When truth becomes clickbait

There was a time when journalism stood as the last wall between power and the people. Facts were sacred, truth was slow but solid, and credibility was the journalist’s only currency. 

But today, that wall is collapsing—not because of censorship or corporate control alone, but because of the seductive lure of social media monetisation.

Even seasoned journalists from respected media houses are now opening their own YouTube channels, TikTok accounts, Facebook pages, X (formerly Twitter) feeds, and Instagram reels to earn directly from clicks and views. 

Others write paid newsletters on Substack, record sponsored podcasts on Spotify, or stream “news commentary” on Twitch and LinkedIn Live. The platforms may differ, but the logic is the same: attention equals income.

And to earn attention, one must perform.

In this economy of algorithms, the truth alone is not enough—it must be dramatic. A headline must provoke, a thumbnail must shock, and a caption must trigger emotion. Journalism has turned into theatre, where facts compete with feelings for visibility.

When every click means money, the line between journalism and entertainment evaporates. Subtlety dies. Complexity vanishes. Sensation rules. A small dispute becomes a ‘national scandal’, a harmless rumour becomes ‘breaking news’, and the private pain of individuals becomes public spectacle. The more outrage it provokes, the higher the revenue.

Even responsible journalists—those who once double-checked every fact—are now caught in this trap. They post multiple short videos a day, often with half-verified claims, provocative thumbnails, and exaggerated titles. They pick up anything that ‘performs well’—from celebrity gossip to moral outrage—because everything now has content value.

This transformation is not only embarrassing for journalism; it is dangerous for democracy.

Social media platforms like YouTube, TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, X, and Threads do not reward truth—they reward engagement. The algorithms favour emotional content, not ethical content. Outrage spreads faster than reason. As a result, public discourse is shaped not by facts but by friction.

What happens when the nation’s journalists start competing with influencers for attention? When the same person who once reported corruption stories now makes reaction videos for income? The profession loses its dignity, and the audience loses its trust.

It is not that journalists suddenly became unethical—it is that the system has turned them unethical. Platforms pay for popularity, not integrity. Those who play by the rules of truth struggle to survive; those who play by the rules of virality thrive.

This is how the soul of journalism is being auctioned—one click at a time.

Should truth depend on algorithms designed to exploit emotion and outrage?

Can democracy survive when facts are filtered through the logic of monetisation?

If journalism becomes just another hustle for followers and income, the cost will not be limited to credibility—it will be the collapse of civic understanding.

Media houses, journalists, and audiences alike must reclaim journalism from this marketplace of noise. Let news return to its true purpose: to inform, not to inflame. To reveal, not to perform.

Because once we trade truth for entertainment, we won’t just lose journalism—we’ll lose our ability to tell the difference between reality and the show.

Sunil Babu Pant is Executive Director,  Mayako Pahichan and founder of Blue Diamond society.