Any business looks for results. Media companies will do whatever brings in results. What brings in results? Sowing discord and division because that’s what keeps people coming back. How do we sow division? By making strawmen of anything we don’t understand. When a millennial says “boomer” and when a boomer hears “boomer”, they are talking about completely different things. But the word “boomer” gives us the illusion that we’re all talking about the same thing and that the other person truly is out to “get us”.
These are unfortunate tricks of the mind that are being used to serve our short term ego-gratifying needs. If any progress is to be made, we need to rise above these petty squabbles by focusing on what’s important and not what someone else tells us is important.
I don't actually believe this is natural anymore. This must be orchestrated. Somewhere, some group is cynically pushing this narrative. Are they luring eyeballs by pushing divisive articles? Are they distracting from bigger problems? I don't know, but this feels fabricated.