When I was a little kid, I used to run around the neighborhood with my friends and pretend I was a local news reporter. I thought I was cool and official with my pretend microphone.
“This just in, live from our cul-de-sac, Tommy has fallen off his bike and skinned his knee. His mother raced to the scene of the accident with bandages and peroxide. His sister reports he quickly recovered with a popsicle treat.”
The evening news was a big deal in American homes for decades, and for many it still is. Others still get their headlines from the newspaper as they sip their morning coffee. In more recent times, people have turned to social media to find out what’s going on in the news. Facebook even has a menu for news headlines to make it easier for people to scroll the top stories.
The Role of the Media
The media has an important job. They really do. Being educated and informed about what’s going on in our world, nation, and community around us is important. To be most sensitive, empathetic, and compassionate to others, we need to understand what they (and we) are going through.
But, is the media only vested in providing clear, factual, unbiased, straight forward news? Or are there other agendas? Hang with me for a second. I am by no means trying to sound like a conspiracy theorist and I am in NO way making any type of political statement. What I am saying, however, is that certain headlines sell.
Remember the phrase “sex sells?” It’s a marketing idea where sexualized content attracts consumers. For the media, fear and panic sells. Television stations, newspapers, and other forms of media are NOT non-profit organizations. They are FOR profit. They have salaries to pay and buildings to maintain, and this is done by getting higher ratings. Their news stories and headlines need to invoke a particular response from viewers like YOU in order to keep you tuned in to their channel, buying their paper, and spending time on their social channel. This is how they achieve the ratings they need to make the profit they desire.
Again, yes, the media’s job is to inform viewers. And I am grateful we have that. I am simply pointing out that they must perform this job in a way that yields the results most beneficial to their business accounts…not your mental health.
The Media’s Impact on Your Mental Health
At some point, it’s no longer about reporting the news and instead about keeping people addicted to the news cycle. We’ve seen this first hand with the media coverage of the recent pandemic and racial protests. We are exposed to coverage on a daily, hourly, and even minute by minute basis. What impact does this have on your mental health?
Constant exposure to negative information can impact your brain. When we perceive or experience something as a threat (i.e. civil unrest, widespread viruses, economic upsets, political division, and everything else going on right now), our brains activate the fight or flight instinct, and our bodies follow accordingly.
The negative headlines making the news right now can activate the sympathetic nervous system and this results in a release of stress hormones called adrenaline and cortisol. Overexposure to these headlines and an abundance of our bodies’ reactions to them can result in a slew of mental (and ultimately physical) consequences like anxiety, depression, fatigue, and disruptions to healthy sleeping patterns.
To put it plainly, you can only watch or hear so much bad news before your mood, perspective, and general well-being are negatively impacted. And as is the nature of the unending news cycle, they keep you coming back for more. Truthfully, how many of you are scrolling social media or watching the news to find out, “What’s going to happen next? How much worse can it get?” Reporters and writers know this and they are happy to deliver the next carefully worded headline to keep you tuned in.
Tips to Protect Your Well-Being From the Media
Yes, staying informed is responsible and important to your safety. However, it is also necessary that you find a moderate balance of staying informed while protecting you and your loved ones’ mental health. Here are a few tips for navigating these waters during this tumultuous media saturated time.
- Cut off the Background Noise
After you’ve finished watching or streaming your news stories, turn them off. Leaving them running in the background as you complete other tasks is both distracting and emotionally daunting. Some health organizations recommend limiting your social media and news exposure to just 30-45 minutes per day. Find the time needed for you to absorb necessary information, and then cut it off. A plus to this is that you’ll find yourself with more hours in the day to complete other tasks and you’ll have more time and attention for your family.
- Designate a Time To Share Concerns
A common approach to managing anxiety is to schedule a time each day to face your worries. Use this designated time to face your concerns head on. Watch the news, scroll social media, and acknowledge your fears and worries. Then address them. Choose a time (not right before bed) to do this. When you are finished, put it down. Set down the phone, turn off the tv, and release the weight of the worry. Doing this at a scheduled time each day will condition your brain to a new routine and eventually allow you the ability to release your worries more easily.
- Take a Quick Pre-News Check
Before you expose yourself to news headlines or social media, take a note of how you’re currently feeling. Are you hungry? Tired? Already upset about something else? Check for things that impact how you receive bad news. If you’re already pessimistic, consider reducing your consumption of news for the day or watching it at a later time.
- Consider Your Sources
It’s always best to limit your media exposure to credible and reliable news sources. This may mean the article Aunt Betty shared on Facebook may not be the best article to read. Do your research. Fact check. Look for sources which provide balanced perspectives.
- Have a Recap Source
If the news is causing all sorts of negative emotions for you or triggering your anxiety or depression, it may be best to cease exposure for a bit. Find a close friend who is willing to filter headlines for you. Their job is not to skew, water down, or share their opinion. Instead, ask for quick updates and factual highlights. Get updates a couple times a week and then be done with the news. If you don’t want to have a person for that, consider finding a brief weekly podcast or newsletter from a reliable source which recaps the latest news stories.
- Respond to Bad News with Something Positive
After you’ve consumed the media you’ve allowed for the day, plan to do something positive to offset it. That might be taking a walk, calling a friend, working on a favorite hobby, reading from a news source focused on ONLY good news, or prayer. We need healthy doses of good to help us keep perspective and remain hopeful.
Finally, if you’re overwhelmed by what’s going on in the news or on social media right now, a trained counselor can offer help. We are more than a listening and understanding ear. We offer effective practices for helping you take control of your mental and emotional well being so you can live whole and mended – despite what’s going on around you. Call me today and let’s get started!
– Joel