Opinion Piece

This Is Why I Don’t Read The News On Mainstream Media.

And how my stress and outlook on life improved.

Wherever we go, we can have access to news. We see it everywhere and it is accessible everywhere. It’s hard to miss it. Hard. Not impossible.

This is not me waging a vendetta against all those media moguls and I love my home too much to spend my days as a exile.

But it is me choosing to say no to the news. And the reasons why I did it. And the unexpected results.

There’s no news like bad news.

When was the last time you listened to or watched good news?

We become numb to the bombardment of news stories and celebrities’ shocking revelations. Those annoying click-bait headlines that keep you glued to the screen.

Let’s face a fact here. If you noticed above, it was no mere accident that I called media moguls. They are a business.

As with any other business, they get paid by viewership, ads, or other revenue that we can get their hands on any platform.

They need you to keep watching.

Bad news is what sells. Good news don’t, people get bored.

With all the turmoil that happened last couple of years, I had enough. And stopped watching the news around September last year.

To the purest of joys, it brought me to Medium. Where I read other people’s stories that are far more interesting than any news.

“Fight of Flight” Mode Activated.

Your heart races or you feel uneased when a major event breaks.

Have you ever noticed that?

Or when after watching or reading the news, how did that make you feel?

I always felt drained, stressed, and anxious to understand how that was going to affect my life or not.

My eyes were glued to what was happening on the TV. I would scroll every news media outlet to find more news about the same topic. It was like the news was taking control of my actions.

The news took command of my emotions. I’d feel anger when I saw something wrong. I’d feel sad when something bad happens to someone.

I had that constant worry about matters that had no control over.

My mood immediately changed when I decided to stop watching the news. I couldn’t allow outside events to affect my emotions in my normal daily life.

I’m no Jedi but after that decision, I became a calmer person and a more balanced one. A person who knows the only thing we should worry about is the things we have control over and can take action.

Different perspective when looking from the outside.

After a couple of months without news, I started to see things way different.

There will be days that I scroll through the headlines to see what is going on.

Same old stuff.

I could see the same old hook titles, and scaremongering breaking news every single day.

Shortly after I stopped watching the news, another major event broke out. I started to get the gist of the news from other people’s conversations. I was an outsider analyzing from afar their opinions.

I was trying to understand their perspectives, their anger, and their worries.

It was like looking into a mirror.

I could see my past self reflected in them. That worried person who stressed about things that didn’t impact his life.

I could watch them getting sucked into that negativity spiral.

On one of my calls to my mom, I could hear her voice of concern. I could feel her worry about what was happening.

I asked what was wrong.

Her trepid voice said everything I needed to know.

I tried to reassure her by telling her that events like this one are part of history. And there is nothing in our hands that will make it change.

I advised her to not watch the news anymore if she was that concerned. To my demise, I understood that I can’t control other people’s behavior.

Not even loved ones.

I felt my body stressed and rigid with anger.

I calmed myself down and took a deep breath. Bad news has left us exhausted. It’s gotten worse in this age of information overload and disinformation.

I can’t fathom the weight that I took off my shoulders when I stopped watching the news. It’s like I have discovered a new world. A more interesting and brighter world.

Medium is my source for stories. Not news, stories from others.

Stories where we learn lessons, shed a few tears, or laugh until our bellies hurt. Those are the stories that I’m looking for to read every single day.

I’m a completely different person. One who can listen more the others and understand their perspective.

I couldn’t be this way before since I felt always this dark cloud surrounding my head.

Start being selective about what you read. More so when it comes to news. Be in control of what you accept and don’t let others dictate what you must read or watch.

Being in control of your life means exactly that — Control.

You have the remote control now…

Thanks For Reading!

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