Click-Bait Frustrations

Click-bait is annoying as hell. Click-bait also means revenue. 

Local TV news social media is no stranger to click-bait news stories. Usually, these stories are gut-wrenching tales of death and despair that tug on the heartstrings of even the most hardened viewers/readers. Every time you click on one of them it means more revenue and profits for the out-of-town corporations that own our local TV stations.

WPTA ABC 21Alive seems to be the worst offender, but WANE-15 also runs these stories on their social media platforms. But, WANE-15 deserves credit for offering the reader/viewer a bit more information.

Below, note, that the WPTA ABC 21Alive story, by lack of identification, implies that it occurred here, in Fort Wayne. But that's not true. The story that WPTA ABC 21Alive features didn't even happen in the US. It's from Nova Scotia, in Canada. 

WANE-15 wisely drops a hint to readers/viewers that the story they feature occurred in Kansas. 

Kudos to WANE-15 for helping readers/viewers make wise decisions on what they choose to click on, and what to scroll by. 

Annoyance #22

It's the petty things that seem to annoy the Maven the most.

Clickbait is one of those things. 

These are not local stories appearing in the Maven's Twitter feed but give one the impression they are because of their compelling subjects and content.

While not an illegal practice, and given today's standards for TV journalism, probably not seen as an unethical practice, it's still deceptive and a cheap way to increase click-throughs and revenue, while also frustrating and disappointing to the WPTAABC21Alive audience.