Gabe Sadoski, Journalism Student
Q: What sort of news are you interested in on the national/international level? On the state level? On the local level? Are there any stories that you’re monitoring on a regular basis?
A: The news that interests me on a national level usually involves sports, as I grew up a fan of them and still am to this day. The teams I pay closest attention to are the ones in closest proximity to me (Green Bay Packers, Milwaukee Bucks, Milwaukee Brewers), whereas I casually keep up with other teams outside of Wisconsin. I am making an effort towards paying closer attention to other topics covered by the news, such as politics, world events, national news, and state news. The stories I tend to monitor the closest are ones local to me (Madison area) and statewide stories.
Q: Do you follow news from your hometown? Where do you find it?
A: Yes; if I am looking for local news, I look towards Channel 3000, WMTV 15 and WKOW 27. Outside of the Madison area, I also read the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel for their local news, state news, and sports coverage. I tend to read the news on my phone for its conveniency; I occasionally read the news on my laptop or desktop if I am working on one.
Q: When you go directly to a news site by typing in the address, which sites do you visit?
A: Outside of my previous answers, I also read the Associated Press website, NPR if I want to listen to the news and ESPN or The Athletic for sports.
Q: What would you say is your favorite news site? What site appeals to you?
A: My favorite news sites are the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and the Associated Press. MJS does a great job covering state news and has a wide variety of reporters and journalists covering what’s happening. I enjoy AP for their coverage of national and international news; occasionally I look at their sports coverage, but most of it includes final scores or injury updates.
Q: Do you use Google or another search engine to find news?
A: Not typically, no. Most of what I desire in news I find through whatever media apps I have on my phone. If there is a widespread event happening, I might type in the event itself into a search engine to see what national news outlets are discussing, but I rarely do that.
Q: Do you use AI?
A: No. The only time I do is if I am struggling to come up with ideas on various things, but I like to avoid it altogether.
Q: What is your preferred method of consuming news? Why?
A: My preferred method of consuming news is through videos, as I find the best way for me to retain information is through a combination of audio and visuals. I do not mind reading and listening to audio reports either, as they provide the same information, just through different mediums.
Q: Do you ever interact with the news by posting a comment? Have you ever e-mailed a reporter, or submitted content (such as pictures) to a news site?
A: I very rarely post comments about news on social media. I feel it does not contribute anything on my end. If something is worth bringing up, I prefer discussing it in-person and having it transition into a conversation. As for emailing news organizations, I have never submitted any content for them (or reporters) to consider using.
Q: What steps do you take to make sure the news you read online is reliable and accurate? Have you ever thought a story was legitimate, then found out it was fake?
A: I usually look at other news sites to see if their reporting is the same or very similar. Over time, you begin to recognize certain reporter’s names and know who is and is not reputable, especially in local news. So far, I have not found a story I thought was legitimate and later discovered it was fake outside of ones I read in class. Jonah Lehrer, for example, was the first journalist I remembered learning about who fabricated many of his stories.
Leave a Reply