5 ways to make keeping up with the news easier

5+ways+to+make+keeping+up+with+the+news+easier

Maddie Driggers, Lifestyles Editor

In today’s society, the news we are consuming is just as important as the way we are consuming it. Sometimes, staying up to date on what’s happening around you can feel overwhelming and exhausting. However, it doesn’t have to be that way. Finding simple, yet efficient ways to be in the know that fit your lifestyle is not only easier than you think, it’s more important than ever. Here are some resources and outlets that offer solutions to get the news without feeling bogged down.

 

Daily Email Updates

Don’t have time to read through a bunch of articles from various publications every single day? Well, good news: there are companies that can put in the work for you! An easy way to get the top stories every morning is to sign up for daily emails from places such as The Skimm and the New York Times Daily Briefing. These services comb through hundreds of national and local news publications to find the most important stories of that day and compact it all in a quick email sent right to your inbox. You can read through it as you’re getting ready, walking to class or at work and be able to have a better grasp on the world around you as you start your day. Each service sends out an update email every weekday and it is free to sign up for each of them.

 

Podcasts

One of the easiest ways to keep up your daily routine and stay up to date with the news is to listen to it instead of just reading it. Podcasts are an effective way to get the news of the day or week while you get ready for school or work or while you’re driving. Some recommendations are The Daily from the New York Times, Pod Save America from Crooked Media and Up First from NPR.

The Daily is released every weekday and covers one major topic in the news that day, interviewing experts and going in depth to explain it to listeners. Recent topics have been the Supreme Court justice appointment and the immigration crisis.

Pod Save America is hosted by four former aids to President Obama and offers a political conversation among the hosts and their guests. This longer form podcast allows the former staffers to dive deep into the issues and successes of the country and is released every Tuesday and Friday.

Up First is the most compact podcast of these three, yet also arguably the one that covers the most topics. It is a brief 10-minute podcast uploaded every weekday morning that covers topics from international politics to pop culture.

 

News Notifications

Being notified when breaking news happens is a great way to stay in the know. If you have an iPhone or iPad, you can use the News app that comes downloaded on your device to scroll through stories from your favorite news sources and get notifications sent to your phone from specific outlets. This makes it easy to get news from sources you are familiar with and trust. Just open the app, go to “Following” and select the Channels, Topics or Stories you want to receive notifications for. If you are an Android user, getting news on your phone is also an option. Check out this list of the top 10 best news apps for Android.

 

Twitter

Following reliable sources on Twitter to see when you’re casually scrolling is another easy way to stay updated. Traditional news outlets, such as the New York Times and the Washington Post, tweet featured articles and breaking news updates every day. Another prominent Twitter presence in the realm of news is the Associated Press. This source has minute by minute updates on stories, both political and cultural. They also have various accounts for different kinds of news and different parts of the world, depending on where you live or what news updates you want to receive. You know you’re going to open and read through Twitter anyway; might as well stay updated while you’re doing it!

 

Local News

While it is important to stay in the know about national and international news, local news is often just as or even more applicable to your life. The political happenings of the town, county and state that you live in affect the day-to-day happenings of your area much more directly than national politics. You can stay updated on all things local by tuning in to the 5 o’clock news, reading your local paper and checking out the Seahawk! You can even follow your local news outlets on your news app and on Twitter.

 

So, now you have no excuse to not be in the know. Stay updated, stay informed and stay involved!