4 ms·

How is ignoring a major event like this in any way good?

theferalrobot 7y ago
You can stay informed while also not wanting to fall into the 24hr news cycle drama. I don’t think it’s healthy personally for me to read every bit of information on it I see. I’m staying at home, I’d rather be doing something productive and check in every few days.
arkanciscan 7y ago
There is no possible way to ignore what is happening right now. If you want a Cov-19 blocker, you know all you need to know already.
chukye 7y ago
How seeing a lot of news about an event that I can't do anything is good? It just gets me depressing! Watch the news is the worst thing at the moment! I'm encouraging everyone that I love to stay away from this. Fear/depression is way worst than this virus.
- miked85 7y ago
  There can definitely be information overload. But ignoring everything is not good either.
  - chukye 7y ago
    I'm sorry, but I really don't understand why ignoring is not good.
    - miked85 7y ago
      You don't understand why ignoring news during the biggest global pandemic in a century might not be wise?
      - chukye 7y ago
        Yes. :) I don't even have a TV, I blocked news sites in my /etc/hosts about 4 years ago. So, I'm ignoring the news for more than years and have no idea why it is good for me to hear that, especially now. There is virtually nothing I can do to help and nothing good on that (watch news will give me anxiety) IMHO is a good idea to ignore the news, especially during the biggest global pandemic in a century
        smcl 7y ago
        For one thing if you are aware of how your national or local government have responded to the crisis you can vote accordingly the next time elections come up. This may or may not affect you personally, depending on if you do or can vote, but it'll definitely be a factor in many elections across the globe. Additionally if you were paying attention you might have started taking precautions earlier - getting set up for home-office, ensuring you had supplies (obviously I don't mean panic buying 50kg of pasta, but at least a sensible supply of the essentials to see you through a small period of quarantine) and postponed or cancelled trips into affected areas. In my case if I was a little more informed and a little less flippant I would have not travelled to Austria for a skiing trip when I did. I thankfully isolated myself for 2 weeks when I came back (which I learned from the news was required by law for those returning from Austria). Plus I learned by the news that losing sense of smell and taste was a likely indicator of Covid-19. I got tested and discovered I was positive. Had I not learned this my girlfriend (who had moved out during my 2 week post-trip quarantine) would have returned and I might have infected her, and I might have been less careful in my apartment building and infected my elderly neighbours. I actually made my decision to go ahead with my Austria trip before ANY European country entered lockdown, including Italy. Official guidance was that travel was fine, even to many parts of Italy. Had I been paying more attention to the news, I might have been more skeptical (I am not sure about this, though). Yes the news can be overwhelming, you certainly shouldn't binge it and if you're easily spooked you should maybe take it in small doses otherwise you'll get yourself all worked up for nothing. But burying your head in the sand completely is perhaps too far in the other direction.
innocentoldguy 7y ago
It might be worthwhile if the media was reporting news, but when you have CNN, ABC, MSNBC, ad nauseam stirring up idiotic drama for ratings—like throwing tantrums over what the word "our" means—what's the point? How is any of that useful?
chippy 7y ago
Indeed, it is your duty as a citizen to consume as much media as possible. To do to otherwise is anti social and actively harmful to your country. Try to refute both arguments.
pndy 7y ago
I think there's a difference in ignoring and trying to avoid being bombarded by media that aren't interested in reporting the current situation (in a toned, objective way) but getting clicks and profiling people with loud headlines and cheaply done content all the time. We do all live in a huge stress now but it's important to remain sane and not let sink ourselves into some depressive state by being spoon-feed by media - that definitely won't help anyone in long turn.
LastZactionHero 7y ago
Like everyone else, I'm indoors with just my family, ordering food/groceries, wiping everything down, wearing masks/gloves if we ever have to go out, explaining to my toddler why he can't play with friends, etc, etc. For the last month, and probably the next two or three. What else do you want from me? Do I really have to spend every moment watching the slow train wreck from every angle? COVID is covered literally everywhere, you can't not see it. The good is just maybe not falling into total depression, alcoholism, or worse.

You can stay informed while also not wanting to fall into the 24hr news cycle drama. I don’t think it’s healthy personally for me to read every bit of information on it I see. I’m staying at home, I’d rather be doing something productive and check in every few days.

arkanciscan 7y ago

There is no possible way to ignore what is happening right now. If you want a Cov-19 blocker, you know all you need to know already.

chukye 7y ago

How seeing a lot of news about an event that I can't do anything is good? It just gets me depressing! Watch the news is the worst thing at the moment! I'm encouraging everyone that I love to stay away from this. Fear/depression is way worst than this virus.

miked85 7y ago
There can definitely be information overload. But ignoring everything is not good either.
- chukye 7y ago
  I'm sorry, but I really don't understand why ignoring is not good.
  - miked85 7y ago
    You don't understand why ignoring news during the biggest global pandemic in a century might not be wise?
    - chukye 7y ago
      Yes. :) I don't even have a TV, I blocked news sites in my /etc/hosts about 4 years ago. So, I'm ignoring the news for more than years and have no idea why it is good for me to hear that, especially now. There is virtually nothing I can do to help and nothing good on that (watch news will give me anxiety) IMHO is a good idea to ignore the news, especially during the biggest global pandemic in a century
      - smcl 7y ago
        For one thing if you are aware of how your national or local government have responded to the crisis you can vote accordingly the next time elections come up. This may or may not affect you personally, depending on if you do or can vote, but it'll definitely be a factor in many elections across the globe. Additionally if you were paying attention you might have started taking precautions earlier - getting set up for home-office, ensuring you had supplies (obviously I don't mean panic buying 50kg of pasta, but at least a sensible supply of the essentials to see you through a small period of quarantine) and postponed or cancelled trips into affected areas. In my case if I was a little more informed and a little less flippant I would have not travelled to Austria for a skiing trip when I did. I thankfully isolated myself for 2 weeks when I came back (which I learned from the news was required by law for those returning from Austria). Plus I learned by the news that losing sense of smell and taste was a likely indicator of Covid-19. I got tested and discovered I was positive. Had I not learned this my girlfriend (who had moved out during my 2 week post-trip quarantine) would have returned and I might have infected her, and I might have been less careful in my apartment building and infected my elderly neighbours. I actually made my decision to go ahead with my Austria trip before ANY European country entered lockdown, including Italy. Official guidance was that travel was fine, even to many parts of Italy. Had I been paying more attention to the news, I might have been more skeptical (I am not sure about this, though). Yes the news can be overwhelming, you certainly shouldn't binge it and if you're easily spooked you should maybe take it in small doses otherwise you'll get yourself all worked up for nothing. But burying your head in the sand completely is perhaps too far in the other direction.

innocentoldguy 7y ago

It might be worthwhile if the media was reporting news, but when you have CNN, ABC, MSNBC, ad nauseam stirring up idiotic drama for ratings—like throwing tantrums over what the word "our" means—what's the point? How is any of that useful?

chippy 7y ago

Indeed, it is your duty as a citizen to consume as much media as possible. To do to otherwise is anti social and actively harmful to your country. Try to refute both arguments.

pndy 7y ago

I think there's a difference in ignoring and trying to avoid being bombarded by media that aren't interested in reporting the current situation (in a toned, objective way) but getting clicks and profiling people with loud headlines and cheaply done content all the time. We do all live in a huge stress now but it's important to remain sane and not let sink ourselves into some depressive state by being spoon-feed by media - that definitely won't help anyone in long turn.

LastZactionHero 7y ago

Like everyone else, I'm indoors with just my family, ordering food/groceries, wiping everything down, wearing masks/gloves if we ever have to go out, explaining to my toddler why he can't play with friends, etc, etc. For the last month, and probably the next two or three. What else do you want from me? Do I really have to spend every moment watching the slow train wreck from every angle? COVID is covered literally everywhere, you can't not see it. The good is just maybe not falling into total depression, alcoholism, or worse.