Watching the current political cycle unfold, it appears that conservatives and liberals can only agree on one thing: There is a problem with current mainstream media. These conversations typically highlight a trait engrained in historic American behavior…Political skepticism. Political skepticism often inspires rampant frustration. Inspired by lack of understanding, there is a false belief that frustration has driven Millennials away from the political process, leaving them uninformed. However, this notion could not be further from the truth.
Even with Millennial engagement on the rise, the nightly news has seen a majority of young viewers walk away from their television sets. This isn’t to say that knowledge of current events has decreased. Millennials are informed, but it’s without the help of major media conglomerates who control what is broadcasted.
After wading through inflated negative claims about my own generation, the data has a more positive story. Millennials are actively engaging in the political process, with Forbes reporting that 69% of Millennials get the news daily and 85% say that keeping up with the news is at least somewhat important to them.
Often chastised for being connected to their cell phones, Millennials can analyze The Daily Beast’s Daily Ten list, check the Twitter feed of any major news outlet, listen to a podcast on current events, and that’s before even looking through the news coverage their friends are sharing on Facebook. Older generations aren’t berated and generalized for reading the newspaper, and it’s time to see smart phones for what they really are: the reinvention of the newspaper.
The landscape of media is in a period of transition, but this is not news to anyone. Amongst countless other publications, Odyssey’s entire publication is only published online. Foregoing print media has not put limits on their audience however. There is an 82% chance that you are accessing this article on a mobile device, and if you choose to share it, most likely you have at least two social media platforms to do so on. The internet gives Millennials immense opportunity to engage and stay informed, and study after study shows that it’s working.
Noted as an unlimited resource, however I am not slow to admit that using the internet as a news source has its unique quirks. I’m not naive that sifting through the spewing’s of ignorant trolls and cat videos while online is quite a task. The internet gives Millennials (and everyone else) the opportunity to access reliable and unbiased news, but it is not without effort.
My own efforts to stay responsibly informed through reliable news sources has inspired me to compile some of what I’ve learned over time. With the help of research and input from well rounded media literate people, next week I will publish a list of news sources that have been extensively evaluated and vetted by your fellow American skeptic, me.
Stay tuned for Part II of Millennials And The Media: A Look Into Unaffiliated News Sources
