Jeff Perry: ‘It is time to slow down’
Jeff Perry, writing for Clicked:
The attempted assassination of Donald Trump this weekend triggered a predictable firestorm online. As someone who’s spent over half my life in the broadcasting industry, I know firsthand how overwhelming these news cycles can be. From being a bystander online wanting to know what is happening, to being a news reporter trying to get the correct information as fast as possible, it is incredibly stressful during these times. But this time, something felt different for me. Scrolling through my feeds, I realized this wasn’t just another news event — it was a chance to rethink how we consume breaking news.
Jeff goes on to describe how he set an alarm for later in the day to catch up on what happened, rather than wade through everything spilling onto social media.
It made me realize that I treated this event differently too, but without conscious thought. I found out something was going on a couple of hours late (from Apple TV of all places), and almost opened Threads to “check the news”. Then I realized that I had no interest in heading down the algorithm mine shaft to seek out nuggets of truth and relevance there.
Instead, I opened Apple News, which had a helpful “latest” section on the shooting. I quickly caught up from reputable sources, and then closed the app. Later, when I checked again, I was pleased to see that the same section was still at the forefront and while there were a few new updates, the old ones were right where I left them. I felt no need to scroll and scroll.
I think I, too, will be sticking to this slower, more deliberate approach in the future. And it’d be helpful to have a similar experience available in other news and social apps.