I want to share all the tricks I’ve learned as a political science/International Studies student on staying up to date with the crazy global world of news and politics. I have to stay current on all areas of media in order to keep up with my peers and get the most from class discussions, and in the fast paced technological world, it's hard to dedicate time to reading about all the events occurring in a day. For my purposes I mostly use online news outlets to keep myself up to date, because like most people, I don’t have time to read tons of articles and newspapers. Since I’ve had to learn how to stay up to date through trial and error, I want to share with you what has worked for me. Here is just a few tips and tricks for staying up to date even if you’re busy.
- Don’t sign up for everything
Sometimes when you’re trying to catch up with news, you might think it's a good idea to sign up for lots and lots of news networks and newspapers that will send you thousands of emails a day. Unless you are devoting your life to politics and international affairs, there is no reason to do that to yourself. Which leads into my second tip... - Create a balanced input of information
Choose three news outlets. I like to create a balanced network of information, usually by subscribing to a news network that is neutral, leftist, and rightist. This helps me find what the "truth" is and what opinion I will form. It's also helpful to download a few news apps that will send you notifications when an article has been written about an important news occurrence. - Wake up and read from bed
I usually wake up and either read news before breakfast or right before class. I’ve found that in the 5-10 minutes that I’m in the classroom waiting for the professor to show up, I can read one to three articles. However, if you aren’t a morning person, it might be easier to read before you go to bed. - Follow the big five
USA, Russia, China, UK, France: Follow their news first because it's usually the most impactful, especially on the global scale. This isn’t a note to forget all other countries, but usually these countries can’t stay out of everyone else’s business so you’ll hear about other countries through the big five. P.S the big five are the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council. - Spread your knowledge
Sharing the news with others helps with memorization. It also makes you seem smart when you know about things that are happening in the world. Global news knowledge also helps people understand that, especially if you are a millennial, that your opinions are valid.
P.S.
These are just my tips to getting informed quickly, they might not work for you but I hope they are at least helpful. Also, if you really don’t have any time, a great source of information is theSkimm. They compile information daily and email you daily at about 7 a.m. Eastern Standard time and are a simple way to get a bunch of different sources and stories simultaneously.
