Comment by WarmWash

News orgs hardly make any money. There are a few big players, but everyone outside that ring is borderline starving.

So the best way to keep money coming in is to read the vibes of social media, and print stories that fuel those fires. Basically manufacture stories using well established marketing and propaganda techniques to maximize click rates.

Ice cream man selling ice pops in the park becomes "Man seen using treats to lure young children to his van in the park".

Honest headline, criminally misleading takeaway.