Are You A Savvy News Consumer?

Introduction

The proliferation of news distributors and the multiplication of social media platforms that purport to be legitimate news sources makes the goal of truth-finding in news harder than ever. This conversation with trained journalists can help you sort it out.

About our guests

Leisa Richardson caught the news bug as a teen ager and has been reporting, teaching, and leading reporters ever since. She is the executive editor of The State Journal-Register in Springfield, Illinois.

As a student, Marcella Baietto reported on border and immigration issues in Arizona before coming to WICS News 20 in Springfield in 2020. She now reports for the CBS affiliate in Philadelphia.

Takeaways

• Knowing more about the people who make decisions that impact life in your community is the prime reason for supporting local news.
• Support local journalists who are “the backbone” of national news stories.
• Know the general perspective of the news outlets that produce the stories you read.
• Pay attention to the type and quality of news sources quoted in a story you read or watch.
• Follow reporters you learn to know and trust.
• Realize that news outlets pay attention to your clicks and will feed you the type of news you consistently engage with.
• Understand the context of television news. If the story was not produced locally, was there an actual reporter behind the story, or is it a “video news release” produced by a self-interested industry or organization?
• News aggregation sites like Yahoo or Apple News do not produce news, but pull the news they feed you from other sources. Pay attention to those sources for a better understanding of context and biases.
• Do your own internet search of news sources to learn more about their interests and biases.

Listen 

Our guests shared their top-three favorite songs of all time. Here they are.

Marcella’s favorites

Any song by Miley Cyrus

Vienna, Billy Joel

White Tiger, Izzy Bizu and Cat Carpenters

Leisa’s favorites

What's going on, by Marvin Gaye

Never too much, by Luther Vandross

Flashlight, by Parliament Funkadelic

Resources

News Literacy Project

How to consume news while maintaining your sanity

Learn about Dominicans and Truth from Ann Garrido, D.Min.