Word
rage bait
Definition
n. Online content, like a headline or video, made just to make people angry. The creator hopes that if you feel angry, you will share it or comment on it, which helps it spread.
n. Online content intentionally designed to provoke anger and outrage, thereby increasing user engagement through shares and comments. A compound noun, typically uncountable, with an informal or journalistic register.
Examples
“That headline is just rage bait to get more clicks.”
“Many influencers post obvious rage bait because angry comments still boost a video's visibility in the algorithm.”
“The op-ed was less a sincere argument and more a piece of calculated rage bait, intended to polarize readers and drive traffic to the struggling publication.”
Examples
simple
“That headline is just rage bait to get more clicks.”
contextual
“Many influencers post obvious rage bait because angry comments still boost a video's visibility in the algorithm.”
complex
“The op-ed was less a sincere argument and more a piece of calculated rage bait, intended to polarize readers and drive traffic to the struggling publication.”
Real-World Examples
“According to the Oxford University Press’ analysis, use of the phrase has tripled in the past 12 months, defining “rage bait” as “online content deliberately designed to elicit anger or outrage by being frustrating, provocative or offensive, typically posted in order to increase traffic to or engagement with a particular webpage or social media content”.” “Rage bait—both the term and the phenomenon—is a product of the attention economy.” “It's likely you've encountered "rage bait", content designed to elicit a strong emotional reaction to drive engagement or spread ideas.” “Winta is part of a growing group of online creators making ‘rage bait’ content, where the goal is simple: record videos, produce memes and write posts that make other users viscerally angry, then bask in the thousands, or even millions, of shares and likes.” Scan code
englishreference.com/q/rage-bait