Ask HN: How can I get better at reading news? | Hacker News Reader

Ask HN: How can I get better at reading news?

6 pointskevando5 comments

I like the concept of the newspaper. You had to physically hold it in a place that required room because the paper was so large. Now I'm literally using two devices at work, connected to a constant stream of information and I end up reading news every hour.

How do you guys manage this stream, but still stay caught up?

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A few years ago, when I was similarly motivated I subscribed to the print edition of The Economist. I made a point of reading each issue cover to cover, which required a determined effort to complete every week. I don't know if I was ever "caught up" but I felt more informed and if something didn't make it into the magazine, then that was a reasonable proxy for it lacking great importance.

The disclaimer is that these days I just accept that it is impossible to keep up with things I'm not all that interested in, the things I can do little about, and the things someone wants me to be outraged over.

Good luck.

This may not answer your question, but is still relevant: http://www.aaronsw.com/weblog/hatethenews

I subscribe to an email newsletter by a major German news-website (www.dw.com). Every morning and evening, I get the most important news delivered to my inbox, one paragraph per item. It takes about a minute to scan and I am "up to date" on what's happening. If there is an item that really interests me, I'll look it up on the BBC. Of course this newsletter doesn't give me any kind of depth or breadth of coverage, but then, how often do you really need that?

> I end up reading news every hour.

If you find that this is a compulsion, you can use https://freedom.to/ to block yourself from it. It costs a very small amount of money that is far cheaper than losing your job.

Physical newspaper and magazine delivery services still exist.

1) You cannot be "caught up".

2) What are you looking to get out of the news?

Accept 1, answer 2 - you'll be most of the way there.

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