So, I know we’ve talked a little about this before, but I figured maybe it would make good sense to provide a more thorough list of where I get my daily/weekly news. Remembering as well that I am a Canadian, so most of my sources are Canadian news sources.
The Globe and Mail App
I use the Globe and Mail App as my go to article and breaking news notifier. I have notifications set up, so when there is breaking news, I get it as soon as an article is released. This is generally how I get my news on demand. I also use it as a general daily reader, to explore what is going on in Canada, the United States, and the rest of the world. They also additionally have a handy feature that allows you to listen to most articles.
realtalkingfish (BikiniBottomNews – on Instagram)
Now hear me out, I wouldn’t say I purposefully use this Instagram profile as a news source, but I have definitely gotten breaking news from the realtalkingfish before receiving a notification from the Globe and Mail. Since the realtalkingfish is generally more American focused I will say that it is generally more timely when it comes to American breaking news. While I wouldn’t necessarily rely on this source solely, it has honestly proven consistently useful. This one is particularly of interest to me, because it is clearly a parody of traditional news sources, yet provides generally accurate and timely notifications.
Podcasts
World Report (from the CBC)
This podcast comes our daily, and provides a brief touch on the main stories of the day. There is also a fair amount of international coverage. I listen to this podcast almost every morning.
At Issue (from the CBC)
This podcast comes out once a week and includes 4-5 panelists who breakdown various political topics across the country. These include federal, provincial, and even international relations. I listen to this podcast weekly, and can really appreciate the panelists having cordial conversations, despite often having different stances on the various topics.
Front Burner (from the CBC) & The Decibel (From the Globe and Mail)
These podcasts come out daily, covering timely topics of the week. Generally, they have the host and one or two interviewees. Sometimes the interviewees are fellow journalists, or subject matter experts. We have also seen some politicians come on both shows as well. I listen to these podcasts at least once a week each, but I typically select them base on the topics that are more interesting to me. Sometimes I will skip a few, or even listen to multiple episodes back-to-back in one go, rather than daily.
The House (from the CBC)
This podcast comes our twice a week, and is a recent addition for me. It covers political topics a little more closely than the other podcasts, and really dives into Parliament and the parties themselves. I will say, I don’t frequently listen to the podcast, but I do think it offers some excellent coverage. So, if there’s a more significant political row or event, then I’m more inclined to give it a listen.
Watching
I think we all know that I watch a few comedy news sources online at this point. This includes Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, and Late Night with Seth Meyers. Now there was a point in time, when I first started this blog, where I was watching all of these shows consistently, as in almost daily. But I have since cut back, because I did come to realize they often did talk about the same things. Which is fine, but I can only hear so much about the American government doing wild things in a week. I’ve generally cut it back to watching the Daily Show once a week, and listening to Colbert or Meyer’s monologues while doing another task (like cooking). They provide ample entertainment, as well as some solid information on the going-ons in the United States.
Overall
You can see I use a handful of news sources for daily/weekly news. I will say when it comes to media literacy, I could certainly diversify a little more. You can see that my podcasts heavily favour the CBC (4 to 1), my written content relies purely on the Globe and Mail, and my watched content relies mostly on comedy news networks. To be clear, this is not an exhaustive list, I will and do consume news from other sources, including the BBC and Al Jazerra (as examples), when it comes to international topics, I think I’m not getting proper coverage of. I’ll even visit one off sources as well, or other reputable newspapers to read a story too, they just aren’t consistently in my rotation.
I believe having a robust and varying news ecosystem is important, and I, like many people, do need to expand my horizons.
Comedy Communications 