The advantages of ignoring the commercial product known as TV and Radio “News” are many. I have been avoiding the hype for a couple of weeks and I like it.
There was a time when keeping up with the news was a responsible thing to do, but in today’s saturated environment, it’s almost impossible NOT to hear every message that is fired at us. If I can actually avoid a message, friends are happy to find someone that they can tell about it.
My vacation has been refreshing, reminding me of my first days in Toronto, when I moved here from British Columbia. For the first year or so, I knew nothing about local politicians or issues, had no grudges, opinions or axes to grind. Nice!
So I asked myself why I shouldn’t try to get back there. It frees up a bit of time every day. I am relieved from watching and listening to “shows” that I find stylistically silly… all sound and fury … signifying very little.
Thank goodness for the printed word, still available on the internet. Reading is so much faster and more efficient than listening and watching. I can get what I want, compare facts and follow threads in depth, all without waiting for performances and eye candy to go away.
The dinosaurs of broadcast media don’t get it. Too many of them, including newspaper sites, litter their web sites with videos. Print is better, people.