A Pillar of our Democracy has eroded. And we did nothing.
Here's how you can contribute to your democracy by paying up for the news.
“The news” is defined as “newly received or noteworthy information, especially about recent or important events.” In this piece, I’m mostly referring to your local news outlets — the little papers, lesser-known news media outlets, and the network affiliate stations, that mainly report on the mundane.
Picture this, you're at an airport. Check-in, security checks, luggage scans are finally over, and you arrive at your gate. You sit down on the chair closest to the gate so you can board quickly. There's a 55" screen in front of you, and a reporter quickly reads through the top headlines of the week. Now out of nowhere, a fellow passenger next to you offers you a chicken sandwich! Oh, who can say no to that FREE sandwich?
What would you do? Of course you decline! Mom’s taught you not to take stuff from strangers! Now the question is, WHY? Maybe because you didn’t trust the passenger’s intentions. Or maybe you were just playing safe. You didn’t consume the free sandwich, but you were more than happy to consume the FREE news!
In economics, they say, “If You’re Not Paying for It, You’re the Product”. Time is the currency of advertising, and nobody is rich or poor in terms of time. 24 hours is all we get…
