"**The setup of any joke, story, or headline in the news requires the creation of anxiety**. Anxiety, in fast-moving formats like these, is highly motivating. The psychological term for this is cognitive dissonance, and every time we experience cognitive dissonance, we are motivated to Whac-A-Mole it (or “reduce it,” if you’re using the official words). **Think about it: every single performer, publisher, comedian, product, service, business, advertiser, or other entity that wants your attention for marketing purposes, entertainment purposes, or more nefarious purposes uses ideas that generate cognitive dissonance as a way to grab your attention. If they can make you feel tense, then you’re more likely to pay attention to whatever they point to for resolution**." (~[Location 580](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B081J97HLQ&location=580)~) -- [[202308181107 — AtN — Staying calm within disagreements can be a superpower]] and [[202308170954 — AtN — Productive disagreement can be a superpower]] *** **Tags** — [[quotes]], [[teaching-anecdotes]], [[anxiety]], [[humour]], [[cognitive-dissonance]], [[self-reflection]], [[personal-values]], [[illusion-of-attention]], [[advertising]], [[marketing]], [[sales]] **Source** — [[202308170952 — B — Why Are We Yelling]]