[pushfoo]

Do you remember WordArt[1]?

> does it really cheapen it to have an obvious AI thumbnail?

> Does it say "trying too hard"?

If the article isn't about AI images, they often signal one more of the things WordArt used to:

1. Cluelessness (using $HOT_NEW_THING out of FOMO)

2. Sales pitches (trying to sell you something)

3. Irrelevance (lead-ins for B2B sales to 1 and 2)

4. Hard social & technical problems

The last case is the worst:

1. They're about to discuss font rendering problems

2. Consider leaving before someone assigns you the ticket(s) for them[2]

[1]: https://filestore.community.support.microsoft.com/api/images...

[2]: https://faultlore.com/blah/text-hates-you/