Why I ignore the daily news and read The Economist instead (and how you can too) →

An old article by John Zeratsky — the co-author of book Sprint — on his approach to dealing with the daily news:

I don’t follow the daily news. I don’t read a paper, watch TV news, or follow any news outlets on Twitter. ¶ Still, I want to know what’s happening in the world—both near to me and far away. But I find the daily news distracting. It steals my attention away from the important projects and people in my life. And it’s mostly unnecessary. […] ¶ Truly important breaking news always finds me. For everything else, there’s The Economist.

I've been struggling with following news lately (and who haven't?) — too much drama, twisting facts, and events or quotes taken out of context on Twitter and Facebook. I want less news but with a better coverage and deeper analysis. Dave Pell's NextDraft was my daily hit for a while, but it can be hard to keep up with. I subscribed to The New Yorker a couple times but it never stuck — too US-centric, and while most stories are thought-provoking they aren’t important for getting a weekly summary. Most of their writing is non-urgent and almost timeless — I can pick up an unread issue from the last year and still enjoy it.

So I am giving The Economist a try for a next few months. Their articles do not show up in my Instapaper queue too often, but I like their global focus and a concise style. I also truly love a well-made print magazine. We should enjoy them while they are still a thing.