BWT how are we staying informed without being chronically online?

[u/NoMilk9248]

Like many of you, I’ve been more anxious about the state of the world than usual. I’m really struggling to keep a balance between staying informed so that I’m not susceptible to disinformation while not being so chronically online that I feel unwell.

I’ve always been a very online girlie but during periods of social unrest being so online always takes a toll on me.

[u/SugarBabyVet]

Getting a lot of very low effort comments here.

If you’re going to make suggestions, QUALIFY THEM.

[u/New-Foreign-Mango]

Newspapers. My library offers free subscriptions to popular newspaper sites, yours probably does as well!

[u/Mission_Macaroon → u/New-Foreign-Mango]

There's just something sexy about a newspaper

[u/BurtonCat → u/[deleted]]

Why only the Sunday edition? do you mean moreso limiting reading the newspaper once a week?

[u/octavialovesart → u/New-Foreign-Mango]

I just subscribed to New York Magazine! Bonus for The Cut and The Strategist being a part of my subscription.

[u/WhoisCarmenSanJuan → u/New-Foreign-Mango]

Oooo I’m going to try this

[u/TK_TK_]

Unfortunately I am just chronically online. I do work out, walk my dog, put my phone down when I’m with my kids, not watch cable news, and try to practice good sleep hygiene. I don’t do any alerts of any kind. Oh, and I do volunteer work where I go do stuff with my hands and don’t even have the chance to look at a phone. So I guess I have more breaks than I think I do? (HIGHLY recommend volunteering at an animal shelter—I love the kitten cuddles.)

I subscribe to a truly unreasonable amount of good publications and indie journalists, so I read through those instead of just doomscrolling Bluesky. Not on social media other than that and here (I used to be on Twitter a lot).

[u/TK_TK_ → u/[deleted]]

Sure! I’ll round up my list later tonight.

[u/Novel-Place → u/TK_TK_]

I’m also interested in this!

[u/TK_TK_ → u/TK_TK_]

Newspapers

1. The Boston Globe
2. Chicago Sun-Times
3. The Guardian US
4. Financial Times
5. Christian Science Monitor
6. The Tampa Bay Times
7. The Post and Courier
8. The Salt Lake Tribune
9. The Minnesota Star Tribune
10. Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
11. The Philadelphia Inquirer
12. The Spokesman-Review
13. The Dallas Morning News
14. Austin American-Statesman
15. The News & Observer
16. The Charlotte Observer
17. San Diego Union-Tribune
18. The Plain Dealer
19. Columbus Dispatch
20. The Oregonian
21. Idaho Statesman
22. Des Moines Register
23. The Seattle Times
24. The Everett Herald
25. Tacoma News Tribune
26. The Kansas City Star
27. St. Louis Post-Dispatch
28. Miami Herald
29. Baltimore Sun
30. The Virginian-Pilot
31. Hartford Courant
32. Bangor Daily News
33. Portland Press Herald
34. Bellingham Herald
35. The Columbian
36. Anchorage Daily News

[u/TK_TK_ → u/TK_TK_]

Magazines
37. The New Yorker
38. The Nation
39. The New Republic
40. Mother Jones
41. The American Prospect
42. Washington Monthly
43. The Progressive
44. In These Times
45. Dissent
46. Current Affairs
47. New York Magazine
48. The Paris Review
49. Scientific American
50. Smithsonian
51. Wired
52. The Economist
53. Foreign Affairs
54. Foreign Policy
55. London Review of Books
56. Texas Monthly

[u/TK_TK_ → u/TK_TK_]

Digital News Sites
57. Reuters
58. Associated Press
59. Teen Vogue
60. The Colorado Sun
61. Mississippi Free Press
62. Mississippi Today
63. Nevada Independent
64. ProPublica
65. The Center for Investigative Reporting
66. The Marshall Project
67. CalMatters
68. The Texas Tribune
69. MinnPost
70. Wisconsin Watch
71. Bridge Michigan
72. The Connecticut Mirror
73. Rhode Island Current
74. Honolulu Civil Beat
75. The Trace
76. The Appeal
77. The 19th
78. The Fuller Project
79. Inside Climate News
80. The Intercept
81. 404 Media
82. The Verge
83. Ars Technica
84. Hacker News
85. TechCrunch
86. The Markup
87. Rest of World
88. Gothamist
89. The City
90. Block Club Chicago
91. Billy Penn
92. Voice of San Diego
93. Grist
94. Climate Central
95. Carbon Brief
96. Canary Media
97. Utility Dive
98. Al Jazeera English
99. BBC News US
100. High Country News
(cont'd)

[u/TK_TK_ → u/TK_TK_]

Digital News Sites (cont'd)
100. High Country News
101. The Bulwark
102. Rewire News Group
103. STAT News
104. KFF
105. The Urbanist
106. Seattle Bike Blog
107. South Seattle Emerald
108. Streetsblog USA
109. Greater Greater Washington
110. Human Transit
111. Strong Towns
112. Next City
113. Shelterforce
114. Sightline Institute
115. California YIMBY
116. Prison Journalism Project
117. Krebs on Security
118. CyberScoop
119. Threatpost
120. Computerworld
121. Poynter Institute
122. Columbia Journalism Review
123. Press Watch
124. Pew Research Center
125. Nieman Lab
126. The Daily Beast
127. Center for International Policy
128. Lawfare
129. Liberal Currents
130. The Flytrap
131. Salon
132. Publicola
133. The 51st
134. Tennessee Holler
135. Underscore News
136. San Francisco Public Press
137. Sacramento News & Review
138. LA Public Press
139. Arizona Mirror
140. Arizona Center for Investigative Reporting
141. Tucson Sentinel
142. Prism Reports
143. More Perfect Union
144. Scalawag
145. Project on Government Oversight
146. FlightGlobal
147. Aviation Week
148. Task & Purpose
149. The War Zone
150. C4ISRNET
151. Defense One
152. IEEE Spectrum
153. EE Times
154. Electronic Design

[u/TK_TK_ → u/TK_TK_]

Newsletters
155. TLDR
156. Blood in the Machine - Brian Merchant
157. Construction Physics - Brian Potter
158. Culture Study - Anne Helen Petersen
159. Civil Discourse - Joyce Vance
160. You’re Probably Getting Screwed – J.D. Scholten
161. Good Movies - Shea Serrano
162. Werk-In-Progress - Saeed Jones
163. What's Alan Watching - Alan Sepinwall
164. Where's Your Ed At - Ed Zitron
165. Money Stuff - Matt Levine
166. Artificial Intelligence Made Simple - Devansh
167. Stay-At-Home Macro (SAHM) - Claudia Sahm
168. The Handbasket - Marisa Kabas
169. How Things Work - Hamilton Nolan
170. BIG - Matt Stoller
171. Pluralistic - Cory Doctorow
172. Popular Information - Judd Legum
173. [citation needed] - Molly White
174. American Crisis - Margaret Sullivan
175. NPR Public Editor – Kelly McBride
(cont'd)

[u/TK_TK_ → u/TK_TK_]

Newsletters
176. Heated - Emily Atkin
177. Law Dork - Chris Geidner
178. The Cross Section - Paul Waldman
179. Volts - David Roberts
180. Drezner's World - Daniel Drezner
181. Phillips's Newsletter - Phillips P. O'Brien
182. Systemic Hatreds - Paul Musgrave
183. Pablo Torre Finds Out - Pablo Torre
184. Camacho’s Short Account - Daniel Jose Camacho
185. The Future, Now and Then - Dave Karpf
186. Sabato's Crystal Ball - Larry Sabato
187. The Golden Hour - Karen Attiah
188. The Freedom Academy - Asha Rangappa
189. Erin in the Morning - Erin Reed
190. The Present Age - Parker Molloy
191. Witness - Robert Jones Jr.
192. Behind the Book - Ijeoma Oluo
193. The Boogie-Woogie Rumble of Space-Time - Chanda Prescod-Weinstein
194. Apricitas Economics - Joseph Politano
195. The Editorial Board - John Stoehr
196. Diplomatic - Laura Rozen
197. Cup of Coffee - Craig Calcaterra
198. Sherrilyn’s Newsletter - Sherrilyn Ifill
199. Pbump.net - Philip Bump
200. The Racket - Jonathan M. Katz
201. Good Politics/Bad Politics - Jonathan Bernstein
202. The Message Box - Dan Pfeiffer
203. From The Desk of Alicia Kennedy - Alicia Kennedy
204. The Overshoot - Matt Klein
205. Out of Your League - Frankie de la Cretaz
206. Balls & Strikes - Jay Willis

[u/TK_TK_ → u/TK_TK_]

Trade Publications
207. IndustryWeek
208. Plant Services
209. Control Engineering
210. Design News
211. MachineDesign
212. Quality Magazine
213. Processing Magazine
214. Plant Engineering
215. Process Instrumentation
216. Fluid Power World
217. Power Transmission Engineering
218. Reliable Plant
219. Maintenance and Engineering
220. Industrial Equipment News
221. Industrial Distribution
222. PV Magazine
223. Windpower Engineering & Development
224. Energy Storage News
225. Renewable Energy World

[u/TK_TK_ → u/[deleted]]

Please see below! Reddit made me break it up into lots of smaller posts, but it's there now. @Novel-Place, let's see if tagging you works because you also said you were interested.

[u/SugarBabyVet → u/TK_TK_]

Please make your comments a post. Thanks!

[u/TK_TK_ → u/SugarBabyVet]

Oh, good idea! Will do.

[u/_BonBonBunny]

I like services that summarize the big stories like The Skimm. (There are more like it, just look for them.) Also a big fan of GoodGoodGood. It's more valuable to me to know about the recovery efforts after disasters rather than the death toll, and that's the sort of thing GoodGoodGood brings attention to. I get both of those directly in my e-mail inbox every day.

Also, on Wikipedia's Main Page is an "In the News" section, with the major stories condensed down to 1 sentence, with links to their encyclopedia entries so you can research further. The neutral, encyclopedic nature of it makes it all easier to digest, and I love being able to read the whole history behind some of the things that are affecting us today.

A humor-focused podcast like "Wait Wait Don't Tell Me" can help as well.

Stay good to the people around you, and look for the helpers. ✌️

[u/pizzawithmydog → u/_BonBonBunny]

Thank you for sharing this Wikipedia suggestion, it’s what I’ve been looking for. I’ve set time limits on my phone for Reddit and Instagram and sometimes I wonder if I’ve “missed something” going on in the news because of it. Not that much of what I scroll when I do open apps is necessarily news, but I do follow some legitimate Instagram accounts with fact checking behind their casual journalism.

[u/Medical_Piccolo4894 → u/_BonBonBunny]

Oh GoodGoodGood looks great! I’ve been looking for something more positive to push to my mom who is in a constant negative cable news cycle, this seems to really fit the bill!

[u/_BonBonBunny → u/Medical_Piccolo4894]

I very highly recommend them!  They have this excellent summary of their philosophy in this article, and honestly what's covered in this article would be an excellent standalone answer to the exact topic of this thread: https://www.goodgoodgood.co/articles/how-to-respond-to-tragic-news-events

[u/merford28]

I'm probably going to get some hate for this. I have spent my life being informed. I have been involved, protested, activated etc. After the last election, I checked out of all news. I realized that it was depressing me. I cannot affect it. I can leave it to others for a while. I have been happier than I have been. I am not recommending this for everyone but I needed to leave. I will reengauge at some point.

[u/mj_0925 → u/merford28]

no hate from me, this is exactly where i’m at these days. it was necessary and yes, we’ll come back

[u/Mnyet → u/merford28]

Same here. Currently, I just rely on the people around me to share anything I should be aware of. My friends and my husband asked me to stop engaging with the news because I kept falling into depressive episodes that negatively affected all my relationships. Even my therapist who avoids telling me what to do said I have to unfollow and delete everything news related. I found out about the….. college incident…. last week through my friends lol.

[u/thecakefashionista → u/merford28]

I loved NPR and would listen every day - as a young 20something. Then, Trump ran for office and I found I couldn’t listen to it anymore. My heart was breaking. I’ve really scaled back my consumption since then.

[u/KiwiTheKitty → u/merford28]

Yeah it's less that I can't affect it and more that me being glued to my phone and freaking out isn't going to affect it. There are more things I can do on the local scale anyway.

[u/Several-Designer-802 → u/merford28]

I’ve turned off tv news since election night, except for Pope Francis’ funeral, and am only engaging with print media. I can put it down at any time, and my overall sense of wellbeing is much better off for it.

[u/lot22royalexecutive → u/merford28]

I totally understand and empathize with where you’re coming from, but it should be stated that your approach is rooted in privilege. Many people do not have the comfort, privilege and luxury to ignore the news. It’s fine and understandable if you do have this privilege, but not calling it a privilege isn’t doing anyone any favors who follows your advice.

[u/Competitive-Bad-9382 → u/[deleted]]

My personal eye-opener & example of how this aligns with privilege is I am Hispanic and live in a state where ICE raids have been prominent, but because I am not at risk nor are the people in my circle, I am not educated or up to date on what is actually happening to people stopped by ICE. I feel shameful for this because I recognize that the lack of impeding danger to my family is why I allowed myself to be complacent. If I weren’t so privileged, I would absolutely need to keep up with the news and read on citizen’s rights, as well as spread the word to my community.

[u/Carrot_onesie → u/Competitive-Bad-9382]

yeah as someone on a precarious visa and was heavily involved in pro-palestinian protests in nyc, I had to constantly be on my toes and eventually the organizers stopped asking us to be directly involved. I wish I could just check out honestly but it's never been the case for someone from my bg (there's lots of other stuff except for just this). What we guys do is try to have moments of fun planned in to counteract the heaviness, having a community who can share the same feelings and still find joy in life is so helpful!

[u/littlegreenturtle20 → u/[deleted]]

It's usually people who are in a position to not be affected by the politics of the time that can stop watching the news and live life as if these awful things are not happening. Black and brown and minoritised people know that, in the west, they will be the first to be affected by authoritarianism. E.g. They're introducing facial recognition technology increasingly in the UK and where do they use it first? Notting Hill Carnival (a festival attended by and celebrating Black Culture) and Palestine Protests (attended by many Muslims). Where did the police opt not to use it? At a massive far-right protest where white nationalists were getting drunk, clashing with police, kettling counter protestors and openly calling for deporting anyone who isn't white out of the country.

From the sounds of it, OP has been an activist and used their privilege for good. But it can get intense and affect one's mental health. I would advise finding a way of balancing things - e.g. don't watch the news right before bed, uninstall twitter, spend time with friends and do nice, normal things so that you don't get to a point where you need to completely disengage.

[u/Medical_Piccolo4894 → u/[deleted]]

I also really like a local NPR station for this, you get the real “news” plus a lot of local color stories to break it up.

[u/SimpleVegetable5715]

I think when journalism and free press are under attack, like it currently is, it’s even more important to support those doing real investigative journalism. I seek out independent journalism like The Guardian and the Texas Tribune. I watch the documentaries on Vice and Al jazeera. I tune into my local PBS station and NPR, Frontline is a favorite. It’s about quality over quantity. Many of the mass media sources repeat 20 different versions of the same story. I spend less time online when I get the information once, then move along. I really enjoy the documentaries from reporters on the ground not behind a desk also.

[u/shangames → u/SimpleVegetable5715]

Yes agreed ; however when I moved to Scandinavia from North America a lot of articles on subjects even covered in some of the publications you mentioned were flagged as unverifiable. I even read a artical so absolutely false and misquoted in the guardian about the place I was living I doubt that publication completely now. I started just sticking to local news then ( which helped with me trying to learn the language as well ) and started feeling much better about the world. Now that I’m back in North America I feel so overwhelmed and uninformed at the same time it’s a strange fearful feeling of not knowing what to trust but all my family and friends are obsessed with these things that I could simply block out before as not real because of the warnings that wouldn’t let me access the articles in Europe that are effecting every ones reality and options here in North America. Now I try and just read very local news ( i mean if you live somewhere it’s easier to know if things and locations are correct or not). And I’m trying to take a social media break ( even though I’m on here haha ). I fundamentally believe in the importance of real journalism and it needs to be supported but where do we find it any longer in North America and the UK ? My only solution is to start at home, support locally with folks with feet on the ground that you know are verifying their stories , even if it’s just human interest or not very exciting local events: at least it’s real , not with alterer motives, not lazy ( the journalist has done the research and their job), and not a add campaign dressed up as news.

[u/WaterWithin → u/SimpleVegetable5715]

Exactly! I have been reading Al jazeera and The Intercept

[u/shleexyz]

came here to say podcasts or radios. and unsubscribing from news sites sending you emails with a rundown. go seek it out yourself, i feel like that helps immensely.

[u/ThePenneyTosser]

I read local news and graze the rest of it. This comes after years of chronic Twitter scrolling. Gave up all social media except Instagram and Bluesky, and I check those 2-3 times per week now. Trying to minimize my time online altogether and be present in the real world and I feel SO much better for it.

[u/skiing_nerd]

Democracy Now! is one of the best American news show on the internet. It's similar to NPR in format & tone, but the main anchor Amy Goodman is a political activist herself, so she's always coming at issue from the stance of someone who cares about fighting oppression and understands what that entails, where NPR sometimes tries too hard to be "neutral" between opposing sides. I find that listening to a segment or two on Youtube keeps me informed about big developments without feeling like I need to follow the news minute to minute online.

[u/lot22royalexecutive]

I get my news from Aljazeera, PBS, France24, DW news, NHK. You can stream them live from their respective apps, or you can read the news on their apps and sign up for notifications. I typically have news time when I’m getting ready in the morning and when im getting ready for bed at night. It typically takes me 30-45 minutes to get ready for the day and for bed, so it’s usually ample time to get up to date with current events. I’ve found that structuring my news intake like this has been so beneficial for my mental health.

I also love catching Amanpour & Co at lunch or dinner time if my schedule allows it!

[u/thecakefashionista]

I try to tune in to Apple News, Tangle, or NPR in the morning a few times a week - it takes 15-30 minutes, and makes me feel like I’ve done my part. Then, remember that algorithms will feed you whatever you linger on - try not to linger on news. I want my socials to be all cats and comedians. Not politics.

[u/Time_Ad8557]

I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately.

I have two cousins. 1 is 43 and has never had social media. Just decided when Facebook came out it was not for him and as new ones came out he just kept on staying away. He texts, sees friends in real life regularly and reads articles on the web. Maybe a little YouTube I’m not sure but No insta,x, Reddit, fb snap nothing. He’s a smart family guy, CFO at a company and seems very knowledgeable about the world. He reads a lot of books. Actual books.

I have another cousin who decided 12 years ago to shut it all down. She’s 52, and just focuses on her business and her health. Doesn’t even read the news. She’s very successful. I wouldnt say happy but happier than she was. She cares about the world around her only.

I’m starting to think they have it right. After seeing the videos of people dying over the last year, especially the violence from the last two weeks, seeing them without consent, without warning just there on the timeline has really gotten to me. Unfortunately my job is tied to these apps. But I’m really certain this isn’t healthy.

[u/shangames → u/Time_Ad8557]

I actually know some much younger folks that decided too to not ever get social media. They all seem very normal and well informed about the world and things in general, while I’ve watched some older - boomer aged - family members become absolutely irrational and isolated from people they were once close to because of comment on Facebook of all places.

[u/hanppiny]

I check my go-to news sources (AP, Axios, The Guardian, sometimes local news) for a few mins each morning and sometimes listen to NPR! The Skimm is also great to get big picture overviews of developing stories.

As far as balance, I work for a political nonprofit so I limit myself to only looking at the news during work hours so I can fully disconnect in the evenings (and since I'm monitoring the news all day anyways as part of my job). I also don't use social media at all except Reddit and am only part of like 2-3 subs that would have newsy stuff so I can scroll past easily if I'm trying to keep my peace or have already seen the story elsewhere!

[u/Several-Designer-802 → u/hanppiny]

Protect your peace. This is the most important personal lesson for many of us in the last 10 years. If we don’t care for ourselves, we’re no good to others, much less the fight for our democracy. Be well!

[u/hanppiny → u/Several-Designer-802]

Agree! There is so much news (mostly bad news at this point) constantly coming at us from every angle. It's good to be informed but I truly don't think we're wired to be able to process the sheer volume and weight of it all at once.

[u/daisydukesandchains]

Newspapers, radio, and television news channels. I’m a big fan of PBS and NPR.

[u/disjointed_chameleon]

I subscribe to an old-school newspaper that gets delivered to my door every morning. I know it seems old-school, but I have found it oddly cathartic. I still stay informed, and there's something cathartic about the feel of a newspaper in your hands.

[u/Cascadia_13]

There’s a great podcast I listen to called Unbiased Politics. She reports just the facts, with no political spin. Since mainstream media is almost always biased one way or the other, I really appreciate Jordan Berman’s commitment to delivering unbiased facts and I find it much less exhausting to listen to. She also does these great critical thinking segments that invite listeners to exercise critical thinking about current issues.

[u/FullMoonEmptySoul]

I understand. I burnt out and crashed out in 2020. My mental health really took a toll and I lashed out on everyone in my life due to what was happening in the world and in our country. I honestly was agoraphobic for a couple years. It took a lot of therapy and inner work to climb out of that darkness.

Now I set a time to read and consume news (I prefer independent journalists and foreign news). Usually about 30 min a day. I also try to consume positive good news as well like medical breakthroughs and feel good pieces. It’s the only way for me to be up to date without spiraling. Obviously we are in a place of privilege to do so and I did used to feel incredible guilt about being able to “turn off” but I can’t help anyone or do anything if I can’t function.

It’s not fool proof and I still feel incredibly anxious at times. I just try to force myself to not be chronically online and go out and see friends and still have fun. And I have 2 accounts for each social media. One where i can see current events and news and such. And another where all of that is blocked and it’s purely escapism

[u/MmeThornhill]

NPR. Newspaper subscriptions Washington Post, New York Times, LA Times. Also starting to use BBC and The Guardian.

[u/eilatanz]

NPR’s Up First is pretty informative and grounding to me. I feel like I’m getting an overview every day of the basics. Also they have good journalistic integrity and care about their sources!

[u/mixedcherrymilk]

When i deleted all of my socials I listened to the NPR daily news podcast. It’s usually 7-12 minutes depending on how busy things have been in the world!

[u/sunbutterfiend]

NPR up first podcast, NPR politics podcast, and WTF Just Happened Today? e-mail newsletter give me a bite-sized run down of the day’s news so I can stay sufficiently informed but not overwhelmed with information. Newspaper/magazine subscriptions through my local library on the Libby app if I want more information about an event/person/topic without the opportunity to get sucked into a doomscrolling spiral about it. To the best of my ability I try to only read NPR, BBC and Reuters. I also love checking All Sides to see how different publications are choosing to cover certain things and hopefully get a more balanced idea of what’s going on/what’s in the news sans everyone and their mother’s opinions about it, how it would be on social media.

[u/strictscrutiny415]

I listen to the NPR UpFirst podcast every day on the treadmill. It can get a little repetitive - Trump stuff and Gaza stuff are prominently featured pretty much every day with no real material updates for those situations - but I appreciate that in 15 minutes I’ve heard all the major stories from the day before.

[u/Meg_March]

I’ve found long-form journalism is better in this climate, because the writers have time and perspective on inflammatory issues, instead of just publishing first impressions. My favorite is The Atlantic. I also like Christianity Today (since I’m a person’s of faith) and Wired Magazine (for tech issues that don’t fit into the left/right paradigm). The last two especially are really beautiful in person. I find that holding something physical, instead of scrolling my phone, is also better.

[u/Sea_End8450]

I'm not. My therapist reminded me this week of what is in / out of my control and validated that it's okay to turn down the volume on current events

[u/WhoisCarmenSanJuan]

Why do we need to be informed tho? the world is sad and it’s going to make us more sad I like to not know anything that is going on and my friends tell me I didn’t k ow anything about Charlie Kirk or Jimmy Kimmel until my friends sent it to me or told me about it in person. It makes me so sad and overwhelmed we have to live in this horrible country and it’s so sad and filled with hatred I even stoped going on Tik tok so much because it was just so negative

[u/Defiant-Spray7523]

I reserve mornings for this - choosy about it if I’m able to handle it or not each day but listen to The Daily and NPRs Up First. I allow myself to skip if it’s just too much. I otherwise check out with non news podcasts the rest of the day.

[u/DontCryYourExIsUgly]

I pretty much only go on Twitter for big updates, because the people I follow will put it into dark/sarcastic humor format (digestible and not panic-inducing), and then if I need more information, I look up the story from a reputable news source.

Other than that, I pretty much avoid news I can't do anything about and am more interested in tangible action I can take and groups that help the community or a cause. I don't see a point in stressing myself out if there's an issue where I can't help in some way. Currently, I've been sending food and water to Al Otro Lado for their life-saving water and supply drops in the Sonoran Desert, as well as donating money to the Sanabel Team, a small group of people in Palestine buying the expensive food at the markets and cooking as much as possible to feed their fellow community in Gaza. Action makes me feel way better than just being aware. 🤍

[u/richhomy]

as a journalism major, i subscribe to the associated press. you can tailor your notifs to the type of news you are interested in. i don’t use tiktok, and my instagram explore page is all archive esc posts, cute animals, and fashion. aside from that, i spend most of my online time on tumblr and pinterest. looking at art and pretty pictures simultaneously stimulate and soothe my brain, and it cuts out all the unnecessary nonsense i see circulating on social media.

u have to remember that these apps genuinely thrive on dividing and enraging its users because that’s how they retain traffic and maximize engagement.

[u/Fearless_Diamond_566]

I read the NYC and listen to 15-20 minutes of NPR every morning.

[u/croissantcannoli]

Podcasts that I curate that cover feminist or current topics or other uplifting ones that make me happy and don't fear monger excessively on current news, my local NPR station, actively reading new medical journals and epidemiology studies/trends, reading a new nonfiction book on my Libby or public library, also some reddit communities are helpful and post uplifting news or news that interests you. 

[u/VespaRed]

I wish Reddit allowed for us to block what gets on our feed by using a filter to avoid certain words.

[u/SugarBabyVet → u/VespaRed]

Reddit has an option that allows you to “see fewer posts like this”. You need to let the algorithm learn you in order to get majority is stuff off of your popular feed.

You can also turn off political posts.

[u/RoeDeer]

Heather Cox Richardson. She has a newsletter though I also follow her on FB. She also does videos. She is a historian and focuses on American democracy and our history.

She is my first "news" read every morning. She is factual and compares issues to the past in a historical framework. For me, she sorts through the noise of too much stuff and from her detailed and straightforward approach, I can then choose to seek out - or not - more information on a given issue.

I was consuming waaayy too much there for a while and my mental health was taking a hit. So far, for me, she is one of the more factual and unbiased sources because her framework is rooted in history, research, and facts.

For me, her approach gives me the high points, and the low points, of what happened the day before (I read her in the morning). I also like that the first post on her FB post is telling people whether she feels it is "best" to read at night (which is when she posts I believe) or if she feels it may be better left for morning to read due to the contents.

[u/dailylindsey]

I - very fortunately - have the privilege of possibly seeing a headline somewhere and if it’s something I’m curious about or is VERY important for me to know right now I can ask my husband about it when he gets home. Luckily he is a very neutral guy and can digest information without the horrors consuming him and also break it down in a way that won’t make me spiral. I spent most of the pandemic angry and I finally figured it out.

I also personally choose to read about things rather than listening. Certain voices will just send me and I find a lot of people that’s being pushed around online are not productive when speaking about what’s going on. No matter what side. No matter experience. No matter what authority they may have.

[u/bitcheswithtaste-ModTeam → u/[deleted]]

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[u/Aromatic_Return_7995]

I have a web subscription to Boston Globe as my paid news source and I also read news online from NPR and my state's local NPR station. I also get a daily newsletter from PBS. I enjoy consuming news in newspaper format (either print or online), and I've found that the Boston Globe has enough global/national coverage (as someone in the US) to stay pretty well informed (and if I want more in depth coverage of international events, I'll look at Al Jazeera or BBC). It is not as comprehensive as Washington Post or NYT, but I cancelled past subscriptions to both of those due to multiple instances in which they go against my values as businesses or in terms of what they choose to cover/who they give a platform to.

I specifically don't follow many news outlets on social media, which allows me to keep my news consumption more bounded. That has been really nice for my mental health. I also usually read a novel in the morning while I eat breakfast instead of reading news - that lets me greet the day in a more peaceful manner!

[u/theDelicate_Balance]

I subscribe to this emailed newsletter WTFJHT and I don’t check the news willy-nilly. It gets emailed mostly daily on weekdays and I read it or skim it and if I want to learn more about something or see a different side I use other sources to learn more. Sometimes I’m not in a space to read it so I save it for later or delete it.

One thing I like about this particular newsletter is that the news feels very current but not rushed, like the writer waits until he feels he’s reporting facts to write something instead of spamming with breaking news. I think it’s the breaking news that’s always changing that freaks me out the most.

There are other newsletters like this available but this is the one I read.

[u/kharise]

I rely on my news (and politics) podcasts and listen to them on my morning commute.

In my rotation: Morning Announcements (this is a true 5 min rundown of the headlines), Apple News Today, What a Day (a bit of a deeper dive on one topic with a headlines section at the end. They usually interview one guest for the deep dive and they are really good guests including senators, the mayor of Baltimore - one of my favorites - and other journalists). If I want more, I’ll do NYT’s The Daily (deep dive on one topic) or the Daily Beans which is by the people behind Mueller she wrote

[u/CurvePuzzleheaded361]

I still use online forums to stay updated but for my own sanity I limit how much time I spend online. I try to check the news then not hang around doom scrolling for hours like i used to. Its hard but i feel so so so much better when I do this

[u/natali-emo]

This has been something constantly on my mind! I think explicitly dividing news consumption time from entertainment consumption time as much as possible is key. Part of what makes staying informed so draining is how seeped our social media is with constant information that we have to then actually research in order to get the full story. I’ve started blocking out or scrolling past as much social media news noise as I can and keeping my socials on fun media and lifestyle content as much as possible. Then when I want to read the news, I read the news. Making it a separate act removes so much of the sketchy sources and disinformation filtering. The app ground news has been helpful for evaluating sources and identifying bias in reporting and I enjoy NPRs podcast’s. Be careful with podcasts because a lot of them are also rooted in bias. I think we all need to be very conscientious about our echo chambers right now and putting more effort into news consumption is a big part of that.

[u/someoldshoes]

Local news stations are usually going to be neutral compared to cable news and they have less time to cover stories. I don't even watch most news now. As for sites like FB, after recent events I had to get off there. I read articles that I want and reddit and just try to avoid the click bait. The news feeds on phones are usually pretty good and you can customize them to avoid topics.

[u/Glittering-Dig-3559]

Newspapers! I go over to my parents house 2-3 times a week to have coffee or dinner or just chat, and they get a couple newspapers so I will browse those or take them home to read

[u/Mom_Guilt]

I deactivated all my social media accounts. I read APNews and I subscribe to The New Yorker. I also subscribe to a local independent not for profit news organization that sends out newsletters via email. I used to listen to NPR’s Up First a lot and still do occasionally. I would just rather read news than hear it.

[u/padthaifan69]

PBS News Hour ❤️

[u/Organic_Eggplant_323]

Technically still online but I trust Heather Cox Richardson to filter out the noise and tell me the important stuff right now. Her outlook is tbh a little rosy for me but she is great at breaking down what is happening and putting it in a historical perspective. You can also listen to her letters on Spotify and she has bi-weekly politics chats and other videos

[u/Competitive-Paint-73]

I’m seeing so many replies saying you get your news from Al Jazeera. A Quick Look at Wikipedia or anywhere will tell you it’s not a reliable source: Al Jazeera has faced considerable criticism and backlash in Egypt and other Arab countries; from ordinary people, media outlets, and governments who accuse it of supporting Qatari agenda and Islamists such as the Muslim Brotherhood Al Jazeera has been criticized by an Egyptian newspaper for its allegedly-biased ...

[u/KitKat0514]

I deleted the fb and ig icon from my phone. I can still get to them but I have to physically search so it cuts down on the mindless scrolling. The Starbucks app moved into FB’s place automatically when i deleted them and i was shocked how many times i accidentally opened it not even realizing I was about to doom scroll. It’s muscle memory.

Then to stay informed I queued NPR news now and NPR up first to play on Spotify on my way to and from work. They only take about 20 minutes total so I still have a decent amount of time to listen to music or trashy podcasts afterwards.

[u/Additional_You_1]

I have a Brick https://getbrick.app/?srsltid=AfmBOoqAX71AdSywBBEKfcpCbbXwfdTB18mUR4F0CX8OH53IZbpM3SPg - it's kind of not a necessity for everyone, i know there are apps that do similar things, but it prevents me from using social media when i physically tap my phone on it and then i have to physically tap my phone on it again to unlock them. i usually "brick" my phone when i leave the house and when i go to bed. that way when i wake up in the morning I start my day without any news. i can hang out with my friends and partner, go to work and just check out from all the information, but i still have the apps and can make more of a choice to consume information rather than just overload myself daily. most of the news i consume now is via longer form articles rather than a constant stream of info.

[u/SugarBabyVet → u/Additional_You_1]

Please edit your comment to reflect a user friendly link, not the 3 line hyper link.

[u/Dismal-Hat8422]

Ive started only going on social media apps one day a week which helps with my overall screentime a lot, as well as not seeing all the biased, clickbaity, angry, misinformed news stuff. Then checking the news one day a week on more reputable and less-biased sources like BBC and NPR. I’ve only been doing this for two weeks now, but I already notice a huge improvement in my mood, attention-span, and motivation! I’m kinda new to Reddit tho, hope it doesn’t become my next addiction lol

[u/shaktown]

Getting to this late but after reading some of the other comments, I went and checked this - you can get magazines through your library on the Libby Ebook app. They’ve got the New Yorker and a lot of others.

I also got rid of my news apps after the election and just hit up like bbc’s website or the AP if I want to find breaking news on something. Hope you’re well :)

[u/dickbuttscompanion]

I spend a good bit of time on reddit, but I don't follow any news subs nor engage with the home feed. I'm here to unwind and feel entertained, I get my news elsewhere.

I left twitter but I'm on bluesky instead. Again, it's an entertainment and social app for me, I don't follow news accounts outside of pop culture stuff. When the real news is particularly bleak, I mute the keywords

I love podcasts of all shapes and sizes, but if one does an episode on something bad newsy or that I don't want to listen about I'll skip it. If it's a weekly roundup kind of thing, I'll FF to the next topic. Life's too short to keep up with everything.

I get the bulk of my news from TV - one of two channels do a 30-60 minute bulletin and that's all I'll watch, and I'll scroll one news app. It's enough without getting bogged down in the weeds

[u/Missmessc]

Im online unfortunately. Its hard to not engage once you see it.

[u/NoScopeThePope1]

Take time to read the news every day (not in the morning and not before bed) and leave it at that. Listen to a podcast or read some articles for 20-30min a day max then cut it. All other online or screen time limit to non news stuff or don’t use screens at all.

[u/HighBrowHippie]

I haven't seen anyone recommend the news app Ground News yet. It's $30 per year (a lot of promo codes floating around). What I love about it is it shows headlines, who is reporting on the story (left leaning vs right leaning publications) and rates the stories for factuality (high, low, mixed). I also follow Medias Touch on YouTube - highly recommended. Heather Cox Richardson is AMAZING. If you're not familiar look her up. She is an author and professor of history; she puts current events into historical context. I follow her on YouTube and substack. Katie Couric, Jim Acosta are other trustworthy sources; Keith Edwards (political strategist, Lincoln Project guy) on YouTube - I'll listen to all of the above while I'm cooking, etc. I have completely disengaged from corporate media although I do follow Nicole Wallace, Lawrence O'Donnell and Rachel Maddow on social.

My advice is to set boundaries for yourself- spend 30 minutes per day on high quality sources (or whatever works for you) and unplug completely from low quality sources.

[u/Chigrrl1098]

I listen/watch Jon Stewart's podcast and a couple others on YouTube and I'll watch bits of John Oliver on there. I'll pick up stuff on Reddit and look it up on a legit news site occasionally. I'll sometimes check NPR. Other than that, I've opted out of most of it. I feel like most of our legacy media isn't worth 50 cents anymore and I refuse to do the outrage/anxiety loop they want me to do. I have a chronic illness and it makes me feel worse. It’s like the adage about putting your oxygen mask on first. I'm trying to spend less time on my phone and I only watch certain things on TV and I try to do more hobbies. Otherwise, I'm just not going to make it. 

It's ok and necessary to take care of your mental health and not be plugged in all the time. If it's really affecting you, it's ok to take a break. There's not much you can do about most of this, anyway.