Although I am not a college student, something that causes worry for me is the difficulty of knowing what is going on and what to believe, even though I consume

Although I am not a college student, something that causes worry for me is the difficulty of knowing what is going on and what to believe, even though I consume news from many sources. The battle for readers/viewers' attention has escalated to manipulative tactics like clickbait or pandering. The slow demise of old media has created a sense of desperation in their reportage. New media RARELY seeks a footing of disinterested journalism. This adds a struggle to the experience of "adulting" for college kids. Another issue is the change in the number of people living here. 1990 had 250MM. 2018 had 327MM. That 30% increase is bound to add stress and conflict. Another: the pace of change has been overwhelming in the last 25 years. That might create self-doubt about one's capacity to keep skills updated. Another: the decrease in life expectancy of white middle class people due to overdose and suicide. The plague of suicide is the message of futility and nihilism for survivors to absorb. Prosperity cures a multitude of ills. Widespread under-employment brings every bruise, boil, laceration, and trauma to the forefront. College students see the employment landscape. They face competition from citizens and non-citizens, and thus a pie that gets divided among a bigger denominator. The economic reality is that college is necessary for skilled occupations. Parents steer their kids into college, even though some of those kids don't have the self-management skills to succeed in college. If they do have these skills, they commonly are allowed to take coursework that is bound to result in a minimum wage job. This mortgages the first 20 working years of their adult lives with student loan debt service. I would certainly be discouraged by this prospect. Lastly, the disconnect in authentic relationships that social media fostered took away a piece of the fundamental human safety net.