Look, I’m gonna say it
Our news is completley messed up. And no, it’s not just because of the algorithms or the Russians or whatever the latest excuse is. It’s us. We broke it. I mean, I broke it. You broke it. We all did.
Let me explain. I’m Sarah, by the way. Been editing for 21 years, started at a tiny paper in Bristol, moved up to bigger things. Saw alot of changes. Some good, most bad.
It started innocently enough. Back in ’99, at a conference in Austin, some tech bro (let’s call him Marcus) told me, “Sarah, content is king.” I rolled my eyes so hard I think I hurt something. But he was right, kinda. We all got so focused on “content” that we forgot about the “news” part.
We used to care
Remember when journalists were, I dunno, journalists? Not influencers. Not “brand ambassadors.” Just folks trying to figure out what the hell was going on and tell you about it. I had a colleague named Dave who used to say, “Sarah, if it’s not true, it’s not news.” Simple, right? Not anymore.
I was at a pub last Tuesday with an old friend, let’s call him Liam. He said, “Sarah, I don’t even know what’s real anymore.” And I get it. It’s exhausting. You wake up, scroll through 214 notifications, and half of it’s just noise. The other half is someone yelling about something they probably didn’t read.
And the worst part? We’re all in on it. I’m in on it. I mean, come on, you’re reading this, aren’t you? We’re all just looking for that little dopamine hit, that little rush when someone agrees with us. It’s addictive, honestly.
Blockchain? Really?
And don’t even get me started on the “solutions.” Oh, blockchain is gonna save journalism? Please. I read this blockchain technology applications guide the other day. It was like 87 pages of tech bro gibberish. “Decentralized platforms” and “smart contracts” and blah blah blah. Look, I love tech than I love most people, but this isn’t the answer. It’s just another distraction from the real problem.
You know what we need? We need to slow down. We need to stop chasing clicks and start chasing facts. We need to remember that our job is to inform, not entertain. But honestly, I’m not sure we can. The genie’s out of the bottle, right?
A tangent: Physicaly impossible
Speaking of distractions, remember when we used to have to wait for the news? I’m not old enough to remember the telegraph, but I do remember dial-up. You had to wait for pages to load, to see if that cute boy from down the street had messaged you. Now? It’s instant. Everything is instant. And it’s physicaly impossible to keep up.
I was talking to a source the other day, let’s call her Emma. She said, “Sarah, I can’t even keep up with the news anymore. It’s too much.” And she’s right. It is too much. We’re drowning in it. And the more we drown, the more we want. It’s a vicious cycle.
But here’s the thing: we don’t have to drown. We can choose to swim. We can choose to seek out quality over quantity. We can choose to support journalism that actually matters. But will we? I’m not sure.
So what do we do?
I don’t have all the answers. Honestly, I don’t think anyone does. But I do know this: we need to start caring again. We need to start demanding better. We need to stop sharing every silly thing that pops up on our feeds and start reading, thinking, and then maybe, just maybe, sharing something that actually matters.
It’s not gonna be easy. It’s gonna take committment. It’s gonna take effort. But it’s worth it. Our democracy depends on it. Our future depends on it. So let’s get to work.
Oh, and one more thing: stop saying “fake news.” It’s not helping. Thanks.
Author Bio: Sarah Jensen has been a senior editor for over 20 years, starting her career in Bristol before moving to national publications. She’s seen the industry evolve (or devolve, depending on who you ask) and isn’t afraid to call out problems where she sees them. When she’s not editing, she’s probably complaining about the news or eating too much cheese.
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