Chapter 2: Why “20 Minutes Ago” Headlines Are So Effective

There is a psychological reason these posts perform so well.

People are naturally drawn toward information that appears urgent.

“Yesterday” sounds less exciting than “20 minutes ago.”

“An update” sounds less dramatic than “BREAKING.”

And “Here is what happened” doesn't create the same curiosity as an incomplete sentence ending with “See more.”

These techniques are particularly effective on social-media platforms because users are constantly scrolling through large amounts of content.

The headline needs to interrupt that behavior.

A phrase such as “20 minutes ago in Los Angeles” immediately creates the impression that the reader has encountered something before everyone else.

That creates a subtle incentive to click.

The problem is that the claim may not actually be new.

Sometimes old photographs are recycled with new captions.

Sometimes an older interview is presented as if it were current.

Sometimes a celebrity's previous announcement is repackaged as breaking news.

And sometimes the headline intentionally leaves out the most important part of the sentence so that the reader has to click a link or visit the comments.

The image shown here follows several characteristics associated with this type of engagement-driven content.

It uses an emotional setting.

It prominently features recognizable-looking people.

It includes an inset photograph.

And the headline stops before revealing the alleged event.

None of those characteristics proves that the story is false.

But they are reasons to slow down before accepting it as fact.

Another issue is the word “confirmed.”

Confirmed by whom?

That single word implies that someone authoritative has verified the information.

A legitimate report should make it possible to identify the source of that confirmation.

If the post doesn't identify the person, organization, statement, interview, or publication responsible for the confirmation, readers have no way to independently evaluate the claim.

This is especially important with celebrity-related stories because false reports can spread incredibly quickly.

One page publishes an emotionally written post.

Another page copies it.

A third page adds a more dramatic headline.

Soon, dozens of pages appear to be reporting the same story.