The peculiar practice of anti-fishing clicks

The clickbaiting of journalism has caused a tectonic shift in most headlines circulating online, so they too often end up as little riddles or Trivial Pursuit questions. While this may be a nuisance for the reader, it's explained by the logic of having to monetize the attention of respectable media through wholesale advertising. Even more curious is the anti-clickbait tactic, which I'll illustrate with the example of this Sunday's front-page headline.ABC"Forestalia used the PNV man in the Cerdán scheme for its major Basque Country project." I wouldn't want to fall into the sin of arrogance by attributing my own ignorance to the average citizen. But I would venture to say that a large majority of ordinary people are unclear about what Forestalia is, who the PNV man in the Cerdán scheme is—or what that scheme actually entails—and what the major Basque Country project being mentioned is. And it's not just the sum of individual elements: the headline itself doesn't explain the significance of Forestalia using a "PNV man" for a project. Are we talking about kickbacks? About corruption?

It's clear that theABC It hasn't shed any light on the darkness, with all due respect to Carles Porta. The statement is only decipherable to a tiny minority of insiders and shows that entrenched media outlets often get bogged down without considering the reader. "Forestalia used the political contacts of Antxon Alonso, linked to the PNV and Cerdán, to promote its massive electricity project in the Basque Country" would have been a clearer statement. But it doesn't strongly suggest foul play on the part of the PNV, which is what it was all about. The practice is common in the media: fill the sentence with insinuations, but make sure it gives off a negative stench. Even if it's not fully understood, the job is already done.