Media

When I was in college I sprained my ankle badly playing basketball and was on crutches for several weeks. It wasn’t long after the accident that I became depressed. It wasn’t from the hassle of dealing with crutches or not being able to play ball. I’d dealt with that before. It was because I now spent my spare time at the apartment and my roommate constantly had the TV on a cable news network. I was bombarded with twenty four hours of bad news seven days a week.

It turned out to be a major blessing because I found that my personality didn’t handle that well. Since then I have carefully managed my intake of news from the media. I only take in the amount of news I need to be informed on important events. I will listen to or read a little news in the morning while I get ready for my day, but I am choosy about my sources. I NEVER watch the news right before going to bed. I don’t need a head full of trouble as I try to go to sleep. 

I don’t blame the media. I understand why they sensationalize the news. Their main purpose is to have an audience. The best way for them to do that is to get me emotionally attached to what they are saying. Therefore, they use hyper expressive words to describe their story. Words like crisis, devastation and terror among dozens of others.

I only broke my limited approach to the news once, during the start of the Covid pandemic. I lasted about three days before becoming depressed again. I quickly went back to my old method.

The world is a busy place. Lots of things happen everyday. The media wants me hooked on what they tell me. By their description they not only tell me what is happening, but they also imply how intensely I should feel about it. As I said in my post Intrafelism, I choose to be the captain of my emotional ship. I refuse to be manipulated so they can increase their viewership.  I don’t need their drama.

May you have enough today, one moment at a time.