I don’t watch the news, and chances are you don’t either. Living off of Netflix with no cable subscription makes it difficult (if not impossible), to find a place to even watch network television. And let’s be honest — there are other things I’d rather be watching. But I know I need to stay informed about what’s going on in the world, especially now. Here’s how I do it without actually watching the news.
1. Find a news source you trust.
This is honestly the hardest part. There are so many sources of content out there, many of which are actually entertainment or opinion, not news. It’s more important now than ever to vet your sources of information because fake news is actually a real thing.
I use this website to check sources. If you can get past the assault on your eyeballs (it’s very poorly designed and displays loads of ads), it’s actually a fantastic resource. All you have to do is type the website or news channel in the search bar (click Navigation > Search on mobile) and it will pull up the evaluation of that source.
For each source, look at the bias rating and the factual reporting rating. Try to find sources that have bias rated toward the middle (stay in the purple-ish area) and very high factual reporting. Below is the rating for NPR (National Public Radio):
(I told you the design was terrible.)
This is a fairly quick and easy way to find a news source you can trust. Go ahead and search for a few until you find the one you want.
I’ll be using NPR for the examples below, but I’ll reiterate this: find your own news source.
2. Get the daily headlines.
Many news providers are now providing daily email newsletters that send the most important headlines to your inbox each day. Subscribing to a newsletter is the best thing I’ve done to stay up-to-date with what’s going on in the world. These emails tend to be short and concise so you’re not sifting through tons of information.
In the past, I’ve subscribed to CNN’s 5 Things newsletter (which I really liked), but became wary of their potential bias — which can also be bias by omission — after looking them up on MediaBiasFactCheck.com.
Now, I subscribe to NPR’s Daily Newsletter. Many news sites offer similar newsletters, so check the website of the news source you decided on and go ahead and subscribe.
Once you’re subscribed, commit to at least skimming this email each day. Better yet, read one or two of the articles that are related to issues you care about most.
3. Get breaking news alerts.
Sometimes there are big things that happen that you need to know about immediately. News providers call these things Breaking News.
The best way to get alerted about breaking news in real-time is to download the app that your chosen news source provides. Just search for the name of your news source in the app store on your phone and download it to your phone.
Once you’ve downloaded the app, you’ll typically be prompted to choose topics you want to read about so your news feed is customized. If not, go into your settings and customize your topics and feed there.
While in your settings, look for an option to get notifications about breaking news. Toggle this setting to “on” and you’ll receive push notifications on your phone when there’s a breaking news story you need to know about. Here’s how it looks in the NPR app:
I’ve found that the definition of a “breaking news” varies between news providers, so keep an eye on the types of articles your provider is sending you in these “breaking news notifications”. If they’re sending too many (or sending stuff that’s not important), you may need to tweak your app settings. If all else fails and you’re getting super annoyed, try another news app.
4. Edit your Instagram feed.
If your Instagram feed (or Facebook or Twitter if that’s your jam) consists primarily of fashion, interiors, food, or lifestyle content, sprinkle in some accounts that share information about current events.
First, look up your trusted news source and follow their account. I also recommend following nonprofits that support issues you care about most. While you’re at it, take some time to intentionally diversify your feed to include voices from creators with perspectives and life experiences that differ from your own.
Remember this: personal opinion, entertainment content, and memes are not news. Although those accounts can be great if you need a good laugh, always check your sources. When in doubt, a quick Google search will typically do the trick to find out the truth behind a meme or headline.