The Collective Reality
03.11.18
Hi Friend,
I just finished reading David Sedaris’s Theft by Finding, a collection of his diaries from 1977–2002. What struck me most was reading his account of September 11th and the aftermath. It was striking not for his emotions, but rather the way different news outlets intersected with his life. The guessing of motives, the accusations, the hyperbole — they were all there and it felt very very familiar.
We’re in a moment where we’re reckoning with this new news era, and while it feels like a post-election haze, in reality, its been going on for almost 20 years. But we may have reached a tipping point where we realize that it’s not about post-truth, but rather collective truth…and maybe it’s always been that way. Perhaps the difference now is that instead of accepting that there’s a collective of people who may think differently than we do, we’ve been trying to convince them. Instead of legislating on conviction, we’re legislating to correct conscience. Maybe, though, we’d be happier and more functional as a society if each of us focused on pinpointing what we believe and acting in a way that best suits us rather than trying to convince others to come along. It’s dialogue vs. dictating, one from a space of listening the other from a space of telling. It’s what Oprah did beautifully (listen to the podcast below to hear about it) and what a healthy democracy sounds like, I think.
So, here we go.
1. Oprah X Goop
While I find Goop to be parts appalling and aspirational, occasionally they knock it out of the park. This interview with Oprah is worth savoring. Her insight on everything from spirituality to success showcases why and how she was able to build a media empire. Without a doubt, it will make you feel better about yourself and will give you a few tools to be an even better version of that self. If you don’t have iTunes, find it in Overcast or any other podcast app.
Hear It
2. The Dirty Secret of Family Recipes
Atlas Obscura set out to find the origins of a few favorite family recipes. Unsurprisingly they found that the secret wasn’t really a secret. Given that many of the recipes were only a generation old, it’s a telling example of our desire for myth and history as a way of connecting to the past — even if that story is entirely concocted.
Read It
3. Slow News
Farhad Manjoo has been getting his news primarily from newspapers as of late. He’s not cut off from social or anything, but has, instead, let newspapers do what they’re supposed to do, collect, prioritize, and condense. Importantly, he’s not missing any stories, just the swirl of misinformation that comes out when stories break.
The firehose of information we’ve experienced on social is slowly beginning to find its way funneled into newsletters, digests, and other similar formats. We even see it in review sites with the popularity of places like The Wirecutter. However, these still seem rather primitive. We need platforms that can digest and verify, while simultaneously providing the depth and opinion that the social web allows. If I had to venture a guess, it would be that someone will crack this challenge in the next 2–3 years, creating a modern social digest that helps us prioritize, dynamically offers depth based on your personal reading habits, and can aggregate information in a way that offers neutral, contrary, and affirmative commentary to your personal beliefs, denoting it as such.
