When it comes to how to stay informed about current events going on in the world, it can be hard with the mammoth amount of information out there, not to mention fake news. Yet, in a world that spins on information, staying up to date with current events is important, allowing you to think about and make considered decisions in every aspect of your life.
But, staying informed about important global and local news events in a meaningful way doesn’t have to feel overwhelming, nor take you down the conspiracy theory rabbit hole. This blog explores a few ways you can become an authentic news buff.
How do you stay informed without watching the news?
1. Listen to podcasts
You don’t need to stream 24-hour breaking television news to stay aware about what’s going on in the world. With advanced tech, and many entrepreneurs thinking of cool and innovative ways to give you your information fix, you have an enormous amount of choices at your fingertips beyond traditional news sources.
Do you spend a lot of time in your car or on public transport? You could listen to news podcasts and download your favorite shows. Podcasts often work well if you have some knowledge on your topics of interest and enjoy listening to the friendly banter of the podcast’s host and their guests.
2. Download a news or media app
If you’re after breaking news or op-ed pieces about current news items, The Wall Street Journal, for example, has an audio app easily downloadable from the main media site. The news articles in the print and digital editions are available as audio clips, and are often short and sweet. The big plus is that the articles are not robotic audio translations and a real-life human reads the news in an engaging, nuanced way.
BBC, CNN, BBC and NPR also have audio options so you can listen to the news.. Even if you are not a subscriber, there are an array of fascinating topics you can still tap into.
Audio may not be your thing and you may not have the time or space to watch live news when it airs. If you enjoy reading and visually engaging with the news however, many credible media outlets have an easily accessible app where you can save and download the content to read at a later stage.
You can access premium content without the subscription fees through Invisibly. We curate your top stories from our trusted media partners.
3. Follow updates on social media platforms
A lot of us get our news from our friends, and social media in particular is a news hub. If you are an avid social media consumer, the rule of thumb is to not get sucked into the fake news vortex. If it looks fishy, investigate before you share widely. Look out for click-bait headlines, poor spelling and grammar, and phrases such as “They don’t want you to know about x,y,z, but we know the truth….”
If you’re still unsure, there are reliable online ‘truth’ trackers, often community based, to help you on your journey.
Why is it important to stay up to date with current events?
We’ve looked at some options of how to stay informed about current events; the whys of being plugged into the goings on in the world deserve equal space.
In today’s interconnected world, global events halfway around the world reach you, usually via your mobile phone, within minutes. Staying up to date with current events has become ever more important, especially if they have a very real potential impact on us, whether it’s politically, economically, or socially.
Having the right knowledge in our hands can help us make smarter, more informed decisions on the fly that can benefit us and, to a larger degree, our communities and society as a whole. As the age-old saying goes, “knowledge is power”, and having the key to it is vital.
That “key” is staying informed and in the know about what’s going on in the world around us.
However it’s not only the big stuff you have to care about. Local and ‘hyper’ local news is an important way to keep connected to your community and immediate environment. Perhaps there’s a water leak in the storage dam outside the city you live and this is affecting your water pressure.
It’s good to know who is working on solutions to the problem, and how infrastructure can be better maintained in the future. Whether it’s on a macro or micro level, it’s always wise to stay informed about current events and issues through a news outlet.
How do you stay informed without being overwhelmed?
Yes, downtime away from the endless barrage of information is important. But there are ways of staying aware without losing your sanity.
You don’t need to spend all day, every day trawling local and international news sites. Instead many media organizations provide news digests. The great thing is that you can sign up for these news digests by selecting the frequency you prefer (daily, weekly or monthly). Again, the downside here is that you might be expected to subscribe or pay for these digests, or they may come with a sizable side-order of spam and adverts.
Dedicating news ‘consuming’ time every day is also a great option. This could be in the morning, while reading your emails, or during your lunch-time break.
Signing up for news aggregators, such as Invisibly, for local and world news, makes your consumption of news more efficient and curated to your specific interests.
As a trusted news and media content platform, Invisibly’s push notifications will keep you on top of relevant global and local news.
People can scan the headlines and read more deeply when it is something of interest. You can skim the headlines in daily newsletters without needing to read the full article (which often requires a subscription).
If you’re on social media, especially Twitter and LinkedIn, following your favorite journalist or thought leader gives you an in-depth window and intelligent insight into certain issues that you’re personally or professionally invested in learning more about.
Invisibly allows you to stay informed about current events without having to pay for news subscriptions
Paywalls can be pesky if an article sparks your curiosity and you can’t read the article without paying a premium for access to it. But, you can access premium content without the subscription fees by using Invisibly.
At Invisibly we only partner with trusted and reputable news sources, delivering verified, credible articles and insight to our users. The best part? It’s free and you can sign up in less than two minutes.
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