expiredmilkn lies blogs

Ever scroll through a news feed and feel like someone is elbowing you awake—loud headlines screaming “Fear!” or “Rage!” That’s not coincidence. It’s control.

Our brains are wired for bad news. Fear, anger, shock — these emotions stick, and headlines know it. That’s why news isn’t about informing you anymore. It’s about dragging your attention through the mud. Negativity sells.

And headlines aren’t harmless. They frame how you think before you’ve even read the story. Psychologists have shown that headlines can actually change how readers remember the facts that follow — even if the article contradicts the headline itself (New Yorker, 2014).

Think repeating a claim makes it true? Not quite — but it does make it feel true. Studies call this the illusory truth effect: the more you hear something, the more believable it feels, whether it’s fact or fiction (Fazio & Brashier, 2021).

And it’s not just what gets reported, but how. That’s framing. Words, images, tone — they don’t just report reality, they sculpt it. “Crisis” vs. “challenge.” “Blast” vs. “disagree.” The words are picked to steer your emotions. That’s sensationalism, and it works.

No wonder then that both sides of the political aisle hate the media coverage they see. Researchers call it the hostile media effect: people of all views tend to think the news is biased against their side, no matter what’s reported (Vallone, Ross & Lepper, 1985).

And when people only consume news that confirms what they already believe, that’s selective exposure — the echo chamber effect in action.

We see it play out daily. Take the recent viral clips of politicians appearing “lost” or confused. Many were edited down and shared to spark outrage, not to inform. The clips told a story, but not the full story.

So what can you do?