You’ve noticed that the internet or the web doesn’t present articles so much anymore.
What you get, these days, are listicles. Wikipedia says a listicle “uses a list as its thematic structure, but is fleshed out with sufficient copy.”
Lately it seems the fleshing out with “sufficient copy” has been missing on many of the articles I get “anchored” into.
The “anchor” is that “cardinal” number — it makes knowing something about “the thing” finite. “The thing” in an article could be a premise; however, the premise for a listicle is rarely known.
A listicle smudges one’s intellect, and here are the top 5 reasons:
- The time you spend reading a listicle is numbered.
- Many readers jump to the end of the listicle, forgetting the linear “thematic structure.”
- By lines of listicles don’t require names just “handles.”
- Listicle editors often confuse the listicle for content.
- The listicle never ends soon enough.