5 ms·

Where are we going to get our news from after all the news organizations shut down? I have stopped reading them or watching tv a while ago, and even started to

by blfr 10y ago

Where are we going to get our news from after all the news organizations shut down? I have stopped reading them or watching tv a while ago, and even started to actively avoid mainstream media. My life has not been impacted in any way except having a little more free time. News is not necessary. It doesn't enrich your life. It's just something to put on and feel smarter than if you put on a sitcom. Try this, I do it every time I'm home: watch people watch the news, and then ask them what was on. Pretend you didn't hear some segment or just flat out ask them to summarize. Most people most of the time won't be able to tell you. And they're perfectly functioning, intelligent adults. At best it doesn't matter. At worst it's actively harmful by giving you these easily accessible stories that bear no relation to your life. Good riddance.

criddell 10y ago
> Try this, I do it every time I'm home: watch people watch the news Do you think that's unique to television news, or do you think the same is true of people reading newspapers (analog or digital)?
- blfr 10y ago
  I haven't tested it and no one I know still reads regular newspapers so it would be difficult. Perhaps reading is more active, or it's easier to "rewind" when your attention drifts off for a while, because people can definitely string together some summary of a book they're reading or read.
loteck 10y ago
Ignorance may be temporary bliss but I'd bet it turns out questionable long term results.
- lelandbatey 10y ago
  I'm highly doubtful that ignoring "up to the minute" news is going to hurt anyone. "News" in it's most frequently consumed form now seems less like a useful presentation of information without slant and much more like "Journalists react." The useful news is usually not 'up to the minute', not particularly eye catching or entertaining, and is very well sourced. It usually takes the form of things like journal papers, voting records, or the results of careful document audits. It rarely is concerned with any single person and is much more concerned with the actions of many people over time. Basically, 'news' now seems mostly about entertainment, and telling people "you have an obligation to follow this particular form of entertainment" seems like a very silly thing to say.
  - Spooky23 10y ago
    The trivial news is doing great. The actual, substantive news that one would consider journalism is dead or dying.
beachstartup 10y ago
most news doesn't matter, but political news does. it directly affects how much money i make, how much inflation my assets will enjoy or suffer from, how much i will be taxed, and under what circumstances (i.e., should i decide to sell my company this year? should i sell my house now or next year?) it also directly affects the rights that i or my friends may or may not have as a citizen. i.e. gay marriage, gun ownership, abortions, marijuana legalization, etc. if you don't think any of this really matters, then uhh, i guess we disagree.
- colllectorof 10y ago
  Let's say you didn't read/listen/watch any political news in the last two years. What do you think you would do differently in that time?
  - beachstartup 10y ago
    probably who i vote for, where i put my money/investments, and whether or not i sold my company 2 years ago. in the next 2 years, it's going to 100% determine where i live. again, if anyone thinks none of this matters, i am just going to say, okay, great, but it matters to me.
    - colllectorof 10y ago
      >probably who i vote for Something in the news actually changed who you would vote for? >where i put my money/investments Okay, granted. >whether or not i sold my company 2 years ago You sold your company because you saw something in the news? And if you didn't watch political news you would still own it? Sorry, but I have hard time imagining how that worked. >in the next 2 years, it's going to 100% determine where i live. If you know in advance that something will determine where you live, it's by definition not something you need to watch news for. You can just wait for two years and run a search for the info you need.
      - beachstartup 10y ago
bonaldi 10y ago
> My life has not been impacted in any way except having a little more free time. Here's the thing. It's a bit like herd immunity. It almost doesn't matter if you in particular read the journalism or not. It matters if nobody reads it. (Mostly for the social effects, but partly because then the industry can't afford to do real journalism for anybody). At that point things start to fall apart; that's when ill-informed power-brokers put dangerous options like Brexit in front of even-less-informed voters. Not reading a newspaper may not have impacted your life much. Living in a world where vastly fewer people are reading them already is.

by blfr 10y ago

criddell 10y ago

> Try this, I do it every time I'm home: watch people watch the news Do you think that's unique to television news, or do you think the same is true of people reading newspapers (analog or digital)?

blfr 10y ago
I haven't tested it and no one I know still reads regular newspapers so it would be difficult. Perhaps reading is more active, or it's easier to "rewind" when your attention drifts off for a while, because people can definitely string together some summary of a book they're reading or read.

loteck 10y ago

Ignorance may be temporary bliss but I'd bet it turns out questionable long term results.

lelandbatey 10y ago
I'm highly doubtful that ignoring "up to the minute" news is going to hurt anyone. "News" in it's most frequently consumed form now seems less like a useful presentation of information without slant and much more like "Journalists react." The useful news is usually not 'up to the minute', not particularly eye catching or entertaining, and is very well sourced. It usually takes the form of things like journal papers, voting records, or the results of careful document audits. It rarely is concerned with any single person and is much more concerned with the actions of many people over time. Basically, 'news' now seems mostly about entertainment, and telling people "you have an obligation to follow this particular form of entertainment" seems like a very silly thing to say.
- Spooky23 10y ago
  The trivial news is doing great. The actual, substantive news that one would consider journalism is dead or dying.

beachstartup 10y ago

most news doesn't matter, but political news does. it directly affects how much money i make, how much inflation my assets will enjoy or suffer from, how much i will be taxed, and under what circumstances (i.e., should i decide to sell my company this year? should i sell my house now or next year?) it also directly affects the rights that i or my friends may or may not have as a citizen. i.e. gay marriage, gun ownership, abortions, marijuana legalization, etc. if you don't think any of this really matters, then uhh, i guess we disagree.

colllectorof 10y ago
Let's say you didn't read/listen/watch any political news in the last two years. What do you think you would do differently in that time?
- beachstartup 10y ago
  probably who i vote for, where i put my money/investments, and whether or not i sold my company 2 years ago. in the next 2 years, it's going to 100% determine where i live. again, if anyone thinks none of this matters, i am just going to say, okay, great, but it matters to me.
  - colllectorof 10y ago
    >probably who i vote for Something in the news actually changed who you would vote for? >where i put my money/investments Okay, granted. >whether or not i sold my company 2 years ago You sold your company because you saw something in the news? And if you didn't watch political news you would still own it? Sorry, but I have hard time imagining how that worked. >in the next 2 years, it's going to 100% determine where i live. If you know in advance that something will determine where you live, it's by definition not something you need to watch news for. You can just wait for two years and run a search for the info you need.
    - beachstartup 10y ago

bonaldi 10y ago

> My life has not been impacted in any way except having a little more free time. Here's the thing. It's a bit like herd immunity. It almost doesn't matter if you in particular read the journalism or not. It matters if nobody reads it. (Mostly for the social effects, but partly because then the industry can't afford to do real journalism for anybody). At that point things start to fall apart; that's when ill-informed power-brokers put dangerous options like Brexit in front of even-less-informed voters. Not reading a newspaper may not have impacted your life much. Living in a world where vastly fewer people are reading them already is.