I consumed news compulsively for six years, from 2015 to 2021. The consumption was the way I stayed informed. The consumption was also what was slowly damaging my mental health. The damage became impossible to ignore in 2021. The ignoring ended when I deleted the news apps from my phone. The deletion was the start of a two-year experiment. The experiment changed more than I expected.
What I mean by “news”
The clarification matters.
What I quit: Breaking news, political news, celebrity news, social media feeds, the daily newspaper, the 24-hour news channels, news podcasts, news notifications.
What I kept: Long-form journalism (New Yorker, Atlantic, The Economist weekly, specific columnists I trust), books on current events, conversations with friends about what is happening, occasional weekly news summaries.
The distinction is between the constant drip of information and intentional consumption. The drip was the issue. The intentional consumption is what replaced the drip.
The mental cost I was paying
What I started noticing.
Anxiety. The baseline anxiety of the news consumer is higher than the non-consumer. The baseline comes from constant exposure to threats, crises, and conflicts. The exposure shapes the worldview. The worldview is what produces the anxiety.
Doomscrolling. The doomscrolling habit was an hour per day on my phone. The hour was not productive. The hour was a form of self-soothing. The soothing was not working.
Political fatigue. I was following politics closely enough to have opinions on every development. The opinions were not actionable. The opinions were just consuming energy. The energy could have gone elsewhere.
Comparison to others. The constant news exposure creates a sense of being behind. The behind-feeling is what makes people anxious. The anxiety is what makes people consume more news. The cycle is the trap.
Difficulty focusing. The attention span was fragmented. The fragmentation came from constant context switching. The context switching was the news.
Trouble sleeping. The anxiety and the late-night scrolling were affecting sleep. The sleep was worse. The worse sleep was affecting mood. The mood was affecting everything.
The shift
What I did instead.
Step 1: Delete the apps. I deleted Twitter, news apps, and any social media that was mostly news. The deletion removed the easy access. The easy access was most of the consumption.
Step 2: Replace the habit. I replaced the news-checking habit with reading. The reading was books, long-form essays, and The Economist weekly. The reading was intentional. The reading was what I actually wanted to do.
Step 3: Schedule information. I designated Saturday morning as my “current events” time. The time is 90 minutes. The time is what I use to read the week’s summaries. The summaries are The Economist, a long-form podcast, and a few trusted columnists.
Step 4: Conversations, not feeds. I asked friends to tell me when something actually mattered. The mattering is what the friends decide. The friends are my filter. The filter is what I trust.
Step 5: Boundaries with current events. I do not check news during the workday. The workday is for work. The work is what pays for my life. The life deserves attention.
What changed
The mental shifts after two years.
Anxiety reduced significantly. The baseline anxiety dropped within a month. The drop was noticeable. The drop continued over the next six months. The continued drop was what produced the change.
Sleep improved. The sleep improvements were real within two weeks. The improvements came from the late-night scrolling stopping. The stopping was the change.
Focus improved. The ability to focus for longer than 30 minutes came back. The coming back took about three months. The coming back was the most surprising benefit. The returning me was the value.
Time recovered. I recovered roughly 1 hour per day. The hour was previously news consumption. The hour is now reading, walking, or thinking. The thinking is what makes the hour valuable.
Conversations changed. I have less to say about current events. The saying-less is what people notice. The noticing is sometimes awkward. The awkward is fine. The fine is what the experiment is for.
Relationships improved. I am more present in conversations. The presence comes from not being distracted by what is happening on my phone. The distraction was the issue. The issue is resolved.
Politics changed. I am less polarized in my political thinking. The polarization came from constant exposure to extreme voices. The extreme voices were the news. The news is what I quit. The polarization reduced.
What I did not lose
A few things I expected to lose but did not.
Informed citizenship. I am still informed. The informed-ness comes from long-form journalism and books. The sources are better. The sources are what I trust. The trust is what matters.
Awareness of major events. I still know when major events happen. The knowing comes from friends and the Saturday morning summaries. The summaries are enough. The enough is what I need.
Critical thinking. My critical thinking improved. The improvement came from not being exposed to constant framing. The framing is what the news does. The doing is what I escaped.
Conversational topics. I have different conversational topics now. The topics are books, cooking, travel, ideas. The topics are more interesting. The interesting is what I value.
What I still do
A short list.
Read The Economist weekly. The magazine is what gives me a global perspective. The magazine is well-edited. The magazine is what I trust for international news.
Read 3-5 books per year on current events. The books are the deeper treatment. The treatment is what I want for topics I care about.
Listen to a weekly long-form podcast. The podcast is what I listen to during walks. The walks are when I have time. The time is what makes the podcast work.
Talk to friends. The friends are my filter. The filter is what I trust. The trust is what matters.
Check specific columnists. The columnists are people I trust. The trust is built over years. The columnists are what I read when I want analysis.
What I do not do
A short list.
No news apps. The apps are what produced the consumption. The consumption was the problem. The problem is solved.
No breaking news. The breaking news is what produces anxiety. The anxiety is what I avoided. The avoidance is the discipline.
No social media feeds. The feeds are what produced the comparison. The comparison was the trap. The trap is escaped.
No news notifications. The notifications were the interruptions. The interruptions were the issue. The issue is solved.
No 24-hour news channels. The channels are what produce the anxiety. The anxiety is what I avoided.
The social cost
The part I underestimated.
People ask if I am uninformed. The asking is what some people do. The asking is usually polite. The asking is what I answer briefly. The briefly is what works.
I have less to say at dinner parties. The less-to-say is what people notice. The noticing is sometimes awkward. The awkward is fine.
Some people treat me as less serious. The treating-less-seriously is what happens. The happening is a small social cost. The small-cost is what the experiment is for.
I have missed things. The missing is what the missing means. The missing is sometimes awkward. The awkward is the trade-off.
The social cost is real. The social cost is manageable. The social cost is what I accepted when I quit the news. The acceptance is what makes the experiment work.
The honest summary
Quitting the news was one of the most impactful changes I have made for my mental health. The change was not ideological. The change was practical. The change came from noticing the cost of consumption.
The benefits are real. The benefits are: less anxiety, better sleep, more focus, more time, more presence in conversations, less polarization.
The costs are real. The costs are: less to say at dinner parties, missing some things, being treated as less serious by some people. The costs are manageable. The costs are what I accepted.
The shift is not for everyone. The shift works for me because I value mental clarity more than being on top of every development. The value is what the experiment is for.
The recommendation, if you want to try: delete the apps first. The deletion is the easiest step. The step reveals how much of your day was news. The revelation is what makes the rest possible.
The two-year experiment is now my permanent practice. The practice is what I recommend. The practice is what works.
What the practice looks like now
A typical week in my current news diet.
Monday: I read the weekly email from Politico Europe (free). The email gives me the EU policy news in 10 minutes. The 10 minutes is what I spend. The spend is the budget.
Tuesday: I read one long-form essay from a Substack writer I subscribe to. The essay takes 20 minutes. The essay is what I think about during my walk.
Wednesday: Nothing. The nothing is the practice. The practice is what most days are.
Thursday: I listen to one episode of a long-form podcast during a walk. The podcast is The Daily Stoic or the Invest Like the Best interview. The interview is what I learn from.
Friday: I read The Economist weekly from cover to cover. The magazine takes 2-3 hours. The hours are my “news Saturday morning” equivalent, just split into a Friday afternoon ritual. The ritual is what I look forward to.
Saturday: Conversation with friends. The conversation is where most current events come up. The friends are my filter.
Sunday: A book chapter or two on current events. The chapters are what I am reading for depth.
The weekly time spent on news is roughly 5 hours. The 5 hours is down from the 15+ hours I was spending when I had the news apps. The reduction is 10 hours per week. The 10 hours is what I now spend on other things.
