When it comes to consuming news that is the most interesting to me, I tend to pay more attention to news stories about sudden tragedies. Reading and watching these new stories feels like the perfect journalistic opportunity; by doing this, I see other journalists talk about ongoing events in real-time with only the little information they have. On a more localized level, I tend to gravitate towards stories about new state policies or government issues, since I know these events could directly impact my daily life. I also pay attention to news stories closer to my hometown, mostly stories involving crime, school news, or village board updates. One story that I am monitoring regularly is that of my former high school English teacher who is currently suing the high school I graduated from.
As previously stated, I do follow news from my hometown. I typically find this news through my town’s local paper The Pecatonica Valley Leader, or occasionally my high school’s Facebook page. The news site I visit the most is WKOW’s news website. This is probably my favorite news site because I know they are a trustworthy source, and their news is usually thorough and up-to-date; plus, the website is easy to navigate. When searching for news updates, I use Google to search. Most of the time, there are plenty of news articles to choose from, and sometimes there are social media posts that are provided based on the search. When Google searching a major headline, CNN is the website I navigate to most of the time because of their reliability and quick response to breaking news stories. I do not use AI, nor do I read news articles that seem AI-generated. To me, using AI does not feel like the proper way to deliver news to the public.
My preferred methods of consuming news are through reading articles and watching television news. I find that both of these methods of news telling have their benefits. Reading written articles allows the reader to take in the news story at their own pace, and oftentimes, the pictures that go with a news story are relevant and thought-provoking. However, I do prefer watching television news more than reading news. Television news often comes with first-person accounts from interviewees, which makes a news story feel more personal. Additionally, there is more opportunity for video and photo shots, helping the viewer visualize where a news event occurred, who was involved, and what exactly may have taken place. Social media news turns me away rather quickly, as I find that a lot of it feels jumpy and lacking in sufficient content. Altogether, though, I do consume news from every possible channel, since news is posted everywhere nowadays and it has become practically unavoidable.
When I see news posts on social media, I usually go to another source to get more information. For example, if I saw a news headline on Instagram about President Donald Trump, I would look at the post, but I would then search for a full story on a news website outside of social media. It is sometimes difficult to decipher which social media news sources are reliable, but most of the time, the comment section can tell you all you need to know. If a comment section is calm and reserved, you can assume that the news is trustworthy; more hostile comment sections may require more outside research. I am thankful that I do not have X or Bluesky because of the sheer amount of news – real and fake – that appears on those apps. Instagram’s news posts tend to be easier to read through. I also typically tend to avoid podcasts and blogs when searching for news because these tend to be more opinion-based rather than fact-based.
When deciding if a news article is accurate, the first step I take is to see what website the news article is coming from. If it is from a news source that is known for reliability, like CNN for example, I will continue reading the article. However, if the article comes from a source I have never heard of, I might do some more research about the source before I can decide if the article is accurate. After reading the article, I usually look for similar articles or articles that have a different position from the original one. Then, I compare information to see if the articles are providing the same information or not. These steps are helpful in deciding which news sources are reliable or not because I, along with many other news readers, have fallen victim to inaccurate news articles on multiple occasions.