Part 7/11:
While the headlines may seem outrageous or deliberately provocative, evidence suggests that they are often generated or selected by automated systems designed to test what performs best. In some cases, the headlines are so absurd that they seem intentionally designed to generate controversy, which in turn boosts engagement—especially on social media.
Back in 2018, industry articles described BuzzFeed’s A/B testing platforms, custom dashboards, and neural network classifiers that analyze words, themes, and images to optimize content. The systems are so intrusive and automated that some speculate there is no longer much need for human writers to craft headlines or even content; instead, AI and machine learning could generate most of what appears on screen.