I always thought that college would naturally make me a more well-informed person, but college is actually somewhat of a bubble. When on campus, it is easy to get so wrapped up in your own life that you forget to check your favorite news websites. And, most likely, you do not have a TV, let alone cable, to watch the news every morning and night. I was able to learn so much in high school from just having the “Nightly News” playing in the background as I did homework or ate dinner, but I no longer have that luxury. Even though it can be difficult, it is so important to stay on top of the news. One of the easiest ways to do this is to subscribe to a few different online newsletters. They pop up in your inbox every day, so you have no excuse but to look through them when you are distracting yourself from a lecture with your emails. To get started, here are a few of the best ones.
1. TheSkimm
Known for its funky headlines, theSkimm is the perfect way to start your morning. The newsletter comes at around 6:30 EST every morning, and it is the perfect balance of hard-hitting news and light-hearted stories. It usually has one to two main stories, followed by smaller, yet equally important stories. At the end of the newsletter, there is a section called “Skimm Picks” that recommends anything from wine to books and even socks. TheSkimm takes less than 10 minutes to get through and it will update you on everything you really need to know for the day.
2. The New York Times Morning Briefing
The New York Times is always a go-to news source for me. There is definitely some controversy around the paper, but the Morning Briefing sends out the paper’s best articles for the top news stories right to your inbox at 6 a.m. EST. Or, if you prefer evening news, they have an Evening Briefing. So, essentially, you have no excuse to not sign up for one, or both, of their newsletters. And, the best part is, you don’t technically have to subscribe to the newspaper itself to receive their newsletters. However, as a college student, there is a fairly inexpensive subscription fee and I definitely recommend that you subscribe to the full website because it is amazing journalism.
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3. Betches SUP
The SUP comes right around noon, so it is definitely not something to rely on if you are looking for current events to talk about with your teachers first thing in the morning, but it is still worth subscribing to for a little mid-afternoon pick-me-up. The writers of the SUP take hard-hitting news stories and add a comedic twist to make reading the news not only bearable, ut enjoyable. And, if you are a pop culture nerd, they place a fairly high emphasis on the lives of celebrities, so you also have something to add to that dining hall conversation about the lives of the Kardashians.
4. Buzzfeed News
Buzzfeed has a whole host of newsletters to subscribe to, but their News newsletter is what to look for if you like the style of Buzzfeed’s articles. One of the best parts of this newsletter is that it links to several different stories on Buzzfeed’s website, so it encourages you to look through all of their news content on the website itself. However, if you happen to open this one up in the middle of class, it may be a little difficult to get back on track. Let’s face it, sometimes a quiz determining what type of college student you are based on the breakfast you choose is more interesting than your 9 a.m. philosophy lecture.
5. Chicago Daywatch
This one is a little more specific to Chicago-area residents, but it is still a really great newsletter. The Chicago Tribune sends out the Daywatch at around 8 a.m. CST and it is full of more local Chicago news. It is important to know about America’s big stories of the days, but don’t forget the value of local news. Because the actual newsletter is mostly just headlines and links to their website, I suggest you get a subscription to the Chicago Tribune so you can read more about the stories they highlight.
Almost every publication with an online presence has one or more newsletter subscriptions available, so look to your go-to news source to find your favorite newsletter.