Beware of Infodemic

shortlisted tips to make sense of the news

My dear Friends,

The Infodemic has become super contagious; as a result, many can not make sense, and capitulate due to overwhelm. The news now arrives from every angle, every minute—push alerts, podcasts, posts from your hairdresser’s cousin. Between “fake news,” “alternative facts,” and that one friend who swears a meme is investigative journalism, making sense of the news has become a tedious undertaking. I have friends who refuse to read or even listen to the news at all because it stresses them out.

These days, we need to be cool-headed to make sense of the news and stay unflappable while everyone else hyperventilates.

Today, the media is so democratised that everyone has the tools to create news. However, this also means everybody can write anything without verifying the source or being responsible for the content.

Sit back and relax. Here comes your secret remedy. I´ve put together shortlisted tips that separate signal from spectacle without requiring a newsroom or a headache. No spoilers here; keep reading and let’s tidy the headlines, one calm swipe at a time.

No spoilers here; keep reading and let’s tidy the headlines, one calm swipe at a time.

How to read, listen and watch

Think of this as haute literacy: the letters, the sound and the pictures are still there, but now you need an upgraded technique—so the news stops performing and starts informing. Slow the eyes, sharpen the ears and eyes, and refuse to let a headline do your thinking. 

For half my life, the news arrived in sensible portions: a broadsheet at breakfast, the six-o’clock bulletin, a Sunday column you could actually finish. Civilised. Then the world pressed fast-forward and handed everyone a broadcast button.

Now headlines sprint across YouTube before TV notices, a tweet becomes a podcast by lunch, and fact or fiction often depends on who typed faster. To keep making sense of the news, I had to retrain—new ways of reading, watching, and listening that don’t confuse volume with truth.

So, in the spirit of staying level-headed over overwhelm, I’ve pulled together a list of do´s and donts Not homework—just small upgrades to help your eyes skim smarter, your ears stay cooler, and your judgment do the heavy lifting.

  • Consistency– set up a certain routine and establish the amount of time you want and can spend on your news intake. The most difficult part of being well-informed is not becoming overwhelmed due to the massive influx of information every minute of the day.
  • Selective-You don’t need to read everything, news should be seen as a long thread. So, one piece of news can be left alone for a while, and you can shift your focus to something else. The point is to gain a broader understanding of what is going on in the world and develop more nuanced opinions.
  • Goal setting– determine a topic you want to focus on, and think of why you want to read something. Set the amount of time you want to spend on one topic.
  • Curate– carefully select from whom you want to get news and block news from unidentifiable sources.
  • Questions-if the article raises questions, write your questions down, and investigate later. you do not need to have an opinion of everything in a split second, that’s impossible and ill-advised. If there is something you do not really understand ask someone who does, look at the big picture and then form your opinion.
  • Develop your critical thinking talents. Surf through the noise, bear in mind there is a strong current of misinformation and lies. Verify and evaluate any information before you form an opinion and trust your instincts.
  • Use the basic rules of logic. Check the consistency of a statement or belief, and take a good look at the validity of arguments.
  • Take a break if you feel overwhelmed. Get a snack or something to drink and take a couple of minutes to decompress.

Beware of false knowledge. It´s more dangerous than ignorance

George Berhard Shaw

What to read

  • Seek out reputable major publications and stations. Every news source is guilty of bias but not all news is created equal. Check on the reputation of the source for fact-checking, or does the source only represent the writer’s point of view. Outlets that comment on database news topics are not a source of objective information.
  • Pay attention to the source’s web address, avoid .com.co very often this address is used to copy reputable news outlets – some fake news outlets use this to deceive readers.
  • Read the “About us” section this should contain information on who runs the business, information on the leadership, PR -like information is not credible. Information on company ethics should be available especially for web-based news channels. The news outlet should give an address of their head quaters
  • Read beyond the headline, often they are highly suggestive and meant to draw the reader in, a teaser. Once you dive into the content you often end up with a serious lack of true content. Short articles, pieces with too few sources or small, chopped quotes, or self-referential articles are likely to be unreliable.
  • Opinions are not news they tend to differ and are individualized perspectives on a piece of news, but never an objective view on the news presented.
  • Read articles which challenge the way you think, like op-eds. Op-eds are not news but a personal opinion on a topic. I do agree it is so much less exhausting to read some things which confirm a bias you have(we are all biased). An article by an expert with a different perspective will challenge your normal thinking can help to question why you believe something. To truly understand the big picture being pushed outside the comfort zone from time to time is beneficial.
  • Follow independent non-profit news sources, like centers for investigative journalism, think tanks, or research organizations are excellent for unbiased and non-sensationalized news.
  • Focus on news outlets which offer “realistic optimism”. We need bare facts unfiltered by a “negativity bias” to form a valid opinion.

Speed Read

Reading and/or watching the news on a regular basis is a key instrument for making informed decisions

Establish a routine and make a conscious choice of what topics to read about

Use reputable outlets and check the sources they use

Social media are not a reliable source for factual news

Do refrain from hopping from one topic to another

After you have read/watched the news always ask what relevance this could have for yourself or your financial decision making

Before you start to feel overwhelmed, do a news detox once in a while

Avoid at all cost

  • Social media is not a place to get reliable news. Be very careful of making a judgement based on social media news, they have become a place for opinionated discord without any facts to back a claim. New technology has the ability to confuse and deceive us with a system based on algorithms. Content distributed via social media comes from varying sources and none of them can be held accountable for spreading disinformation. News content circulated within a social media group not only represents a certain opinion leaning towards a groups´ bias but is chosen by algorithms. Forming an opinion on something is thus made impossible.
  • Multiple forwarded post with “news content” is not news but a selective collection of personal opinions with too many added speculations while in transit.
  • Bloc social media news where you can not verify the sender or the sources.
  • Publishings from political parties are not objective news but filtered opinions suitable to a particular party.
  • Beware of political party-influenced news outlets. They do not provide news but opinions and can be manipulative.
  • Ignore polls. They are a most inaccurate and not a real barometer for thoughts and opinions of a society
  • Don´t focus on headlines. Headlines are not a source of information. Very often, a catchy headline is contradicted two-thirds down the article.
  • Be careful what you see in photos or videos. Any content can be Photoshopped and can be deceptive and highly manipulative
  • Beware of doomscrolling or being a follower of catastrophes. We consider good news boring, and journalists love us for this – bad news sells. Fearmongering news is in fashion these days, and most of these articles contain blatant misinformation. We seem to get gratification out of scrolling for the bad news. For some, it brings consolation or a feeling of safety because they feel ” on top of things” and in control. These people are fooling themselves as their true feeling are out of control. The long-term effect is serious and overwhelming, with known effects like anxiety and depression.
  • Do not overly rely on Google, especially their first page results. This will decrease your ability to conduct valid and meaningful research. Google rewards websites with the largest number of other websites linking to them, the use of currently popular keywords or the number of clicks they get; the content is irrelevant.
  • Stay away from gossip. Most of it is blatant lies, factually untrue, badly researched and violates the privacy of the protagonists.

How to combat news fatigue

  • Do a news detox. Have one day a week when you do not read or watch any news on television. If you find you’re suffering from news overwhelm, take a break and stop reading the news for a few days. Disable automatic news alerts on your cell phone and pad and do something relaxing instead.
  • Filter your inbox. You can redirect your news alert to a separate mailbox temporarily. Create a special ” news” inbox and read what’s in there when you feel relaxed and ready to process the news.
  • Focus on the things you want to know, and stick to your choice. Don’t scroll from one topic to the other. Choose news outlets that suit your special interest and block online news which is not of real interest to you.
  • Make a conscious choice about when, how and what kind of news you want to consume. 24-hour news channels are not a good choice.
  • Set a realistic time limit on reading or watching the news
  • Take your time to read or watch the news and digest the information thoroughly.

You, Not the Algorithm

The current infodemic is noisy, but not unbeatable. Use these shortlisted tips like a quiet editorial desk of your own: read/watch regularly on purpose, pick topics that matter to you, favour reputable outlets and their sources, and treat social media as commentary—not fact.

Stay with one thread instead of hopscotching headlines; then ask the only question that counts: Does this change anything for me or my financial decision-making? And when the feed starts to feel like a firehose, step away—take a brief detox and exercise better judgment. Information is a tool, not a theatre. Use it well, and it pays in the one currency that compounds fastest: decisions you actually stand by.

A last word before you close the tab:

Money sense is commonsense – cut through the nonsense

– yours, Harper

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