As ridiculously busy, very poor college students with Twitter accounts, it can be easy to feel like we have access to as much journalism as we could possibly need or have time for. The few minutes we spend scanning headlines in our social media feeds seem like all we have between classes, jobs, and just feeding ourselves, not to mention all the reading we’re required to do for school.
Beyond that, it’s like, who has money for these things? Why would we pay for news when all the basic facts are available to us for free? Most of us don’t need really detailed information about current events to be up to speed in social situations, just the gist of what’s going on. But this article is about “Why You Should Subscribe to a Major News Outlet” because all of the above are, no offense, just lame excuses to remain ignorant in a time when having the facts is critical to your personal empowerment and the betterment of our society as a whole.
Here’s the thing (opinion warning!): President Trump is wrong to assert that all media outlets are politically subversive, dishonest, etc. Treating the entire journalism industry with contempt and distrust is a blatant threat to our democracy in that it encourages people to ignore facts. The president knows as well as you or I that knowledge is power, and I think his attacks on the media are a direct attempt to stop citizens from taking well-informed political action. But there are news sources that write deliberately misleading headlines and skew facts, so knowing where to get reliable information is extremely important. Not only that, but we must do our homework to understand what really goes on in our cities, our country, and our world – in other words, read beyond the headline. Alexander Pope hit the nail right on the head in 1709: “A little learning is a dangerous thing.”
Having correct and detailed knowledge about our society is essential to improving it. Like art and writing, political activism starts with understanding the rules (or the norms) – that way, we know how to break them purposefully and to the benefit of humanity. So spending a little money to support high-quality independent journalism is well worth it. With that in mind, take some time to check out a few news sources worth paying for – this list is short, but it’s a start. (All listed rates are for digital subscriptions, current as of November 14, 2018.)
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The New York Times – Academic rate: $1/week (or $52/year)
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The Washington Post – Academic rate: $5 every 4 weeks
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The New Yorker – Academic rate: $6 for first 12 weeks, $44.99/year
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The Atlantic – $24.50/year
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The Wall Street Journal – Academic rate: $4/month
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The Los Angeles Times – First 3 months free, then $1.99/month
Blissful though it may be, ignorance is evil – so building a little on your knowledge every day, and paying to make sure unbiased knowledge stays available, is one of the best and easiest things you can do for good, wherever you fall on the political spectrum.
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