Live data from Hacker News

Things you notice when you quit the news (2016)

raptitude.com

261–270 of 741 posts

Re: Things you notice when you quit the news (2016)

#261
post #54
post #4

I fully agree with this. Scanning Google News or a couple of the more professional international news services like BBC / Al Jazeera / Reuters I still feel pretty well informed (and confident that there's usually nothing of immediate consequence to me) but it doesn't grow into "expert analysis" or impact my feelings much. Here's another thing I noticed: how manipulated / manipulative it is. And not just news and I do…

I'm a firm believer in quality over quantity when it comes to news. Google News has gotten increasingly annoying though, forcing me harder toward the "personalized" results, the kind of filter bubble I'm intentionally trying to avoid. What worked well for me was getting a print subscription to the Economist. They definitely have a bias (particularly in their editorials), but it's mostly of the "free trade" variety, w…

I can fully attest to the quality of the Economist but I caution anyone to subscribe because they don’t provide any way to easily unsubscribe.

It’s either to call some phone number or attempt it via live chat. I tried the second option and the representative just went on with the script trying to fatigue me out of it, no matter what I said.

Re: Things you notice when you quit the news (2016)

#262
post #174

A great way to quickly catch up is to use something like the BBCs "What's the papers say" page [0] or similar alternatives. It gives both a broad overview and also an opportunity to see different perspectives on the same news. [0] https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/blogs-the-papers-60457518

There's also the daily 'The Papers' front pages: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/topics/cpml2v678pxt Which is a great way to see all the points of view (in the UK) on one page.

Thanks, that was the link I meant to post (the BBC should add a fixed link that points to the latest, as well the daily links).

Re: Things you notice when you quit the news (2016)

#263

So much to unpack here. For starters, being informed makes for more interesting conversations with others. It means that you get to reflect on what you stand for, and grow as an individual with an opinion. News is also the gateway for deeper information. If you stick to just the news, that's one thing, but if you then go deeper into the topic (what is the relationship between Ukraine and Russia?) then you get invalua…

> Finally (but not lastly), news makes you informed when it comes time to vote at the municipal, state, and federal level. If you don't follow the developments in your community, your vote is at best useless, at worst it's harming the democratic process. Election time is when candidates (or some of them) pump out propaganda against their opponents. Negative ads about what some candidate said 15 years ago. Who wins in…

It may be a good idea for you to follow up on your elected officials outside of the election period in that case. See what bills are being proposed, and signed. Who they choose to put in their cabinet, what leaders they meet with and public statements they make.

If your idea of political news is opinionated partisan coverage during elections, then you're doing it wrong.

Re: Things you notice when you quit the news (2016)

#264
I havent followed news or watched TV for years. Way happier this way. And if there is something I really must know, my friends tell me or I find out about it on my own (like reading official statements about covid for example).

News are just a business like any other, and I have never needed their services.

Re: Things you notice when you quit the news (2016)

#265
post #54

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm a firm believer in quality over quantity when it comes to news. Google News has gotten increasingly annoying though, forcing me harder toward the "personalized" results, the kind of filter bubble I'm intentionally trying to avoid. What worked well for me was getting a print subscription to the Economist. They definitely have a bias (particularly in their editorials), but it's mostly of the "free trade" variety, w…

I've personally been enjoying the "Quartz Daily Brief"[0] as my sole source of news for many years. My favorite thing about it, besides the fact that it's relatively unbiased, is that it's also pretty light on the actual news part. Today's brief only has five articles of news, which is less than a screenful. Following that is a "deep dive" into a non-polarizing topic (today it's about Cricket), then a few "fun", non-…

Did you consider trying the new Coca Cola flavor?

Re: Things you notice when you quit the news (2016)

#266
post #83

I strongly agree with this. I would, however, like to call out one TV program here in the U.S. that I think comes much closer to approximating the experience of “reading a 5,000-word article”: PBS NewsHour. It’s great, completely free and available to watch online, and you can even get most of what you need from their podcast alone ( https://www.pbs.org/newshour/feeds/rss/podcasts/segments ). It consists of fairly in…

I would have also recommended the Economist until I experienced a Gell-Mann amnesiac effect [1] with regards to an article they wrote about South Africa, a country where I lived much of my life in, in which they so horrifically butchered the coverage I simply canceled my subscription for fear of how inaccurate everything else might have been. [1]: https://www.epsilontheory.com/gell-mann-amnesia/

may be worth pointing out that you seem to be using that backwards - the Gell-Mann amnesia effect is about immediately forgetting that you read something so horribly misrepresented - you knowingly scoff and then trust the next thing you read. a reaction of "this is shit, what else in here might be shit, get it away from me" is the direct opposite.

Re: Things you notice when you quit the news (2016)

#267
post #54

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm a firm believer in quality over quantity when it comes to news. Google News has gotten increasingly annoying though, forcing me harder toward the "personalized" results, the kind of filter bubble I'm intentionally trying to avoid. What worked well for me was getting a print subscription to the Economist. They definitely have a bias (particularly in their editorials), but it's mostly of the "free trade" variety, w…

I can fully attest to the quality of the Economist but I caution anyone to subscribe because they don’t provide any way to easily unsubscribe. It’s either to call some phone number or attempt it via live chat. I tried the second option and the representative just went on with the script trying to fatigue me out of it, no matter what I said.

I cannot stand that dark pattern.

Re: Things you notice when you quit the news (2016)

#268
post #251

This article hits the nail on the head. I stopped consuming all political, health, and global news the day after January 6th 2021. Pretty much anything that was on CNN/Fox or that half hour after the local news. I never watched local news really anyway, so I couldn’t quit something I didn’t already do in that regard. I just assumed that if there were news outlets fooling humans into doing something like THAT on Janua…

Why would you hold CNN responsible for "fooling humans" regarding Jan. 6?

Re: Things you notice when you quit the news (2016)

#269

As someone who just stepped back into pop culture after being in prison for years (so might as well been on the moon) my first shock was just how horrible it all is now. There is no news worth watching. Cable news is just a pile of filth excremented by a Labrador Retriever that solely eats baby diapers. I thought I will watch Bloomberg since if real money is involved it can't be too manipulative. Nope, wrong. The int…

What really happened, I think, is that journalism stopped paying, so more and more of what's there became tied to career ideologues. Increasingly "the news" is just a summary of what blue checkmark Twitter accounts said yesterday. And it's easy to lie when you're only speaking to your own followers.

As well, there's an unresolved demographic shift from an aged Boomer generation towards Millennials. Unresolved in the sense that assets haven't changed ownership, infrastructure hasn't been revised, and political leadership has done the bare minimum to keep up. So everyone now looks towards politics(or maybe tech) for a piece of the pie, unrest events have risen, and yet political disengagement is also high.

I got on the cryptocurrency train years back, as somewhat of an exit to the madness. It has treated me alright, though it's also a faith.

Re: Things you notice when you quit the news (2016)

#270
post #175

As someone who just stepped back into pop culture after being in prison for years (so might as well been on the moon) my first shock was just how horrible it all is now. There is no news worth watching. Cable news is just a pile of filth excremented by a Labrador Retriever that solely eats baby diapers. I thought I will watch Bloomberg since if real money is involved it can't be too manipulative. Nope, wrong. The int…

If you don’t mind when did enter prison? Basically what time period are you comparing against?

Come to think of it have you considered writing an article about this? You have a very unique perspective since most people experienced it as it happed (proverbial frog in the boiling pot).

I bet a number of outlets might be interested in publishing it, or you could DIY on Medium or Substack or something.

Post reply on HN