I was always a bit of a news junkie. Some of my earliest memories were of major news events. The Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, the assassination of John Lennon, the attempted assassinations of Ronald Reagan and the Pope. As I got older there was the Challenger disaster, the collapse of the Berlin Wall, the Coalition invasion of Iraq, the end of the Soviet Union, and the list goes on. And yes I am old.

I have no doubt these events, and my obsession with the news contributed to my studying History and Politics at University. I wanted to live the news, be part of it, to experience the thrill of world changing events, to see and feel history being created in front of my eyes, and maybe even be a little part of it.

In many ways I achieved that working for the British Government in crisis management and working on the Olympic and the Commonwealth Games. One day I came home from work and the top four stories on the BBC website were all issues that I was actually involved with.

It was a buzz when they spoke about what the Prime Minister said about an issue and I knew that it wasn’t quite like that, that he’d actually said something else entirely. I was at the centre of the news, I knew stuff that the media didn’t, and that the rest of the world didn’t either.

It was hard work, incredibly stressful (try getting told off in front of the Prime Minister for something that wasn’t anything to do with me; just because I was the closest! Nevertheless, I enjoyed it despite the long hours and abysmal pay. Why? Because I was part of the news silly.

A Jilted Lover

Not any more though. I have fallen out of love with the news. We have grown apart, irreconcilable differences, I have matured, developed a better sense of perspective, and more ‘woke’. The news? Well it changed and not for the better [see my article here for why the news isn’t what it used to be].

You see I am a junkie, and like any junkie I needed my fix, whether it was good for me or not. During my career I watched the news regularly. I checked websites numerous times a day. It was part of my job, often I would find out something quicker on the news that I would through traditional, official channels.

And crisis management and major sporting events can be exciting. There is a buzz at being at the centre of the news. They are also really boring. Strategic operations is pretty much sitting around writing and reviewing plans until something goes wrong. If nothing goes wrong or the issue is being managed by staff on the ground, then you don’t have much to do. And that is a good thing, right?

Feeding the Addiction

Well, yes, maybe, sometimes. The problem is people get bored and they start to look for things to do. The involve themselves in issues they don’t need to. Part of that is the human desire to be part of something, to feel connected to others, and fundamentally, to know what is happening. It is why we gossip. None of us want to feel like we are left out; that we are the only ones that don’t know.

Social media companies are able to exploit this side of our humanity in making their products addictive – a science they’ve admitted to. The notification on your phone, the little ping, makes you want to look, maybe there is something interesting happening, maybe even to me? It’s just FOMO (‘fear of missing out’ for you less hipster types).

The news is the same, although arguably it is more entertainment now. It is the ultimate reality TV. Like OJ Simpson in his Ford Bronco, a news broadcast that has become part of modern popular culture, and eventually gave us the Kardashians! That should be enough in itself make people switch off.

There have also been a number of recent studies indicating a statistically significant increase in anxiety levels of young people, mainly teenagers, but children too. There are undoubtedly many reasons for this, although there is no coincidence that the invention and rise of social media has grown during this period.

There is no doubt in my mind that the bombardment of young minds with exaggerated catastrophic news stories is part of that. Why wouldn’t it be when the adults of the world keep telling you that you’ll all die from terrorism, plagues, or climate change.

I still like the news. I still read it. I still rail against it. I still yell at the TV or my phone. Although something happened to me a while back. I went on a holiday. I didn’t have, or want, the same access to my news fix. And guess what? It felt good. Of course, I fell into the same trap when I came home.

Then one day I had an epiphany. I was ranting at my wife about something I’d read. My blood pressure was rising, and I was getting quite agitated. And then it hit me; it was the news. I vowed then to go news free for a week, and it was amazing!

Cold Turkey

Like a junkie the first few days weaning myself off my addiction was difficult. The urge to check the news was almost painful, like resisting having one more biscuit. One more won’t make me fat or give me diabetes you tell yourself, but it keeps feeding the addiction.

You have to be aware of your craving, to have to constantly remind yourself that it will make you feel bad. Don’t do it, be strong, go work out, meditate, anything to occupy yourself. Then after a few days it gets easier. You start to feel more relaxed; you begin to realise that life is not too bad, nothing had happened to me by not knowing. Ignorance really is bliss.

Then you start to enjoy being ignorant. Your mind is freed up to enjoy other things. Reading, playing with my kids, living life without worry or fear. I truly understood my changing mindset when I considered I was becoming so unaware of the world that Aliens could have invaded, or the Zombie Apocalypse may have started, and not only would I have been completely oblivious, I genuinely didn’t care. Channelling my inner Clint Eastwood, my only thought was ‘stay the fuck off my lawn’. I would even suggest that if most people had ignored the news the current pandemic wouldn’t even register – obviously the totalitarian imposition of extreme ‘COVID safety measures’ puts paid to that, but you get my drift.

You see there is just too much to absorb. Most of it is basically bullshit; either an advert, a political agenda, or fear mongering (fear sells baby). If you need to know something it will find you. The news flash will still happen. Maybe a phone call – remember those – or a knock at the door, maybe just overhearing a conversation, or perhaps they just might interrupt your TV show and do it the old fashioned way, maybe even some Alien Zombies on your lawn? But even if they don’t, do you know what? Maybe you didn’t need to know at all.

Don’t take my word for it, do it for yourself. Turn off your phone notifications – yes, the social media ones too – stop watching the TV, stop reading the online news, all of them. Do it for one week and see how you feel. The news is never good, never cheery or inspiring, and bad things happen, they happen to good people, you will have enough bad stuff in your life without having to process everyone else’s shit too. Remember no news really is good news!