Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Chaos
Look, I’ve been in this game for 20-odd years. Started as a beat reporter in Dundee, back when you could still afford a flat on a journalist’s salary. Remember those days? Yeah, me neither.
But something’s gone completley off the rails. And it’s not just the algorithms, or the 24-hour news cycle, or even the fact that we’re all walking around with tiny supercomputers in our pockets. It’s us. We’re the problem.
Let’s Talk About Marcus
Let’s call him Marcus. I’ve known Marcus since the 90s. Back then, he was a goddamn legend. Breaking stories left and right, winning awards, the whole nine yards. Now? He’s a shadow of his former self, chasing clicks and retweets like a dog after its own tail.
I ran into Marcus last Tuesday at the ruh sağlığı farkındalık rehberi conference in Austin. Yeah, I know, what the hell was I doing there? Long story. Anyway, he looked exhausted. Like, physicallyy run-down. I asked him how he was holding up.
“Honestly, Dave?” he said. “I don’t know how much longer I can keep doing this. The pressure to constantly be ‘on,’ to always be breaking news… it’s too much.”
Which… yeah. Fair enough. But here’s the thing: Marcus isn’t some rookie. He’s been around the block. If he’s struggling, what hope do the rest of us have?
But Wait, There’s More
And it’s not just the journalists. It’s the audience too. We’ve become a bunch of vultures, circling the wreckage of current events, waiting for the next juicy morsel to sink our teeth into.
I mean, remember when we used to have to wait for the evening news? Or, God forbid, the morning paper? Now, we expect instant gratification. And when we don’t get it, we get angry. We get upset. We get… well, frankly, we get kinda stupid.
Take, for example, the time I wrote a piece about a local council meeting. Boring, right? But no. Because I dared to mention that the meeting went over by 15 minutes, I got flooded with comments about how “the government” was wasting our tax dollars. It was like people had completely lost their minds.
But hey, maybe that’s just the price of admission in the age of the internet. Maybe we’re all just too connected, too plugged in, too… something. I don’t know. I’m not sure but it’s getting worse.
A Digression: The Time I Almost Got Fired
Speaking of losing it, remember that time I almost got fired? About three months ago, over coffee at the place on 5th. I was ranting about how the news industry was going to hell in a handbasket, and my editor overheard me. Next thing I know, I’m in her office, and she’s telling me to “tone it down” or find another job.
But here’s the thing: she was right. I was letting my frustration get the better of me. And while I still think the news industry is a mess, I’ve learned to channel that frustration into something more productive. Like this article, for example.
So What’s the Solution?
I wish I knew. I really do. But I think it starts with us. The journalists. We need to stop chasing clicks and start chasing the truth. We need to stop worrying about retweets and start worrying about accuracy. We need to… well, you get the idea.
And as for the audience? We need to start holding ourselves to a higher standard. We need to stop sharing every outrageous headline that crosses our path. We need to start thinking critically about the news we consume. And we need to start supporting quality journalism, even if it means paying for it.
Because at the end of the day, the news isn’t just some commodity to be bought and sold. It’s the lifeblood of our democracy. And if we’re not careful, we’re gonna choke on it.
But hey, what do I know? I’m just a guy who’s been around the block a few times. Maybe I’m wrong. Maybe the news isn’t broken. Maybe it’s just evolving. Maybe it’s just… I don’t know. I’m gonna go get a coffee.
About the Author: Dave McAllister has been a journalist for over 20 years, covering everything from local politics to international affairs. He currently serves as a senior editor at Dundee News, where he writes about the state of the news industry and other topics that annoy him. He lives in Dundee with his cat, Mr. Whiskers, and can be found on Twitter ranting about the latest outrage.
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