News Blues

From infectious diseases to terrorist groups and natural disasters, the deathly serious horrors plaguing our world are far from scarce. As college students facing the inevitable fate of shortly becoming “real people,” we can’t help but feel obligated to understand “real world problems.”

And we should! However, thinking about all of the problems around the world often complicates and overwhelms our already overwhelming student lives. For whatever reason students avoid the news, out of fear or disinterest, a lack of understanding now will only worsen the brutal transition of becoming a “real person.”

In media today, the reliance on tangible newspapers and magazines has drastically declined. This is great news for us claiming the status of “not a real person.” Why? Because the emergence of differing news outlets has developed based on two of our favorite hooks: free and convenient.  

I have found the key to keeping up with current events is to find a news outlet that appeals to your interests. If you’re someone who has a strong political affiliation but you don’t have time to watch FoxNews or MSNBC, trying downloading the respective source’s apps. Many online publications offer apps that provide online articles and notifications of major news happenings.

If you are like me, and the news sometimes gets you a little down in the dumps or simply becomes too complicated to follow, try signing up for daily or weekly newsletters. I receive a daily news update from the NY Times with a brief overview of New York, national and global news, as well as an often upbeat interest piece.

For those of you desperately struggling to become a “real person” to the point where you have to ask your friends things like, “Is Ebola a new music festival, I heard its coming to Dallas?”, or “Is ISIS the new international student in your French class?” there is even a news outlet for you. The Skimm or what I refer to as my “sorority girl news letter” breaks down daily current evens into a conversational and comical listing. 

The Skimm allows you to avoid dealing with the rhetoric of a professional journalist, by starting sections off with a commonly asked question you’d hear around the lunch table.

The news beyond the gates can make us want to sink further into the bubble of a college campus. But in reality, this will only leave us majorly shocked and unprepared for the future. As Fordham students, we are called to promote the cura personalis reminding us not only of our duties at students but as “real people” as well.