Ever since I was little, my mom and I would sit on the couch and watch the news together. Thirty minutes of local or national news was all I needed to feel informed. We would also share the newspaper when I got home from school.
However, in between work, writing for various publications, homework, and volunteering, I somehow found myself not watching or reading as much news. I couldn’t figure out why I wasn’t reading the paper as much or watching my local news station until I was pulling an all-nighter and realized that there was a stack of newspapers in the corner waiting to be recycled. I hadn’t read a single one.
How was a new junkie to cope?
By getting her news on the go!
The best way to do this, I decided, was to implement a plan that would let me get my news fix while staying busy. First, I began following NBC, the BBC, and some news anchors on Twitter. The updates started pouring in. I didn’t feel in the dark when I caught updates on Libya or Parliament. However, 140 characters didn’t really help me that much. I needed more facts! More words!
So, I went to phase two: apps. I installed a variety of news apps like AP Mobile, Fluent News, and BBC News on my iPhone and NBC Nightly News on my iPad. I would end up checking them when I had a spare moment in between school and horseback riding lessons. It worked!
I then began DVRing shows like NBC Nightly News so I could catch them when I got home. Some days I would watch the shows live. Others days I would hear the opening theme at 11:30 p.m. while I did my Stats homework.
My final plan?
Continue reading the newspaper and magazines. It took me awhile to notice that I was still taking at least ten minutes out of my day to read the paper. However, I realized that reading the paper let me unwind from my busy day. Even though I was using tech-savvy ways to catch the news, there was no better way than to take a moment and unwind.