I read an article this morning from Nieman Lab’s Joshua Benton about why some people avoid news. He summed it up perfectly:
News, you may have noticed, isn’t that great at generating happiness these days.
In fact, the article goes on to list some of the reasons why Americans avoid news, with reasoning such as “It can have a negative effect on my mood” (57 percent) and “I can’t rely on news to be true” (35 percent).
Benton concluded with this thought: In that context, many people decide, as rational economic actors, they’re better off without us. How can we convince them otherwise?
So, what are some ways that we can convince people that news is valuable to their daily lives? Let me know below, and I’ll include a few answers in next week’s newsletter.
I think we need a good mix of letting people know the horrors of the world and letting them know about the good being done in their communities, or about what people are doing to solve or lessen those horrors.
I think we need a good mix of letting people know the horrors of the world and letting them know about the good being done in their communities, or about what people are doing to solve or lessen those horrors.