What is the best word describing the nature of expiring in a short amount of time, connoting "losing public attention"?

Question

Is there an adjective that describes the nature of expiring, connoting a sense of losing public attention, in a very short amount of time? For example,

In a fast-paced era, news articles are ____.

During the 1990s, compared with traditional technologies, computer technologies are ___; for example, a new generation of CPU technologies usually comes out every one to two years.

(I thought about "perishable," but it does not seem connoting "losing public attention.")

Answer 1

I like the word fleeting for this:

: passing swiftly : TRANSITORY
// … the often fleeting nature of fame and fortune …
— Tom Sinclair

So:

In a fast-paced era, news articles are fleeting.

Of course, the referenced transitory would also work, depending on the style of speech to be conveyed.

Answer 2

I know there's an accepted answer, but another word that comes to mind (a synonym of fleeting) is ephemeral.

lasting a very short time
// ephemeral pleasures

Answer 3

One could use short-lived.

not living or lasting long

Answer 4

I think a better word for this would be evanescent:

evanescent adj
1. vanishing; fading away; fleeting.
2. tending to become imperceptible; scarcely perceptible.
_{Dictionary.com}

Right on both counts.

Answer 5

It's a phrase rather than a word, so aplogies on that but you could describe it as a "flash in the pan" Def: something that happened only once or for a short time and was not repeated:

Answer 6

To add one more option, I like waning

wane verb (used without object), waned, wan·ing
1. to decrease in strength, intensity, etc.:
"Her enthusiasm for the cause is waning"
2. to decline in power, importance, prosperity, etc.:
"Colonialism began to wane after World War II"
3. to draw to a close; approach an end:
"Summer is waning."

Dictionary.com

Answer 7

I'd go with Disposable:

Adjective designed for or capable of being thrown away after being used or used up: disposable plastic spoons; a disposable cigarette lighter.

As, in my opinion, that captures the idea best. When everything becomes disposable – news, information, items, culture – they also become worthless.

Answer 8

I thought of faddish

fad noun : a practice or interest followed for a time with exaggerated zeal : CRAZE

Of course that also denotes a quick entrance to the limelight, which may not be what you're going for.

Answer 9

I would also use the word "Obsolescent". So,

In a fast-paced era, news articles are obsolescent.

From Wikitionary:

Adjective Obsolescent (comparative more obsolescent, superlative most obsolescent) 1.In the process of becoming obsolete, but not obsolete yet.

From Wikipedia:

Obsolescence (noun) is the state of being which occurs when an object, service, or practice is no longer wanted even though it may still be in good working order. ... Typically, obsolescence is preceded by a gradual decline in popularity.

Answer 10

Answers have not all been related to computer technology, so I add "a one-day wonder".

The Collins Dictionary has this

a one-day wonder
or a nine-day wonder

something or someone that is interesting, exciting, or successful for only a very short time, and does not have any lasting value

It certainly does describe some technology though I would not like to name one.

Answer 11

Transient could work here, particularly for the computer example as it occurs more often in computing nomenclature and is keyword in the Java programming language, used to indicate that an item data is short-lived and not intended to be saved to a long term storage medium through a process known as serialization.

For a multi-word answer (and I do think the "in the public mind" aspect of this question generally tends towards multi-words) I quite like here today, gone tomorrow