Reject “Comfort Media”
If you’ve heard it before it’s probably a waste of time
We derive a visceral thrill and probably a dopamine rush from reading things that affirm what we already believe. This is especially true of emotional subjects like religion and politics. “Opinion porn,” if I may, delivers the same kind of repetitive thrill as binge eating. It provides the head-nodding jolt of seeing your imagined adversaries taken down and your team score another touchdown.
Beware of this pattern. The repeat-intake of opinioneering stifles original thought even as you believe you are receiving more and more insight. (Hint: insight doesn’t arrive in quantity.) In actuality, bingeing on opinion-affirming media is an emotional and physical fix more than an intellectual one, even though the tools are words, facts, and arguments. It is ersatz learning, no more nutritious to your intellect than consuming a bag of chips is to your body — and probably with equivalent health costs over time.
The thrill of familiar victory, the smackdown of the other side drives millions of clicks to political blogs and online journals. Yes, some facts and news bits get dispensed along the way; but the real draw is the feeling you get when once again pulling the polemical slots handle and re-upping the excitement that accompanies being right.
