Ask HN: How do you read the news?

3 pointsiansowinski3y ago8 comments

Using different techniques I am training to change the way I move around the internet (I guess digital well-being is the best-suited word for that). My last concerns are about news - how it comes to me from social media. I switched to RSS (feedly), but I'm thinking even about using printed newspapers. Do you have your ways or tools of getting and reading the news?

8 comments

_xivi3y ago

I find the best way is to outsource it

Meaning don't block time or resources to read news. Anything that actually matters you'll learn about in social settings from friends, colleagues, etc. Then, if you're actually interested, you can do your own research on a topic-by-topic basis.

Personally, I stay up-to-date through just what people are talking about online and IRL (more for local news), and from time to time, documentaries on YouTube that I find interested. Basically, outside of what people share, I don't follow any sort of media/news outlet.

muzani3y ago

That's basically Facebook. What reaches your ears are the biased one (assuming your friends and family are like mine).

While it works, I find the drawbacks is that very important news don't make it. My wife didn't know about the war in Russia. Many friends don't talk about the climate change and floods.

Unimportant news is also covered frequently - political stuff, most of it putting the blame on one group. If I hear of floods or lockdown, it's almost certainly phrased in a way that makes one party look bad. Which is probably why European hot wars don't make it to Malaysian news; there's no local politician to blame.

_xivi3y ago

Yeah, it basically boiles down to your social circle, but that's how I do it (which is the question) personally I'm not invested in politics.

> What reaches your ears are the biased one

But that's always the case, isn't it? no matter the source, even if it's directly from an eye witness, that's what I meant when I said do research on the ones you find interesting.

nicbou3y ago

I queue things in Pocket, and read it later on my iPad. It's a lot more distraction-free than my smartphone, so iPad time is true reading time.

It tends to slow down the news, and encourages me to go for long form content. This in turn tends to make me go for established content about older news.

alxmng3y ago

Have you considered a daily newsletter from a well-respected and comprehensive news publication? For example, the daily world headlines from Financial Times. It's once per day, and it's bounded. You read it and then you're done.

iansowinskiOP3y ago

Yes, I'm thinking of it!

labarilem3y ago

I don't really have a well-defined method to do it.

It's a mix of websites and news from my social circles.

is_true3y ago

I parasite in the knowledge of people close to me exposed to the news

j / k navigate · click thread line to collapse

8 comments

_xivi3y ago

I find the best way is to outsource it

muzani3y ago

That's basically Facebook. What reaches your ears are the biased one (assuming your friends and family are like mine).

While it works, I find the drawbacks is that very important news don't make it. My wife didn't know about the war in Russia. Many friends don't talk about the climate change and floods.

_xivi3y ago

Yeah, it basically boiles down to your social circle, but that's how I do it (which is the question) personally I'm not invested in politics.

> What reaches your ears are the biased one

But that's always the case, isn't it? no matter the source, even if it's directly from an eye witness, that's what I meant when I said do research on the ones you find interesting.

nicbou3y ago

I queue things in Pocket, and read it later on my iPad. It's a lot more distraction-free than my smartphone, so iPad time is true reading time.

It tends to slow down the news, and encourages me to go for long form content. This in turn tends to make me go for established content about older news.

alxmng3y ago

iansowinskiOP3y ago

Yes, I'm thinking of it!

labarilem3y ago

I don't really have a well-defined method to do it.

It's a mix of websites and news from my social circles.

is_true3y ago

I parasite in the knowledge of people close to me exposed to the news

j / k navigate · click thread line to collapse