Where do I get my news?

I had a subscription to Newsweek magazinefor a few years, but cancelled it last fall. Then it took them three months to believe that I really wasn't renewing, so I got three months worth free. I stopped because I just couldn't keep up with all my subscriptions and was feeling overwhelmed. (That's a blog for another day.)

These days I get my world news from This Week with George Stephanopoulos on Sunday mornings. He starts each week with an interview (today was with Newt Gingrich), then does a round table with George Will (who does a bi-weekly column for Newsweek and writes for the Washington Post), and two different additional media people each week. Sometimes is Cokie Roberts, Sam Donaldson, and another of my favorite writers for Newsweek, Fareed Zakaria. The show also includes "In Memoriam", listing all of the notable people who passed away that week, and all of the soldiers whose names were released that week, as well. And finally, he includes "The Sunday Funnies" which highlights some of the better jokes of the week, from the likes of Jay Leno and Jon Stewart. Overall I'm very happy with the show. It captures all the relevant news of the week, and leaves out all the crappy sensationalism stuff, which I find so annoying. I mean, who really gives a crap about Anna Nicole Smith's baby's dad? Really?

A while ago, I was talking with another homeschooling mom about the show and she told me that she gets her news from The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. Well, I have to admit that I was appalled to hear that. How could someone actually get their news from a comedy show? But then I got cable and along the way I started watching the show. I have to admit that Jon also covers all the political commentary without the crap, and he does it with the roll-of-the-eyes that our news so often inspires. It makes me happy that enough people agree that our news is ridiculous enough that we need to laugh about it.

For that reason I also love Stephen Colbert. It amazes me that he manages to get the people on his show that he does. And people are so earnest in thinking they will actually have the opportunity to say anything other than what he manipulates them into saying. The man really is a genius. He does cover the crap, but he makes it worth watching. Check it out.

So that's it with me and news. I have really cut down a lot. It was just getting really depressing, knowing what a mess our country is in, and knowing there is little I can do about it. The feeling of powerlessness was too upsetting. So now I know just enough so I don't appear to be an idiot, but little enough to not be stressing about it.

Other news sources I have trusted in the past were US News And World Report, The New York Times Week In Review (back when I lived in New York and could get delivery at a reasonable cost), and BBC World on PBS, which I still watch when I can find it.

Other News Magazines