The internet revolutionised access to information but why are millennials so disengaged with news?
Thomas Patterson (2008) describes this disengagement trend in “Young People Flee From the News, Whatever the Source”:
A few decades ago, young Americans were heavy consumers of news. More than half of the adults under 30 years of age were regular readers of a daily newspaper. Most of them also watched the evening newscasts on a regular basis. ... [Our 2008 study found] only one in twelve young adults and a mere one in twenty teens rely heavily on the newspaper. The picture is marginally brighter in the case of television news.
Indeed, a study by IBM found that young people's engagement with online news is declining. While roughly 64 percent of 18-to-24 year olds visited an online newspaper in 2008, the figure dropped to 54 percent a year later. These figures are even more worrisome when you consider the amount of time young people spend on their computers and smartphones. Last year, Pew reported that 92 percent of teens go online daily. It is clear that new technologies are viewed as "entertainment tools" rather than information technologies for following economic, social and environmental developments across the globe.
Critical Education: So why don't young people follow the news more closely? In part, it is difficult for us to see how we are affected by current events, but, in my opinion, it is mostly a result of something missing from formal education. Formal education does not empower students to be informed citizens with the ability to apply a critical eye to the world around them. As Martin Luther King said, "the function of education is to teach one to think intensively and to think critically." The essential value of education is to achieve a real intellectual freedom, while enabling people to interpret the world around them, adapting to new ways and ideas in a changing environment.
Journalism by itself cannot address the limitations of formal education. But can it do something to engage young people with what’s happening in our planet and empower them to respond to all the injustices and atrocities? Chris Waugaman, a high-school journalism teacher, suggests there is a close link between critical education and the process of journalism:
“The purpose of education is to make our young citizens better people. So how do we do that? We teach them to be empathetic. We teach them to listen to others. We teach them to understand how to communicate with each other. We teach them to be ethical in their actions. We teach them to consider both sides of an argument. We teach them to adapt to the changing world around them. We teach them to view the world through a different lens. We teach them… journalism.”
Negative or Constructive News? Another factor in the disengagement of young people is that traditional news renders people powerless. Michael Møller, Director-General of the United Nations Office at Geneva, believes many people feel “disempowered” by the news and unable to influence decisions:
In a world of 7 billion people, with a cacophony of voices that are often ill-informed and based on narrow agendas, we need responsible media that educate, engage and empower people and serve as a counterpoint to power. We need them to offer constructive alternatives in the current stream of news and we need to see solutions that inspire us to action. Constructive journalism offers a way to do that.
In Constructive News (2014) Ulrik Haagerup argues that the dominance of negativity in news media – “conflicts, drama, crooks and victims” – is damaging “to people, to the press itself, to the public debate and to democracy.” Calling for a paradigm shift, he advocates constructive journalism as a means to counter overwhelming negativity by offering education, engagement, and perspective. Similarly, David Bornstein argues that news stories should not be limited to “people doing terrible things that are hidden from view” but also about ‘people doing remarkable things that are hidden from view.
For Haagerup, constructive journalism is not simply the positive “sweet story closing a news broadcast”. Instead, it is about offering people an insight into possible solutions and actions. Bas Mesters, a Dutch pioneer of constructive journalism, defines it in terms of the "five Ws" of journalism. In addition to asking "who, what, where, why, and when", constructive reporters also ask "what now?"
Constructive Journalism For Millennials: Perhaps the lack of "constructive news" is ultimately leading to a dangerous lack of engagement. If so, what can be done to change this? Here are there examples that could capture the attention of millennials and engage their passion for life and truth:
First, news media could increase the number of stories about the "unknown heroes" that are hidden in every part of the world. As Haagerup notes, ordinary people usually enter the news as victims but the "unknown heroes" are ordinary people with experiences that could set an example of overcoming victim hood and inspire many others to act and engage with the problems that surround them.
Second, by regularly reading news stories to school children, teachers could embed the concept of news engagement as an important lifetime practice.
Third, school news resources could also encourage children to think critically like a journalist as Chris Waugaman suggests. For example, teachers could ask children to find information about an interesting person and answer questions such as: What is the most intriguing fact about that person? Why is that fact intriguing? Could you compare it with a recent event in today’s world?
In principle, the answer seems quite easy. Sadly, we all know that changes in education are a difficult and long process and while many schools and education departments forge ahead with reform, their renewal efforts often falter because schools lack effective action plans. Creating change will not be easy. Nevertheless, the above suggestions for education reform and constructive journalism stem from the conviction that such change is necessary and could transform the young people fleeing from news into more critically conscious and inspired human beings.
Celia Recio is a student intern at FuJo and will take up studies in journalism at the University of Amsterdam this Autumn.
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