Our Virtual Classroom: Journalism Ethics During A Global Pandemic.
Voices of University of Arkansas Students Spread Across the Nation
April 7, 2020
Question of the Day: Pick one answer that best describes your media diet. Also: If you are able to send me a comment by e-mail, I would also appreciate knowing type of news you are consuming. Be as specific as possible. Also: Are there other information sources – videos, etc. – that have been helpful even if you would not classify them as serious news. As usual, I would also value anything you would like to share in the way of an update about what you are noticing now in your community during this time.
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My media diet is healthy. I’m not watching too much, and only put the local news on some nights to get a few updates. A lot of my news comes from Twitter updates as well, but sometimes it’s hard to know what is truly credible on Twitter if it’s not from actual news sources.
The biggest update in Orange County, CA is that they are saying it’s a good idea to wear masks, and some are saying laws will be made where people can only leave the house with a mask, but not the masks that health care professionals wear.
Emily Edwards
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I am constantly getting notifications sent to my phone from different news outlets. I have selected a few different sources that I have enjoyed in the past and I will read the headline when they come up. If it is something that interests me or relates to me, I will read the entire article. I also get my news from Twitter. I like being able to see how people are responding in the moment. I also talk to my friends and family about the news almost every day.
Chloe Brammell
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The type of news I am consuming is coming mostly from Fox News. My parents love Fox News, it’s on constantly while I’m at home in quarantine. There are some other sources that I am getting information from, although I wouldn’t say they are reliable by any means. I scroll Twitter constantly looking for information about COVID-19, even though it is probably inaccurate. For the most part though I’d say that my current media diet could be classified as making healthy choices. I try to listen to limited news, but from quality sources.
Mary Green
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I actually just started a social media fast, to try to block out some of the distractions and anxiety inducing things in the news and media. I decided to select “Overindulging- consuming more news more of the time” as my answer to today’s poll because for most of the month I have been overindulging. This month specifically I think it has been hard to not listen to the news or spend excess amounts of time on social media because all of the information that is being put out into the world. Now more than ever there is so much to look at, take part in, and catch up with. I don’t think the way that I was spending every waking minute addicted to my screen was healthy so I decided to do a social media fast, but I think there are definitely people out there who are probably more equipped to do so, and have better self control.
Olivia Ellis
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I said that I thought I had a healthy media diet. I know a lot of people right now who are consuming so much news from one source that they are swamped and unable to believe what other outlets say. I consume a lot of my news from the outlets I follow on social media, and I think I consume balanced news from around 5 outlets. I have found the daily news conferences from Governor Hutchinson to be the most helpful source for me because it is all specifically about the state of Arkansas.
Victoria Radke
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I described my news intake as “dieting.” I got tired of hearing non-stop coverage of the virus. It’s just too much and I think everyone needs to take a healthy break from hearing about the virus. I usually catch myself up on the virus at least once a week. My parents usually have some sort of news outlet on the TV so I hear what I need to when I’m walking through the house. When I catch myself up on the virus, I try to read multiple news sources to get different outlooks. I watch Good Morning America with my mom or ABC news. I also look at CNN and FOX just to see the different sides. For the virus, I have been watching the news more than I have been reading it. There is coverage on all local stations in Dallas and in the newspaper.
Nicole Trubisky
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In response to the poll question, I answered “overindulging,” because I have been spending what seems like all of my free time lately excessively scanning coronavirus related news articles, looking for statistics, projections, and any information I can possibly absorb. I mostly frequent the websites of the New York Times, Politico, the Washington Post, and the Kansas City Star. I also often open linked articles that I see on Twitter. I know that it is not very healthy behavior, because, while it is important to stay informed, consuming too much anxiety-inducing content is overwhelming and bad for mental health. I’ve been trying to set limits on the amount of time I spend online every day in order to curtail this poor practice.
Sarah Komar
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I answered the poll that I was making healthy choices in my media consumption, but I’m not sure this is the best answer. I thought both overindulging and fasting might also describe my media diet over the past two weeks. I feel like I have done both at different times.
I feel like my consumption of news has been a little spotty, but I usually feel like I should read more news anyway, just at normal times. I feel like I don’t often finish entire articles right now. I try to look at The New York Times and Washington Post. I have read updates from the CDC and the Fayetteville city. But I go through stretches, like a day or two, where I don’t look at the news.
I’ve been watching the press conferences of Governor Hutchinson, on 40/29 (I have usually watched the live stream on Facebook, actually) and President Trump, but again I don’t watch the whole thing often.
I have been on Facebook a LOT more than I usually am. If someone shares a story from the Huffington Post, or the BBC, or the local news I usually click on it and skim the story. I have never really felt that I am that good at just skimming things, but I have been doing that a lot more.
Through Facebook shares I discovered a site called Bored Panda that has funny things, and upbeat things. It also has some more serious things, I saw a photo collection there of Instagram photos that nurses around the world have shared of their bruised faces after wearing a mask for hours at a time.
I have not been looking at much news that is not about the coronavirus, or connected to social distancing. But yesterday I read an old article on the NRDC website about how toilet paper manufacturing is harming the Boreal forests in Canada. https://www.nrdc.org/stories/shoppers-guide-home-tissue-products
I saw that The Tiger King documentary was the number one watched show right. I think I saw something about in the New York Times after a friend on Facebook mentioned it. But I am not sure if I am remembering that right. I watched that show, it was really interesting.
I have not been out, except to go to the store a few times. My mom will not let my dad out of the house. My older sister lives in Tulsa, where they have a stay-at-home order. She seems to be doing well, though. My family is full of introverts. My five-year-old nephew is getting bored, though, last I heard.
As for the wider community: I have not been out at all for about a week, so I don’t have any firsthand observations. My boyfriend had to go out today, he said there were very little people on the road and parking lots were empty. The only cars he saw were really nice cars or delivery trucks. So I think most people are staying home as much as possible. Some of my Facebook friends have been out hiking.
Hillary Hollis
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I’m doing my overindulging in spurts … There are times where I find myself caught in the vortex of Twitter where I am sucked in for an hour straight reading stories, and then I catch myself overindulging. Then I’ll spend six hours off the grid, ignoring it all, only to end back on Twitter and the cycle continues. I’m hoping to eventually reach an equilibrium where I can take in the news in a more healthy manner. Looks like I’ll have plenty of time to reach that spot at this rate…
Matthew Moore
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I have mainly been getting my news from my local news station and what my parents have seen on the station. I also get the daily coronavirus updates from the New York Times. I am trying to stay informed, but I am also trying not to watch the news too much as that can make the whole situation more stressful. I am trying to know what is going on without focusing on the corona coverage constantly. My community seems to be doing a decent job locking down, but when I walk my dog outside some people are not very good at moving to the far side of the path like I always try to do. There are also some stores in my community that have been deemed essential like certain ice cream and clothing places that don’t really seem to be essential.
Courtney Sakmar
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I said that I am on a news “diet” of sorts. I say this because I am normally a news junkie, however, the amount of junk on the internet these days has made it difficult for me to want to stay connected. I also feel like there are so many news conferences going on, that even watching TV news is a bit overwhelming. I normally keep up with the Washington Post and the New York Times very regularly. I also listen to podcasts from NPR, Gimlet Media, and the New York Times. I try to keep my news diversified, but during this time, it’s hard not to get information from unreliable sources.
Katie Beth Nichols
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I think in a time where the news is dominated by COVID-19, it is good to do a self-check to see how much you are consuming. I know for myself, I gave up social media for Lent, so I haven’t been digesting much at all. The only news that I have been reading is the Skim Daily News, which come via email, and The New York Times daily email update that goes out. Each one of these email updates cover all the important news of the day. Majority of it, but not all of it, is covering COVID-19. It is refreshing when other bits of news/ articles are put into the mix. I think now is a good time to consume the necessary information about COVID-19, but take a cleanse from overindulging in it and letting it consume you. Reading too much of it can induce fear and anxiety which isn’t healthy!
Molly Johnson
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I try to consume at least an hour of news every day. I typically start off my day by listening to Up First on NPR. I find NPR to be one of the less biased news outlets. They are reliable and give up to date information to start my morning. Throughout the day I receive notifications on my phone from CNN and if I see a headline that is interesting or information I will click on the story and read more. Recently, I have also been listening to CNN’s Coronavirus Podcast: Fact vs Fiction. I find that it keeps me up to date on the pandemic and well informed as I go about my daily life. I think that I have been more consistent in my news intake ever since the Coronavirus pandemic began. I rarely miss a morning of Up First. Staying informed now is more important than ever in my opinion.
Heidi Kirk
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For me, a lot of the news I consume is daily news podcasts (The Journal from the Wall Street Journal and The Daily from the New York Times are two of my favorites.)
I like these because I am able to workout or to clean or do chores while listening, but I also appreciate the in-depth analysis of situations, and how they get deeper than just well known info to find out the real insights from the stories.
Right now, with nothing to do and a kind of low-grade anxiety building around me as I am WFH, I have been consuming so much news to try to learn what I can. To be honest, I am not sure it is helping, but I do feel well informed.
Garrett Smith
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