The New York Times is one of the largest newspapers in the world, with as many as 100 million users visiting its website or app every week. I have been a long-time reader of the Times because I believe it is held to a high standard of authenticity due to its large following, which comes with intense scrutiny and fact-checking. Despite having a slight political bias, I find that the Times can remain more neutral and factual than most other news sources. For this reason, I trust the Times as my most-frequent news source. 

 Last Tuesday, when I got a “Breaking News” notification from The New York Times app, I assumed something serious had happened. My initial thought was either news about Ukraine, Russia, Gaza, the Federal Reserve or another mass shooting, all of which are tragically common these days.   

So, when I saw that Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce were engaged, as announced on Instagram, I felt a bit disturbed that this classified as breaking news. I understand a newspaper must include some pop culture to stay relevant, but a celebrity engagement being deemed urgent and requiring immediate coverage seemed a bit over-the-top. I thought this news should have come from outlets like TMZ or Buzzfeed, not The New York Times. 

What made this even more impactful for me was what happened the following day. There was a tragic shooting at a Catholic school not even 25 miles from my childhood home, at a church I visited as a child. I learned of this event the same way I learned about Taylor Swift‘s engagement: a “Breaking News” notification from The New York Times.  

Taylor Swift is an icon for many, a revolutionary of music and a pop culture sensation. However, her engagement is not breaking news, yet the Times gave this event the same level of urgency as the tragedy at Annunciation Church in Minneapolis. 

The worst part is, I wasn’t shocked. It seems too common for businesses today to sell out their purpose for more ad revenue or user engagement. I will never look at the words “breaking news” in the same way. The phrase has become so common and devalued by click bait that I feel desensitized to it.  

I am horrified at what happened at that church. There has never been a shooting so close to my home, especially not at a place I have visited. And still, The New York Times chose to place this tragedy at the same level of urgency as the engagement of Taylor Swift.