> The Chinese Embassy in Berlin. Arrests this week in Germany and Britain suggest not so much that Beijing has ramped up espionage work but that European countries have stepped up their response.

The headline plants one idea (i.e., China is adding more and more spies), but then immediately the lede paragraphs offers an entirely different take (i.e., The West is outing spies with increased fervor).

I fully accept the responsibly for this statement (i.e., here come the down votes) but someone needs to say it: Why is the NYT such a "journalistic" shit-show? That is, given the lede, the headline is deceptive. It's fake news.

The saddest of all? It won't be questioned. Such intentional sloppiness is accepted and normalized. It's considered journalism (as if propaganda suddenly qualifies as such)? Yet how many will read the headline, keep scrolling, never see the lede, and be left with the idea that is for all intents and purposes a lie?

The hopes of a clean and unbiased discussion is already off the rails. WTF.