Trending
The story has resonance because it’s an expert opinion that stands out on the internet.
Main Character of the Week is a weekly column that tells you the most prominent “main character” online (good or bad). It runs on Fridays in the Daily Dot’s web_crawlr newsletter. If you want to get this column a day before we publish it, subscribe to web_crawlr, where you’ll get the daily scoop of internet culture delivered straight to your inbox.
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TheTrending team’s main character of the week? It’s theplumber of 32 yearswho made a recommendation that went viral. Don’t buy this particularwater heaterat
Home Depot, he said.
It’s the
most-read story at the Daily Dot this week. This is bothsurprisingandpredictable.
On the one hand, we know thatour readers care about Home Depot. It’s an enormous brand that is distinctly American, projecting values and peddling goods that affect most folks who live in this country. As ageneral rule, Home Depot content isalways a must-cover for uswhenever we find an original
TikTokabout drama at Home Depot.
And yeah, wedid not reveal in the headlineof the story that the product in question was a water heater. Everygood headlinein the history of journalism since the dawn of the printing press isclickbait, after all.
The headline should alwaysspark a curiosity gapthat the reader must fill in by reading more of the subsequent article. Wherenews publishers failreaders isoverpromisingon the headline itself, andmisdirecting readersto a flat story that doesn’t deliver on its promise. (See: EveryDaily MailandNew York Poststory about asteroids headed to Earth. You clickbut then feel preyed uponand empty inside.)
It’s the economy, stupid
Clever headline writing notwithstanding, why did the storyresonate with our readers? Most of its traffic came fromGoogle Discover, which is an algorithm that serves news articles toAndroid phones.
Who has Android phones? Exactly! The dude in your life who
ruins group chats with green bubbles.
Thetech-minded contrarianwho doesn’t want to be a slave to the iPhone industrial complex. The bored dad who works as a product manager and walks the kids to school because his job is remote.
This person may not care about being handy or tools or water heaters. But as a sad man raised on toxic masculinity, he cares about coming across like heknows what he’s doingwhen presented with a carburetor.
I think the story alsohas resonancebecause it’s anexpert opinionthat stands out on the internet relative to positive reviews. As our reporting revealed, this is a5-star product on the Home Depot website. But in recent years, the Better Business Bureau reviews
have been more mixed.
The issue with this water heater, according to reviewers, is itdoesn’t keep the water hot for long enoughand compromises homeowners’ ability to take hot showers. One review said itstopped doing its jobafter a few years. Water heaters should last a decade.
It’s enough to make mespot-check the brand on mineat home.
Agood news story makes you do that.
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