Shamelessly reposting this here, because it seems relevant:
Negative news has a greater impact on people than positive: https://assets.csom.umn.edu/assets/71516.pdf
Media sites know this, and use it to drive engagement:
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41562-023-01538-4
https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/social-media-facebook-twitter-politics-b1870628.html
And so, negative headlines are getting worse: https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0276367
But negative news is addictive and psychologically damaging: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/why-we-worry/202009/the-psychological-impact-negative-news
So it’s important to try and stay positive:
https://www.goodgoodgood.co/articles/benefits-of-good-news
If you want a break from the constant negativity, here are some sites that report specifically on positive news:
- https://www.goodgoodgood.co/
- https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/
- https://fixthenews.com/
- https://positivenewsfoundation.org/
- https://www.onlygoodnewsdaily.com/
And here’s 35 more: https://news.feedspot.com/good_news_websites/
Or videos, if you’d prefer: https://youtube.com/@itssambentley
Some communities on Lemmy you might be interested in:
- [email protected]
- [email protected]
- [email protected]
- https://lemmy.world/c/hopeposting
- https://lemmy.world/c/worldinprogress
- https://lemmy.world/c/climatehope
Remember, realistic optimism is important and, unlike what some might have you believe, is not the same as blissful ignorance or ‘burying your head in the sand’: https://www.learning-mind.com/realistic-optimism-blind-positivity/
https://www.centreforoptimism.com/realisticoptimism
And doesn’t mean you must stay uninformed on current affairs: https://www.goodgoodgood.co/articles/how-to-stop-doom-scrolling
https://goodable.co/blog/tips-for-balancing-positive-and-negative-news/
I wish there was a way to stay informed without the rage-bait delivery methods
Slow news.
Seriously, you don’t need to know all of this shit every day. I do a weekly catch up on Saturday and indont think I’ve ever missed anything important. If anything some times gives news to clear up.
This video helped me A LOT: https://youtu.be/yxAd8Owl-7A
Reduce the amount of news and media you consume. It isn’t healthy. Check in with your own mental health on a regular basis and use that as a barometer. When you start feeling overly stressed and frustrated, it’s time to take a break.
It’s ok to be angry or upset but if you can’t do anything about it, it’s not worth it. You should remain informed and also know that if you’re feeling frozen or at a loss, the plan is working. It’s meant to keep you down, drown you, and cause you to desensitize or lose hope. Don’t fall for it. Rise up in ways that you can.
I listen to my body, which includes my mind. I start feeling bad physically or mentally, I disconnect and do something else.
I have a stance where I prefer to be minimally informed than misinformed. I will intake what little information I want before I am overstimulated from the poor state of journalism. I’m sorry but I have to be one of those headline readers and if it’s very, very intriguing enough to want to read it, I will. But I really can’t be bothered to read a lot of what’s out there. I read the comments and reactions which arguably, has proven to be far more knowledgeable than the article in question.
I stick to few sources that generally cover major without the doom and gloom. Generally YouTube channels are pretty good imo.
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TLDR News (UK, EU and Global) is a great series of channels for that.
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Caspian report on YouTube for some geopolitics/strategic outlook.
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Real life lore for couple of deep dives on non-current issues.
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Money and Macro for macro economic news.
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Just have a think for climate science and energy transition news.
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“Good news” is just nice feelgood news.
Traditional media for closely following elections when they come out such as exit polls.
For the Gaza issue I did break the cycle and check on Al Jazeera which is the best for middle East news.
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I draw the line at whiskey/beer. I need both in order to watch the evening news. I won’t engage with socials until properly lubricated by both.
“This is fine.” (meme)
lol, what is your favorite whiskey for such an evening?
Generally start with crown royal and 7-up over ice until my 12-ounce 7-up is empty then switch to coors banquet (stupid stubby bottles) until it’s time to turn in - which is now.
There isn’t a line, you are either informed or not.
If you care more about the illusion of mental health more than your life or reality then bury your head in the sand.
