The question I have is simply this, where do you get your news?

For me, I have poor taste when it comes to news and media outlets. Much of what I see, hear and read for news is unverifiable, prejudiced, and unfiltered.

Let me explain.

I don’t read NYT or WSJ. I don’t watch Fox or CNN. I don’t visit MSNBC or Yahoo News. I don’t subscribe to UNZ or Daily Wire. I avoid spotify and youtube. So where do I get my news?

Let me just say this, I get my news from the worst of places; I have for years. And no, it isn’t Facebook, Twitter, Parlor, Gab, Instagram, LinkedIn, TikTok, or Snapchat either.

This news source I visit is the most hateful, biased, untrustworthy, and often revolting place to get the news. And yet, most of the above outlets get their leads from this source.

Before I simply tell you where, I want to consider the follow analysis of markets.

Analysis of Outdoor & Virtual Markets

I want you to look at the following pictures for a moment and then I want you to answer the following question, “Where do you spend your work day?”

If the answer is you work in an outdoor market, than your perspective on the world is influenced by other human market participants. Their opinions, their tastes and their behavior determine how you interact with customers, vendors, and administration in the market. All of which are very real, observable, and interactable.

The outdoor marketplace is a highly unfilterable place. Market participation is regulated by local custom, laws, manners and tradition.

If your answer is you work at a computer, than your perspective on the world is influenced by non-human implmentations of market participants: algorithms, user roles, and digital content. All opinions, tastes and behavior virtually represented determine how you interact with the representation of customers, vendors and administration of the digital marketplace. All of which are virtual, anonymous or obfuscated.

The virtual marketplace is a highly filterable place. Market participation is regulated by system code, user interfaces, and account status.

News Found in Outdoor & Virtual Markets

So what does the difference in outdoor or virtual markets have to do with my getting the news? Well, I’ll tell you.

When you participate in outdoor markets, one such topic that comes up while participating in them is the news. And the news is entirely independant of the unfiltered nature of the outdoor market. Racism, sexism, homophobia, xenophobia and all other prejudices and preferences will be present in the market, and they will be expressed subtly and explicitly.

When you participate in a virtual market, one such topic that comes up is the news. The news will be entirely dependant on the filtered nature of a virtual market. Prejudices and preferences will be filtered by the constraints of digital content, algorithms and user interfaces. And as such, market participant expression will be supressed implicitly and explicitly.

While news in outdoor markets is less verifiable, it is generally more reflective of the moods, opinions, and sentiments of the market. Conversely, news that takes place in virtual markets is more verifiable, and yet is often reflexive of sysadmins, power users, and bots.

Your Preference for News

So coming back to the question, where do you get your news?

For me, I prefer to get it from visiting places, watching what’s going on and asking others. I find it highly rewarding compared to visiting websites, watching content and posting comments. 

It bears repeating, where do you get your news?