Language in Clickbait Strategies: A Structural Analysis of Political News Headlines on IDN Times During the Regional Election Week

Penulis

  • Karisma Erikson Tarigan Universitas Katolik Santo Thomas
  • Wiranda Syahputra Tafonao Universitas Katolik Santo Thomas Medan

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.33096/tamaddun.v24i1.860

Kata Kunci:

Analysis of Clickbait Use, News Headlines, Rhetorical Features, IDN Times

Abstrak

The rapid growth of technology has changed information media, making internet news easily accessible and extensively consumed. To attract readers, numerous online news platforms adopt clickbait methods, typically designing headlines designed to generate curiosity or emotional responses. This study explores the language tactics utilised in clickbait headlines published by IDN Times during the 2024 Indonesian Regional Elections (Pilkada) week. Using a qualitative descriptive technique and content analysis, the study analyzes 25 headlines picked by purposive sampling. Zhang’s rhetorical framework, which categorizes rhetorical elements into Hyperbole, Insinuation, Puzzle, and Visual Rhetoric, serves as the basis for the analysis. The statistics suggest that Insinuation is the most often utilised rhetorical component (12 occasions), followed by Hyperbole and Puzzle (10 instances each), and Visual Rhetoric (9 instances). These rhetorical methods effectively engage readers and shape their perspectives, particularly in the setting of political news. While clickbait boosts reader engagement, it also raises questions about media credibility and ethical journalism practices, especially when headlines overstate or mislead. This study contributes to the understanding of how language promotes public interaction with online news and underscores the need of media literacy in interpreting digital information. Future study could expand the scope to include larger datasets, numerous news platforms, or longitudinal analysis to explore the shifting dynamics of clickbait in digital media.

Referensi

Abdussamad, H. Z. (2021). Metode Penelitian Kualitatif (1st ed.). Syakir Media Press.

Aiesyah Ahmad Azam, A., Fatin Farissha Hasbullah, N., Madina Abdul Sookor Wardina Mohamad Hanafi, N., Sufiean Hassan, M., Afzaliza Nazira Ibrahim Universiti Teknologi MARA Cawangan Melaka, N., Gajah, A., Madina Abdul Sookor, N., & Mohamad Hanafi, W. (2024). A Review of the Effects of Clickbait on Online Platforms among Society. 7.

BPS-STATISTICS INDONESIA. (2024). Telecommunication Statistics in Indonesia 2023 (Vol. 12).

Bronakowski, M., Al-khassaweneh, M., & Al Bataineh, A. (2023). Automatic Detection of Clickbait Headlines Using Semantic Analysis and Machine Learning Techniques. Applied Sciences (Switzerland), 13(4). https://doi.org/10.3390/app13042456

Carpio, D. J., Besa, J. M., Consejo, R., Sesbreno, K. J., & Bonganciso, R. (2024). Rhetorical Features of National Newspaper Headlines. Journal of English as A Foreign Language Teaching and Research, 4(1), 48–54. https://doi.org/10.31098/jefltr.v4i1.1837

Castells, M. (2015). Networks of Outrage and Hope (2nd ed.). Polity Press.

Chakraborty Abhijnan, Paranjape, B., Kakarla, S., & Ganguly, N. (2016). Stop Clickbait: Detecting and Preventing Clickbaits in Online News Media.

Domínguez-Armas, Á., & Soria-Ruiz, A. (2021). Provocative insinuations. Daimon, 84, 63–80. https://doi.org/10.6018/DAIMON.481891

Farnsworth, S. (2023). Praise for News Quality in the Digital Age.

Hadiyat, Y. D. (2019). Clickbait on Indonesia Online Media. Journal Pekommas, 4(1), 1. https://doi.org/10.30818/jpkm.2019.2040101

Jung, A. K., Stieglitz, S., Kissmer, T., Mirbabaie, M., & Kroll, T. (2022). Click me. . .! The influence of clickbait on user engagement in social media and the role of digital nudging. PLoS ONE, 17(6 June), 1–22. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0266743

Rahman, A., & Al Mamun, A. (2024). The Rise of Clickbait Headlines: A Study on Media Platforms from Bangladesh. Athens Journal of Mass Media and Communications, 10(2), 109–130. https://doi.org/10.30958/ajmmc.10-2-3

Seminar, O. N., Linguistics, E., & July, L. (2020). ELLit : 2nd Online National Seminar on English Linguistics and Literature July, 16 2020. ELLit : 2nd Online National Seminar on English Linguistics and Literature, 130–134.

Vanessa, V., & Ibrahim, A. L. (2023). Clickbait as a Potential Threat in the Development of Cybercrime in Indonesia. Jurnal Usm Law Review, 7(1), 1. https://doi.org/10.26623/julr.v7i1.8024

Kaur, S., Kumar, P., & Kumaraguru, P. (2020). Detecting clickbaits using two-phase hybrid CNN-LSTM biterm model. Expert Systems with Applications, 151. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eswa.2020.113350

Kaushal, V., & Vemuri, K. (2021). Clickbait—Trust and Credibility of Digital News. IEEE Transactions on Technology and Society, 2(3), 146–154. https://doi.org/10.1109/tts.2021.3073464

Krippendorff, K. (2018). Content Analysis An Introduction to Its Methodology (4th ed.). SAGE Publications, Inc.

Merriam-Webster Dictionary. (2024). Clickbait. In Merriam-Webster.com dictionary. Retrieved January 4, 2025. https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/clickbait

Mulya, R., Sumarsih, S., & Dirgeyasa, W. (2024). Rhetoric as Media’s Persuasive Strategy Toward Readers in the Headline on Market Issues. Language Circle: Journal of Language and Literature, 18(2). http://journal.unnes.ac.id/nju/index.php/lc

Putri, M., & Eriend, D. (2024). Analisis Penggunaan Clickbait pada Judul Berita Media Online Tribun Padang. JKOMDIS : Jurnal Ilmu Komunikasi Dan Media Sosial, 4(1), 275–282. https://doi.org/10.47233/jkomdis.v4i1.1604

Riggs, A. (2020). Stylistic Deceptions in Online News.

Scott, K. (2021). You won’t believe what’s in this paper! Clickbait, relevance and the curiosity gap. Journal of Pragmatics, 175, 53–66. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pragma.2020.12.023

Setiawan, A. (2022, February 9). Menjaga Pers sebagai Pilar Keempat Demokrasi. https://mediaindonesia.com/opini/470183/menjaga-pers-sebagai-pilar-keempat-demokrasi

Sylvawan, A. P. (2020). NILAI-NILAI PENDIDIKAN DALAM NOVEL SANG PEMIMPI KARYA ANDREA HIRATA [Universitas Jambi]. https://repository.unja.ac.id/id/eprint/15572

Vanessa, V., & Ibrahim, A. L. (2023). Clickbait as a Potential Threat in the Development of Cybercrime in Indonesia. Jurnal Usm Law Review, 7(1), 1. https://doi.org/10.26623/julr.v7i1.8024

Zhang, W., Du, W., Bian, Y., Peng, C. H., & Jiang, Q. (2020). Seeing is not always believing: an exploratory study of clickbait in WeChat. Internet Research, 30(3), 1043–1058. https://doi.org/10.1108/INTR-09-2019-0373

Diterbitkan

2025-06-30

Terbitan

Bagian

Research

Cara Mengutip

Language in Clickbait Strategies: A Structural Analysis of Political News Headlines on IDN Times During the Regional Election Week. (2025). Tamaddun Life, 24(1), 33-44. https://doi.org/10.33096/tamaddun.v24i1.860