Chapter 5
Persuasion and the news
Every day, headlines, ads and posts try to change what you think, buy or share. Some tricks are old: a free gift makes you feel you owe something, "only 2 left" rushes you, and "thousands of happy customers" makes a choice feel safe. Others are new, like deepfakes and feeds that only show you what you already agree with. This chapter names the tricks and the habits that beat them, from lateral reading to going back to the primary source.
11 cards
See the 11 cards
- A headline written to make you click, not to informClickbait
- Checking a site by seeing what others say about itLateral reading
- Feeling you owe someone after a free giftReciprocity
- "Only 2 left!" to make you buy nowScarcity
- "Thousands of happy customers" to sway youSocial proof
- A fake video made with AI to look realA deepfake
- Made-up news written as a joke, on purposeSatire
- False information spread on purpose to deceiveDisinformation
- The original document or first-hand accountA primary source
- Only hearing views that match your own onlineEcho chamber
- An ad designed to look like a news articleNative advertising