If you feel like you’ve lived through 10 lifetimes’ worth of historic events before your morning coffee, you aren’t alone. Now more than ever, we are living through a complex, never-ending cycle of events unfolding every minute of every day, with constant breaking-news pings and global crises appearing during your doom scroll. This generation is processing more history in such a short time than ever before.
We are 24/7 witnesses to the world, but the truth is, our brains are not wired to carry the weight of 8 billion people.
The news cycle never stops, and at times, it feels like this looming noise hanging over your head, bringing an ambient buzz to your daily life. The news is not the enemy, but a resource we can use to better understand the world and what is happening within it; we just have to figure out how to use it.
Journalism is an important pillar of our democracy. It holds power by questioning policies and people and providing citizens with vital, need-to-know information. However, when we constantly consume news, it is inevitable that we begin to feel fatigued by what we learn, especially if the coverage is on heavier topics.
News fatigue has become more apparent in today’s society than ever before. We consume more news, we dwell on it incessantly, and eventually we disengage. It is a state of mental and emotional exhaustion caused by the overwhelming exposure to high-volume, often negative, news.
There is this constant background noise that lingers, one that we can’t control, so instead, we subconsciously block it out. We are constantly exposed to trauma and chaos, and we develop a layer of numbness to protect us from emotional collapse, creating an ambiance of news noise.
How Do We Coexist with the News Cycle?
So, how do we stay informed while also remaining conscious of our mental health and well-being?
That is where media literacy and information hygiene come into play.
The biggest shift we can make, specifically as students and citizens, is to move from passive consumers to active seekers. Becoming the researcher yourself, rather than allowing the algorithm to provide you with news, can ensure you seek the information you need and want. This also helps you develop better media literacy by decoding, analyzing, and consuming reputable information.
We often mistake the adrenaline of a breaking news notification for being well-informed, but in reality, constant scrolling is simply over-stimulation. There is a significant difference between understanding a complex issue and simply witnessing it through a short clip.Â
True media literacy is recognizing that a story shared on social media isn’t always the full story. By choosing to step away from the algorithm-based news feed toward long-form reporting or deep-dive articles, you begin to respect the complexity of these issues enough to give them your full attention on your own terms.
I am not saying discovering news on social media is necessarily bad, but we should use it as a catalyst to get more information, not as the primary source of information. Social media brought it to your attention; now it is time to break away and dig deeper.
Today more than ever, we need journalists to provide the truth, but we must practice information hygiene to stay mentally well.
Consuming the News Responsibly
Here are a few ways I practice information hygiene when consuming news:
- Take control of your feed and unfollow accounts that do not provide reputable information.
- Check multiple sources when you come across a breaking story, become your own journalist, and do a deep dive rather than consume the whole story from one source.
- Don’t check the news the second you wake up or right before you go to bed.
- Talk about what is happening with the people around you. Engaging in respectful conversation about what you learned can open the door for discussion and new information.
- Find sources that provide information in a way that you consume it best. This can be a video clip, long-form article, interview, quick breakdowns, etc.
- Understand which sources are opinion-based and which are those that remain objective. Many outlets can be biased toward certain beliefs.
It is incredibly difficult to balance being a student, other responsibilities, and the news of the world, but give yourself grace. Remember that staying informed does not require you to be in a constant state of panic about what you see. You can be a passionate advocate and a conscious citizen while still prioritizing your own mental health.
By being an active researcher and setting boundaries with your screen, you put the power of knowledge back in your hands, right where it belongs.
Living in a time like this, it may seem impossible to keep up with a world that just keeps moving and changing, but having endurance is especially important. You are essentially trying to build your future while the world’s breaking news lingers in the back of your mind.Â
Giving yourself permission to look away isn’t a sign of weakness, it is how you regroup and research the information you come across. It is how you preserve the energy you need to eventually help change the very things you’re reading about.