harmful.
Headlines, for that matter, are the most abused attribute of an article or any web-based content. They are the first impression that a potential reader makes of the content. It is the decision-making factor of whether they will open the link or not. This makes the writers or publishers want to make the most of it, and rightfully so. But the problem arises when it is taken too far by claiming false information just to get the reader to click on the link.
Every online media outlet needs to compete with one another in terms of being more attractive to the reader to generate revenue. So, it is often taken too far, unethically, to claim false or exaggerated news just to make it seem more novel.
Cues to detect a clickbait
The conclusions are derived from the following researches:
- Fake News Detection on Social Media: A Data Mining Perspective
- Stop Clickbait: Detecting and Preventing Clickbaits in Online News Media
- Contains Opinionated or Inflammatory Language – The primary goal of fake news is to make financial or political gains rather than claiming objective facts. A clickbait headline could be from the point of view of the writer that often instills confusion within the mind of the reader. The reason for opinionated headlines could be because the media outlet wants the reader to form a biased decision. Whereas, non-clickbait news would only state facts and leave the decision-making to the reader.
- Clickbait Headlines are Usually Longer – Long-form, fully formed headlines are more clickable. It may not necessarily suggest fake news, but often has the objective of luring in readers. As per statistics, clickbaits have more words than non-clickbaits. This is because it aims not just to give a brief, but rather to make a detailed claim that will make the reader want to know more.
- Slang Words, Punctuation Patterns, and Phrases – Internet slang words like “OMG”, “WTF”, “LOL”, etc. are eye-catching and signify novelty. They can often be seen along with punctuation patterns like “?!”, “…”, “!!!”, etc. adding a sense of urgency. Certain phrases like “This will blow your mind” are commonly used in clickbaits too.
- Use of Possessive Pronouns and Adverbs – Clickbaits might contain possessive pronouns like “you” or “his/her” as it personalizes the claim. And since clickbaits are more well-formed, they contain more adverbs than non-clickbaits like “very”, “quickly”, “easily”, etc.
How to Block Clickbait Headlines?
Understanding the attributes of clickbaits can help us recognize them. There isn’t a hard and fast rule that specifies if clickbaits have a certain pattern. But it can still be useful to understand the patterns that are commonly seen.
Different readers interact with headlines differently. It may vary from one reader to another based on their likes and dislikes. This is why some people might not fall for a certain type of clickbait while others do.
For example, a person wanting to lose weight might fall for a clickbait like “Lose Weight Fast in 10 Days”. Whereas a person who is into fitness, would most likely not, but they could fall for a ‘Get Rich Quick’ scheme.
Conclusion
Always look out for clickbaits when consuming news. It needs to be a community initiative to block clickbaits. Once we educate ourselves and the ones around us, only then might this unethical practice come to an end.
At The News Line, it is our initiative to keep as many people as possible informed about fake news. We want to provide the best possible resources to all. You can expect more such content from us.
