The current press has perfected a technique: comparing us with countries in worse situations so you don't notice your purchasing power has dropped by 15% in five years. They show you graphs of Venezuela or Argentina and, suddenly, paying 50 euros more per month for groceries seems like a luxury. It's the media's favorite magic trick: diverting attention while reality sneaks in through the back door.
When the algorithm hides the inflation of your shopping basket š§
While the media compares GDP with countries in crisis, your smartphone records that olive oil has gone up by 40% and milk by 25%. Recommendation systems and automated headlines prioritize content that generates engagement, not content that explains why your salary goes less far. Macroeconomic data is presented with averages that hide the fact that 80% of households have lost purchasing power. Technology serves to gloss over reality, not to show it.
The news broadcast that sells you the idea that being poor in Spain is better than being poor in Somalia š¤”
According to this logic, if you have a toothache, you should be happy because you don't have a brain tumor. Comparison journalism is like that friend who tells you not to complain because in the Middle Ages you lived to be 35. Sure, but the thing is, now I have Netflix and I can't afford it. The next step will be a report titled: At least you didn't die of the bubonic plague, what more do you want?