News, in a sense, is gossip. Press outlets circulate the tense discourses of world relations, similar to how a teenage girl discusses the obscure ways her peers maneuver through high school. At all ages and in all eras the vitality of information dissemination remains prevalent.
Despite generally acknowledging the importance of communicating events with global influence, Generation Z struggles to keep up with the news. Maybe they read a few headlines occasionally or garner timely information from X, but most fail to read actual articles or watch entire news segments.
In the past, people sat down to read the paper in the morning, now the news has faded into background noise. People catch tidbits from conversations, public televisions or social media, but they lack the conscious effort to ingest researched journalism.
The Freedom of the Press
The current chaos of the political sphere makes tuning out the feedback noise entirely a tempting option. Many find that keeping up with the news daily is too stressful. Positive events are not often pushed to the front page, so it’s common to associate negative emotions with staying informed.
Choosing to remain blissfully ignorant, however, neglects the responsibilities of members of democracy. US citizens must remain aware of the government’s actions to ensure that leaders adhere to just action.
President Trump threatens the freedom of the press often. He blacklists journalists, attempts to censor publications, and questions the credibility of established sources like the New York Times. His disdain for the media stems from their ability to point out his absurdity. He expresses power over this opposition by encouraging his compatriots to exert financial control over journalists.
Democracy Dies in Darkness
Jeff Bezos recently bought the Washington Post. His financial influence over the media outlet floats questions of its objectivity. Before the change in ownership, its slogan, “Democracy dies in darkness” signaled journalism’s role in bringing to light political decisions not made by the people. With Bezos’ combined political and financial influence, the slogan underwent a sinister change in meaning.
If no one pays attention to the actions of the government and its oligarchal companions, the US risks losing the freedom of speech so long enjoyed by its citizens.
Involving oneself in journalistic discourse proves fairly easy. The digital sphere provides countless methods for keeping up to date: listen to daily news podcasts, subscribe to news summary emails, watch the Weekend Update on SNL, or install breaking news notifications on a device. Whichever method you choose to keep up with the world’s gossip, make sure to recognize the importance of consciously implementing the news into your routine.
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