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Boycott the news, for a better you.

Changed

Changed

Bluelight Crew
Joined
Sep 19, 2006
Messages
2,974
Feeling anxious, depressed, lost in an ever churning sea of negativity and despair? Do what I did: quit consuming the news!

I haven't read/listened to/seen a single piece of news in exactly one month. I deleted every link on my computer that pointed to CNN, NYTimes, BBC, etc... I don't own a TV, so that was easy... I turn the radio off every time it switches to the news (which isn't often considering it is NPR classical 99% of the time). Since removing the news from my life, I feel better, sleep better, and even look better. I have no idea what has happened in the past month, and I love it!

Consider this: when is the last time you consumed the news and felt really good about what you heard/saw/read? All I remember seeing was death-tolls in Iraq, news about gunmen at universities and high schools killing dozens, economic reports predicting doom and gloom, and earthquakes and hurricanes displacing millions. Never once did I feel good about what I'd just consumed... Why on earth would you want to know these things?!

Is anybody with me?
 
I feel you man..........I only watch the news if its on at work in the background and when people ask me about the new "threat" or "it-girl" I just nod and act like I know/care. I feel better not watching the corporates' puppet channels :)
 
this is a good observation, changed. i have had similar experiences a few years back when our routines and jobs were a bit different to now. it's hard for me to avoid the news at the moment since i work in a political organisation and am studying politics in uni. :(
 
I hear ya. I went months not watching the news--Didn't want to risk seeing/hearing a story about a bombing in/around Baghdad since my brother was stationed over there. I felt a million times better during that point, but I also felt a sense of disconnection with society as a whole. It's hard to describe. But, I'd rather have that feeling of disconnect than a feeling of fear and dread for people I don't even know.

TBH, the only news I've read in the past month or so has been a couple threads on here (in the current events forum). Or news articles that friends have linked me to, which mostly related to food and health.

Fuck hearing about death tolls and killings--That isn't news. That's tragedy.
 
I grew up in a culture whose primary vehicle of expression is the news. Everything and anything in the Middle East was/is politics. I remember in Junior high the kids (myself included) had political discussions before they talked of sports or video games or anything.

This creates a sort of ambivalence towards news and a feeling of isolation without following them at once. Bad news is never too bad, and good news is a nice but not expected change. In fact this attitude makes most but the absolute worst to be seen as farcical.

p.s. I do not consider "news" most of what Americans present as such (and indeed, I simply do not even bother looking through American infotainment media).
 
I still keep an eye on the news, but never from just one source, and am able to keep fairly abstracted from it as I mostly keep up with certain world news. I just don't have the time most days to get too in-depth into most stories, and am not interested in most news.

Oh, and (IMO of course) Al Jazeera English >= BBC World Service >>>>>>> all other news sources for world news. AJ has the least bias that I've ever seen in a news source, but BBC has a bit better coverage worldwide.
 
Matsuo Munefusa. said:
I figured this one out 10 years ago. Fuck the news its pointless to watch. You know where I was the afternoon of 9/11? Outside tripping on mushrooms playing in the sunshine.
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This is really an intriguing prospect here... Considering the massive change in global society since 9/11/2001, what if there were massive groups of people that had never learned of 9/11? Imagine how different they would be than say... some farmer living in Nebraska. Very interesting...
 
Matsuo Munefusa. said:
I figured this one out 10 years ago. Fuck the news its pointless to watch. You know where I was the afternoon of 9/11? Outside tripping on mushrooms playing in the sunshine.
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I urge you to read (or at least, listen to - but not watch) news sources that are not American.

Of course, when your teevee passes celebrity scandals between tsunamis and wars as "news", I can see where you get your attitude. But I think you'd act differently if you were to follow proper news.
 
Changed said:
Is anybody with me?
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sort of. i like to know what is going on locally, nationally, and internationally since these things do affect me. people dying in war/famine/pestilence/disasters, on the other hand, does nothing for me but add stress to my life. fortunately, the internet is a good vehicle for what i want and nothing but. the problem with tv and the radio is that if you want to hear about ONE piece of news you often have to wait through a bunch of media terrorism until you can get the information you want.

you know what i mean? "In the news today, how a revolutionary new invention can save billions of lives! But first, here is fifteen minutes of raw footage from a warzone in a place you don't even know the name of! Just watch those people cry as they wrap their loved ones in muslin! What do you think, Bob? 'It's tragic Suzanne, terribly, terribly tragic. I wonder what i'll have for lunch today.'"
 
I can understand what you are saying. For our own sanity sometimes the best thing can be to take in less depressing information. And unfortunately the news that we are provided does not really provide an accurate views of the world. Sure there is a lot of bad shit that happens. But there are positive things too, which usually are not considered news-worthy. The negative stories can make us forget about all the people who are kind and compassionate.
 
I absolutely stay far away from any sort of news program. From a law of attraction perspective, it's a horrible thing to do to yourself. Putting the sort of negative outlook and images that they show on the news into your head does nothing good for what you are manifesting in your own life... having a negative idea about the struggling economy for example. Watching the news for an hour leaves me feeling like there is no hope for getting ahead in life financially ever again and I might as well give up and die. Which is silly, because when I don't have those ideas in my head, I feel that I am doing just fine financially. I probably wouldn't have even known there was anything wrong with the economy had I never been exposed to the news.... Then again it's all about perspective. I've never really had money so I guess I wouldn't notice the difference either way.

I do care about what happens in the world. But I feel if anything major happens of any great importance I am going to hear about it through word of mouth. I trust in my higher powers and intuition that if news need to get to me, it will, without my seeking it out on TV.

nd unfortunately the news that we are provided does not really provide an accurate views of the world.
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This is true, and another reason why I don't watch.
 
Yes, especially about the economy. We get used to hearing the same shit everyday: "The economy lost steam in January." "Economic growth faltered as consumers became weary of lowered wages." "We must stimulate the economy" etc..

What is this thing called "THE ECONOMY"? I've never seen it. I can't touch it. I know that I have enough money in my wallet to pay for food. I spend some, I save some. Nothing has changed for my financially since 2001 when "The Economy" started to falter.

I posit that concepts like "economy" and "news" are simply diversionary tactics: ways to make humans feel that they are important and doing something worthwhile. At some point this trick might have worked: people probably thought, "Boy, if I work hard I'll be able to do great things and stimulate that economy!" Now that it is easy to see just how huge and out of control these systems of control are (ie, gov't regulations, etc...), it doesn't make sense to even try. You either see through the farce or you continue to fight, and always lose!
 
I disagree with most of you.

If the most within-reach source of news feels wrong to you, the answer is not to pretend that the world doesn't exist, but rather to look for more reasonable sources of news.
 
Jamshyd said:
I disagree with most of you.

If the most within-reach source of news feels wrong to you, the answer is not to pretend that the world doesn't exist, but rather to look for more reasonable sources of news.
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It isn't that we're consuming the wrong news, it's that we're consuming any news at all. The root of the problem is the concept itself, not the sourcing of the commodity.

News is used to propagate the false notion that human beings are really important down here on this circular thing and everyone has to know it!
 
Jamshyd said:
I disagree with most of you.

If the most within-reach source of news feels wrong to you, the answer is not to pretend that the world doesn't exist, but rather to look for more reasonable sources of news.
Click to expand...


I have to agree with you. The last thing we need are more ignorant people who will let anything happen without trying to change it... simply because they have no idea anything wrong ever happened.
 
As Jamshyd has correctly stated, find a different news source. Willful ignorance of the news can lead to a smaller, and less connected world for you. If you start to ignore the news, what is next? Ignoring everything else that doesn't directly influence your life? It is good to know about major world events, because they can, in some way, effect you. However, it is up to you in how it affects you. Understanding the world beyond your own limited singular experiences (I am not saying that as an insult, just as a fact) is integral to how you are going to relate to other people.

The world (at least "developed" economies) is becoming more intimate, and what happens 3000 miles away may be felt next door to where you are. If you aren't aware (or refuse to be aware) of world events (wars, financial reform, economic climate change, natural disasters causing undue destruction which may be indicative of other things, human rights abuses, etc), then you may find it harder to relate to someone that isn't like you, and who has had a different life experience. Of course, ultimately, what you do is your business.
 
in an environment where one is effectively powerless to make a difference, the news is toxic. most western news flavoured entertainment variety shows keep one in a state of powerlessness and apathy, and it is hard to remember how to be active and with a sense of power. sometimes it is healthy and wise not to be privvy to world affairs.
 
#12 on Andrew Weil's ways to reduce stress is '# Take a media break or a news fast. Research has shown that the emotional content of the news can affect mood and aggravate sadness and depression." He expounded on it more in some of his books.
 
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