The amount of times on Facebook or Twitter there are links to misconceived news stories is absurd. Many people might call this “fake news” because they were falsely led to click on the picture to see what some famous person said – but, all in all, it was strictly out of context.

However, this is not fake news. It is something else that is hurting everyday viewers but sadly helping the media: clickbait. Sometimes, the headlines used to get someone to click on a certain story has confusing wording, or is, once again, just taken out of context.

It is a little older, but on Oct. 23, the former New York Yankees’ radio announcer, Hank Greenwald, passed away at the age of 83. That, in and of itself, is a major news story, despite Greenwald only being the Yankees’ broadcaster for a couple seasons. The New York Post wrote an article about it, and the tweet that promoted the article read, “Yankees’ radio voice before John Sterling dies at age 83.” For someone quickly scrolling down their timeline on Twitter, one might read, “Yankees’ radio voice John Sterling dies at age 83.” It is all about the wording, and in today’s mindset of getting news quickly, it could be a common misconception.

The story is, and should be, about Greenwald, not Sterling. While the story generally focuses on Greenwald, the headline does not. It is important to note the story was written by the Associated Press, but the headline was written by the New York Post.

While this is the only article in the last couple weeks that really hones in on the idea of “clickbait,” there are many other examples that have caused some news outlets to receive critical comments. This instance was no different.

As media outlets, yes, they are trying to get the most clicks to get advertisement revenue and gain readership. But this is not the way to do it. The clicks on stories should come from true, captivating headlines with stories that present strong narratives and provide the news and any other anecdotes for readers.

The New York Post has since changed the headline on its website to avoid more controversy. But this potentially could have caused someone damage, such as Greenwald’s family, for not getting the proper recognition he deserved in the headline. Clickbait hurts everyone, readers and news outlets alike. That should not be what gets outlets the attention they want.