We’re All Addicted, Including Me
Look, I’m gonna level with you. I’m Sarah Mitchell, senior editor at CTENews, and I’m addicted to news. Like, really addicted. I wake up at 5:30 AM, and the first thing I do is grab my phone and check the breaking news update today. It’s a problem. And I’m not alone.
Last Tuesday, I was at a conference in Austin, and I noticed something. Everyone was glued to their phones. Not just checking emails or social media. They were reading news. Like, alot of news. And not just the big headlines. They were diving deep into analysis, opinion pieces, even local news from places they’d never been.
I turned to the guy next to me, let’s call him Marcus, and said, “You’re not just here for the free coffee, are you?” He looked at me, laughed, and said, “Sarah, I need my news fix. It’s like a drug.” And he’s right. It is.
But Here’s the Thing…
We’re not getting healthier information diets. We’re getting more fragmented, more polarized, more overwhelmed. And honestly? It’s completley messing with our heads.
About three months ago, I had coffee with a colleague named Dave. He’s a data journalist, so he’s all about the numbers. He showed me a study. 214 respondents, all heavy news consumers. They found that after consuming news for 36 hours straight (yes, you read that right), the respondents’ stress levels were through the roof. Their commitment to social causes? Dropped. Their trust in media? Lower than a snake’s belly in a wagon rut.
And the kicker? They couldn’t even remember half of what they’d read. It’s like our brains are on information overload, and we’re just kinda… numb to it all.
So What’s the Deal?
I think the problem is that we’re consuming news like it’s junk food. We’re scrolling, clicking, reading, and then moving on to the next thing. We’re not digesting. We’re not reflecting. We’re not even enjoying it. It’s just… yeah. It’s a habit.
And it’s not just the big, dramatic headlines that are the problem. It’s the constant drip, drip, drip of information. The alerts, the notifications, the “breaking news” banners. It’s all designed to keep us hooked, and honestly? It’s working.
I remember talking to a friend last month. She’s a teacher, and she was telling me about her students. “Sarah,” she said, “they can’t focus on anything for more than a few minutes. Their attention spans are shot. And I think it’s because of the news.”
Which… yeah. Fair enough.
A Tangent: The Weather
You know what’s not like this? The weather. We check the weather, we see if it’s gonna rain, and we move on. We don’t obsess over it. We don’t let it rule our lives. We just… accept it. Maybe we should treat news the same way.
But how? How do we break the cycle? How do we become more mindful news consumers?
I’m not sure but here’s what I’m trying. I’m setting aside specific times for news consumption. I’m turning off alerts. I’m being more selective about what I read. And you know what? It’s kinda nice. I feel less anxious. I feel more present. I feel more in control.
But it’s a work in progress. And honestly, some days are harder than others. Like yesterday. I woke up, grabbed my phone, and before I knew it, I was down a rabbit hole of political analysis. It’s a struggle, folks.
Anyway, I gotta run. My news alarm is going off, and I need to go feed the beast. (Which is a problem, I know. I’m working on it.)
About the Author: Sarah Mitchell is a senior editor at CTENews. She’s been in the journalism game for over 20 years, and she’s seen it all. She’s opinionated, she’s passionate, and she’s not afraid to call out bad behavior. She lives in New York with her cat, Mr. Whiskers, and she’s always got a book in her bag. You can find her on Twitter at @sarahm.
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