When the ten o’clock news doesn’t exactly fit your sleeping schedule and you don’t fancy paying for the paper, keeping up with current affairs can seem like a chore, especially when the news is so bleak. However it is imperative that students maintain an understanding of what’s going on in the world. As cliche as it sounds democracy, and the future is in many ways counting on our generation to turn things around. Whether you are interested in tackling the climate crisis or improving political processes, having opinions on current affairs equips you for the real world and generally makes you more interesting to converse with. A quick skim through of the headlines only takes 5 minutes and keeps you well connected. I break down the best ways to keep up with breaking stories based on your learning style.
The Audio Learner
If you soak up information from hearing it, listening to a short briefing on Spotify whilst you brush your teeth is a great habit to begin. The BBC, The Times, and The Telegraph to name just a few post quick 2 minute round ups twice a day.
The Short Attention Span
If, like me, you are slightly addicted to social media and (perhaps because of this) have an embarrassingly short attention span, platforms such as Instagram and Twitter can deliver the news straight to your scrolling. I have a separate Instagram account that I use only to follow news outlets and a few politicians. Most days I’ll simply tap through stories to catch the headlines and then click through to read any stories that interest me in full. I tend to mix in a few more lighthearted news outlets like @happynews.today and Buzzfeed alongside the broadsheet papers to keep things more upbeat.
The Reader
If you are keen to read news stories from a variety of perspectives and outlooks without hitting a paywall every 5 minutes, news aggregators like Flipboard provide an easy way to compile an array of interesting stories. Reading news stories from different sites with different agendas and political persuasions is crucial to avoid becoming trapped in an echo chamber of one-sided news.
The Visual Learner
If you have tried listening to news briefings on Spotify and found yourself spacing out, yet your schedule doesn’t allow you to regularly watch the news on TV easily, YouTube is your best friend. All the major news broadcasters post clips complete with photos and visuals of the news everyday.
The Opinionated One
If you are eager to explore what your peers think of current affairs, your University student paper, or student led papers like Freshered (hint, hint), are a great way of catching stories about current affairs, popular culture, sport, music and television.