Why do the press equate healthy fats with fast food? Most news reporters and editors are intellectually lazy. That’s why you should always question any health “news” you read.

This is one of those subtle things that the news media does that really annoy me.  The New York Post published a short news story about a study out of Norway showing that saturated fats are healthy.

Awesome! However, the opening paragraph of that story is wrong. “Fatty foods” are not necessarily good for you. After a bit of eye rolling on my part, I continued reading and was pleasantly surprised. The rest of the story seems spot on about healthy saturated fats.

What really caught my attention was the photo the editor chose to use.  A greasy, triple stack cheeseburger. Really? 

It completely undermines the news in the story.

Anyone reading that story who buys into calories in/calories out is going to think either: 1. The story is “fake news” or 2. I can eat a big ass cheeseburger and lose weight.

Why choose a photo that conjures up unhealthy fast food in one’s mind? The only thing potentially healthy with that burger might be the meat (and only if it is 100% pure beef). Everything else in that burger is highly processed and should be tossed.

The photo is so misleading.  The story doesn’t say eat fast food burgers all you want. Healthy fats like butter, cream and healthy oils are specifically mentioned.

Here’s a novel concept, why not depict the actual healthy fats mentioned in the story you are publishing? It’s not that hard to find in Shutterstock.

If your job is to provide news to the public, why half-ass it?