If you’ve scrolled through your phone lately and felt like the world is on fire, you’re not alone and you’re also not imagining it. From celebrity scandals to political meltdowns, and provocative marketing stunts to outright disinformation, negative and controversial news has a much bigger footprint in our heads than that wholesome story about a dog saving a kitten. But why? What is it about our brains that make us gravitate toward outrage, scandal, and chaos over peace, joy, and harmony?
More importantly, how have corporations especially in the entertainment and marketing world learned to weaponize this wiring for clicks, cash, and cultural dominance? Let’s dive deep into this strange little cocktail of psychology, capitalism, and chaos, and take a few eyebrow raising examples like Sabrina Carpenter’s ‘Manchild’ promo campaign, where pop meets provocation in a church setting.
Part 1: Why the Brain is a Magnet for Negativity
1. Negativity Bias: Evolution’s Gift That Keeps on Giving
Your brain is designed to protect you. But in doing so, it also has a built in feature called the negativity bias, a psychological principle that suggests we pay more attention to and remember more strongly negative experiences over positive ones. From an evolutionary standpoint, this makes sense. A caveman who ignored the rustle of a predator didn’t survive long enough to pass on his genes. But the one who freaked out every time the wind blew probably lived to be a grandpa.
Fast forward a few thousand years, and now that instinct doesn’t help us avoid sabertooths it makes us spiral after reading three angry tweets.
According to psychologist Dr. Rick Hanson, “The brain is like Velcro for negative experiences and Teflon for positive ones.” The bad stuff sticks. Hard.
2. The Amygdala’s Role: Emotional Alarm Bell
The amygdala, the brain’s emotional command center, is more reactive to unpleasant stimuli. When it senses something threatening like an angry face, an offensive post, or a controversial ad it lights up like a Christmas tree. Positive news, meanwhile, triggers a more subdued reaction.
This means your emotional investment is higher when something upsets or outrages you. And where emotion goes, attention flows.
Part 2: Why Controversial News Spreads Like Wildfire
1. Controversy = Virality
Here’s the harsh truth: calm doesn’t trend.
Controversial stories stir up emotion, debate, tribalism, and identity politics. They pull people into “sides,” prompting shares, comments, and a nonstop dopamine driven need to see how it all plays out. In the age of TikTok stitches, reaction videos, and Twitter threads, outrage has become currency.
A 2018 MIT study found that false or inflammatory stories spread six times faster on Twitter than truthful ones. Why? Because they evoke stronger emotional reactions and the brain loves drama.
2. Media Incentives: Outrage Pays
Media outlets, influencers, and advertisers are in a constant war for your attention, and nothing grabs attention like controversy. Clicks mean views. Views mean ads. Ads mean money. The algorithms that shape your feeds are engineered to maximize engagement, and that means they push what keeps people online the longest.
Surprise: that’s rarely the good news.
Part 3: The Marketing Machine Behind Outrage
Let’s now step into the glitter covered battlefield of pop culture specifically the marketing of outrage. And who better to examine than the latest example of this: Sabrina Carpenter’s “Manchild” album campaign.
1. Sabrina Carpenter: From Girl Next Door to Pop Provocateur
Sabrina Carpenter’s evolution from Disney sweetheart to sultry pop icon has been deliberate and brilliantly executed. With her new album Manchild, she’s embraced not just the “mature artist” rebrand, but something far more profitable: controversy.
In promotional material for Manchild, Carpenter is seen posing in highly sexualized postures inside a church. Predictably, the internet exploded.
Was it sacrilegious? Probably.
Was it calculated? Absolutely.
Was it effective? Without a doubt.
2. The Church Photo Op: Controversy in a Frame
By choosing the church, a historically loaded and deeply symbolic location, Carpenter’s team ensured that the imagery would strike a nerve. Whether you’re religious or not, a young woman in thigh highs suggestively kneeling at the altar is bound to cause a reaction. And reactions are currency.
Within hours, clips and photos went viral. The backlash was instant but so was the curiosity. Google Trends lit up with “Sabrina Carpenter church photo,” and Spotify streams for her singles from Manchild surged.
In effect, the outrage was the marketing.
Part 4: Why This Strategy Works So Well
1. Outrage Creates Loyalty (Weirdly Enough)
When people feel emotionally invested in a debate, they’re more likely to engage, defend, or attack. This can weirdly lead to parasocial loyalty, where fans become more attached to the artist because they feel like they’re “fighting for her.”
For her label, this is gold. Carpenter’s fans are now emotionally entangled in the narrative, making them more likely to buy the album, defend her online, and stream the music nonstop to “prove a point.”
2. The “Cancel Culture” Loop
Here’s the genius: even negative attention leads to streams, posts, reposts, and think pieces. The internet doesn’t just cancel people it catapults them.
If outrage causes the mainstream to chastise an artist, that often increases the appeal among younger audiences who see the backlash as evidence that the artist is “pushing boundaries,” being “edgy,” or “anti establishment.” It’s the marketing version of playing the villain to become the hero.
Part 5: This Isn’t New Just Louder Now
1. The Madonna Blueprint
Back in the 1980s, Madonna caused a scandal with her “Like a Prayer” music video burning crosses, stigmata, and erotic dances in church settings. The result? Pepsi dropped her, religious groups protested, and the album sales skyrocketed.
Today, artists like Carpenter, Lil Nas X (remember the Satan lap dance), and Doja Cat (the demon horns) are simply remixing the same formula for a new digital age.
2. Outrage Is Algorithm Proof
Positive stories often get buried under the noise. But controversy? That survives every algorithm update. Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, and X (formerly Twitter) are built on engagement metrics, and controversial content gets:
More saves
More reposts
More stitches
More heated DMs
Why? Because you’re either cheering or canceling, and both reactions keep you scrolling. Marketing agencies know this. Labels know this. PR teams are planning for this.
Part 6: The Ethical Dilemma
1. Are We All Just Pawns?
Here’s the unsettling part: once you realize how your brain is predictably hackable, it’s hard not to feel a bit like a lab rat. Companies, influencers, and labels know exactly how to manipulate your neurobiology to generate a reaction and we play right into it.
Even if you’re “hate watching,” you’re still watching. Hate clicks are still clicks.
2. The Desensitization Risk
One major downside of this strategy is emotional fatigue. As audiences are bombarded with constant controversy, they may become numb to outrage. The bar for “shocking” keeps rising, meaning artists and brands must push boundaries even further to get attention.
In the long term, this can lead to a culture that’s both emotionally exhausted and morally confused.
Part 7: What Can We Do About It?
1. Awareness = Power
Simply being aware of the psychological mechanisms at play gives you a degree of control. Next time you feel triggered by a headline, a tweet, or a promo image pause. Ask: Am I being manipulated for engagement?
2. Reward the Good Stuff
Support creators, brands, and artists who lead with authenticity rather than shock value. Share the wholesome, the honest, and the thought provoking. It might not feel as dopamine spiking, but it rewires your feed and your brain for better.
3. Call Out Bad Faith Marketing
There’s a difference between edgy art and exploitation. If you feel like a campaign is deliberately offensive for the sake of virality, name it. Public accountability is the only way this trend slows down.
Conclusion: The Brains Behind the Buzz
So, why does negative and controversial news hit us harder than the good stuff? Because it taps directly into evolutionary instincts, emotional circuitry, and algorithmic incentives. It’s not just your brain it’s everyone’s. And the marketing world? They know. They’re banking on it.
Whether it’s Manchild by Sabrina Carpenter or the next campaign that lights up the internet for all the wrong reasons, remember: outrage sells. But only if we buy it.
Let them chase the scandal. You? Chase the signal.
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