This sparks so much joy. I'm so happy for you, that you had this epiphany. Isn't nature just magical and wonderful? Looking forward to your next moves!
Your journalism has always been a breath of fresh air amidst the sensationalist, click/view-driven smog that purports to be journalism. Thank you and I'm looking forward to whatever else you have in store!
An observation I've had with the news cycles is there's very little follow up. We get one flash and then another flash with the side effect of being less informed despite the veneer of information.
For example, I recently did some research on the second amendment and gun laws. One example I use was a 90s amendment that barred domestic abusers from owning firearms. The flash that I remember was the fifth circuit in 2024 ruling it was unconstitutional. However, I never got a follow up story that SCOTUS overturned the Fifth Circuit, holding that the amendment was above board.
I feel as though social media operates in a vacuum and breaking that down is simply keeping a full story in perspective. It's not as flashy reviewing and tracking one story to its entirety but I had been very upset about that fifth circuit ruling for a great deal of time to realize it wasn't even merited.
I'm curious to see what you do! I have my own skills to offer if you'll have them.
I used to think social media was just a symptom of societal unrest and worsening material conditions, but lately I’ve been feeling it’s actually one of the root causes.
Great ideas Ken! I know that I am so over the drama and bullshit that our government, the MSM and the elites keep serving up like so much rancid stew. I bounce between thinking that I should try to keep up and thinking that I couldn't give 2 shits about the latest fire hose of battery acid being shot into the public sphere. Here's to a better way!
As someone who worked for ABC-TV, I watched the frantic creation of the news shows every day in Chicago. I quit there in 1999, fearful that all of my productive life would be devoted to TV which I have come to see as, to use the word you used Ken, noise.
Things occurred to me. 1) whatever the "news director" decided to cover in a given day, it was not even a tiny fraction of 1% of what happened on that day and, other than the weather report, didn't affect more than a few of the viewing audience, let alone the entire population of the Chicago area to which it was pushed as "the news". 2) If I had never turned on the TV in my life, I can't imagine that it would have had a negative impact on me. 3) I had thought back when Walter Cronkite and even as late as Peter Jennings was on the job that commercial TV was without bias and dedicated to the truth in news reporting. I believed the fraudulent claim that commercial TV was "free" TV.
I went into the biz for 23 years and made a good living but came to hate the industry and myself for helping it work once having seen it from the inside. As Neil Postman so wisely wrote decades ago, we are entertaining ourselves to death.
SUBJECT #2 and more important
In regard to news that does matter, climate change is certainly not something that would attract people's attention on a daily basis yet looms over us all as a problem that is undisputably in progress, that cannot be stopped no matter what we do but can be made substantially worse by what we do and we are doing that with enthusiasm. There is a danger of thermal runaway where nothing we do could stop the global greenhouse from further heating but even if heating can be stopped it will be decades before it happens. We. Don't. Care.
This is something we all should be doing something about in our daily lives, yet people are acting as if there is no problem and they need not change the way we live. The faces of my children and grandchildren remind me of this daily.
I mention this because of the subject of air travel, and I don't mean to pick you out, Ken as everyone is doing it. 50% of it is done simply for the fun, the relaxation, the satisfaction of curiosity that people get by doing it. There is no need to fly for this 50%, it is discretionary. A passenger consumes roughly the same amount of fossil fuel by flying as he/she would be traveling the same distance in a car. At the same time, Americans are buying bigger SUV's and pickup trucks without any hesitation and driving far over the speed limit on the highway. They are intelligent but oblivious to what they are doing.
We claim to be subject to reason but we are acting like there is no tomorrow and that fossil fuel consumption in any amount is fine. We pretend that each person in a two-ton metal box pouring out CO2 whenever the engine is running is not living profoundly different from what humans have done in all of history. For us it is the norm we've known it as that all our lives and people will get angry if it is questioned. Ours is not a culture of restraint, something that business abhors.
I asked my 39 and 41 year old kids, who came through elementary school years with loads of education about the environment included, "would anyone you know, any of your friends think of the environment and decide not to take an air flight simply to go sightseeing" They both said no. Immediate desire will always override a future benefit one will not see.
I ask everyone in the name of future generations, knowing that I will be almost entirely ignored if not ridiculed, do not fly or drive more than is necessary. Don't speed. Don't get a big gas engined vehicle when at least hybrids are available and you are going to be driving alone almost all the time. Ride a bicycle around town. Walk. Forget about international jaunts for the fun of it. Think of the world when you will not be here but that we are determining every day with the way we live. This is particularly true for we Americans as our country has contributed a very outsized percentage of the CO2 in the air from our intensive fossil fuel burning of the last 150 years as we have released millions of years of stored carbon in a century and a half.
Whataboutism will not do. Yes, industry is producing lots of CO2 and the Chinese have been breaking into hyper-consumption (= fossil fuel use to the max) along with the rest of what was the under-developed world but it will not do to say, "I won't change anything that I do because look elsewhere."
Most readers will be long gone by now, but as I look at the frantic fuel burning world around me daily the conclusion can only be that it is crazy what we are doing. I am bound as a responsible person to sound the alarm to the extent that I can.
CO2 in the atmosphere measured at NOAA's lab on Mauna Loa:
Please notice the advisory on that last site, Trump in action: "This website is an ARCHIVED version of NOAA Climate.gov as of June 25, 2025. Content is not being updated or maintained, and some links may no longer work."
Ken, I loved this column so much. Your trip sounds glorious.
Several weeks ago, I came to the realization that I don’t have to read “BREAKING NEWS!!!” the second it occurs. Instead of doomscrolling through Twitter 24/7, I connected myself to the #DogsOfTwitter. Rather than spitting into the wind at politicians, I found myself imitating my dog Barney to a group of humorous, clever and (above all) kind posters. Just as my therapist hinted at for years, my mood improved.
I’m not planning to bury my head in the sand, but I finally had The Epiphany. Too much news is too much news, especially when it’s all bad.
i noticed you were quiet a few days ago and first i checked my spam folder, and then i assumed the feds took you for good.
but on a serious note, THANK YOU for undertaking your own site. its so strange to me that everyone sees the damage caused by big tech companies and still volunteer to provide them with content.
Whew! I was worried you'd been visited by masked unidentified men in black. The Galapagos sounds great. We had planned an Easter Island trip a few years ago but the pandemic ruined it. Interestingly I had the same sort of epiphany without the benefit of separation from society. It's time to unplug a little bit from the doomscroll online media feed, even though I already practice "news hygiene" and am not on social media at all. Can't wait to see what projects you produce this year.
BTW - As far as the "island" thing, I wish you luck, but you may find that to be incredibly difficult to do if profits are a main goal. It's a tough environment out there both for small businesses in general, but for small media/journalism projects. There will inevitably have to be compromises in various areas, so try to keep your initial team as small and expertise-laden as possible and don't rush yourself or set unrealistic expectations for you or your team.
Ken, that was an awesome read - thank you. FYI, I sent it on to my two grown sons who, like me are oversaturated with social media in hopes they will reflect on your message. Oh, and btw I am now a paid subscriber. You earned that.
This sparks so much joy. I'm so happy for you, that you had this epiphany. Isn't nature just magical and wonderful? Looking forward to your next moves!
Truly put everything in perspective!
Your journalism has always been a breath of fresh air amidst the sensationalist, click/view-driven smog that purports to be journalism. Thank you and I'm looking forward to whatever else you have in store!
Smog is such a good word for it - borrowing that
This sounds great and we are going to hold you to these promises… your vacation could be great for all of us!
Happy Holidays and welcome back.
An observation I've had with the news cycles is there's very little follow up. We get one flash and then another flash with the side effect of being less informed despite the veneer of information.
For example, I recently did some research on the second amendment and gun laws. One example I use was a 90s amendment that barred domestic abusers from owning firearms. The flash that I remember was the fifth circuit in 2024 ruling it was unconstitutional. However, I never got a follow up story that SCOTUS overturned the Fifth Circuit, holding that the amendment was above board.
I feel as though social media operates in a vacuum and breaking that down is simply keeping a full story in perspective. It's not as flashy reviewing and tracking one story to its entirety but I had been very upset about that fifth circuit ruling for a great deal of time to realize it wasn't even merited.
I'm curious to see what you do! I have my own skills to offer if you'll have them.
Reminds me of a quote from the "Young @ Heart" movie during a road trip...
"We have no idea where we're going, but we're making really good time!"
lol!
Hell yeah, buddy. Glad you took some time. 🤘
I used to think social media was just a symptom of societal unrest and worsening material conditions, but lately I’ve been feeling it’s actually one of the root causes.
Great ideas Ken! I know that I am so over the drama and bullshit that our government, the MSM and the elites keep serving up like so much rancid stew. I bounce between thinking that I should try to keep up and thinking that I couldn't give 2 shits about the latest fire hose of battery acid being shot into the public sphere. Here's to a better way!
Great story, Ken! Thanks for the note! May 2026 be your best year ever!
A thoughtful essay.
As someone who worked for ABC-TV, I watched the frantic creation of the news shows every day in Chicago. I quit there in 1999, fearful that all of my productive life would be devoted to TV which I have come to see as, to use the word you used Ken, noise.
Things occurred to me. 1) whatever the "news director" decided to cover in a given day, it was not even a tiny fraction of 1% of what happened on that day and, other than the weather report, didn't affect more than a few of the viewing audience, let alone the entire population of the Chicago area to which it was pushed as "the news". 2) If I had never turned on the TV in my life, I can't imagine that it would have had a negative impact on me. 3) I had thought back when Walter Cronkite and even as late as Peter Jennings was on the job that commercial TV was without bias and dedicated to the truth in news reporting. I believed the fraudulent claim that commercial TV was "free" TV.
I went into the biz for 23 years and made a good living but came to hate the industry and myself for helping it work once having seen it from the inside. As Neil Postman so wisely wrote decades ago, we are entertaining ourselves to death.
SUBJECT #2 and more important
In regard to news that does matter, climate change is certainly not something that would attract people's attention on a daily basis yet looms over us all as a problem that is undisputably in progress, that cannot be stopped no matter what we do but can be made substantially worse by what we do and we are doing that with enthusiasm. There is a danger of thermal runaway where nothing we do could stop the global greenhouse from further heating but even if heating can be stopped it will be decades before it happens. We. Don't. Care.
This is something we all should be doing something about in our daily lives, yet people are acting as if there is no problem and they need not change the way we live. The faces of my children and grandchildren remind me of this daily.
I mention this because of the subject of air travel, and I don't mean to pick you out, Ken as everyone is doing it. 50% of it is done simply for the fun, the relaxation, the satisfaction of curiosity that people get by doing it. There is no need to fly for this 50%, it is discretionary. A passenger consumes roughly the same amount of fossil fuel by flying as he/she would be traveling the same distance in a car. At the same time, Americans are buying bigger SUV's and pickup trucks without any hesitation and driving far over the speed limit on the highway. They are intelligent but oblivious to what they are doing.
We claim to be subject to reason but we are acting like there is no tomorrow and that fossil fuel consumption in any amount is fine. We pretend that each person in a two-ton metal box pouring out CO2 whenever the engine is running is not living profoundly different from what humans have done in all of history. For us it is the norm we've known it as that all our lives and people will get angry if it is questioned. Ours is not a culture of restraint, something that business abhors.
I asked my 39 and 41 year old kids, who came through elementary school years with loads of education about the environment included, "would anyone you know, any of your friends think of the environment and decide not to take an air flight simply to go sightseeing" They both said no. Immediate desire will always override a future benefit one will not see.
I ask everyone in the name of future generations, knowing that I will be almost entirely ignored if not ridiculed, do not fly or drive more than is necessary. Don't speed. Don't get a big gas engined vehicle when at least hybrids are available and you are going to be driving alone almost all the time. Ride a bicycle around town. Walk. Forget about international jaunts for the fun of it. Think of the world when you will not be here but that we are determining every day with the way we live. This is particularly true for we Americans as our country has contributed a very outsized percentage of the CO2 in the air from our intensive fossil fuel burning of the last 150 years as we have released millions of years of stored carbon in a century and a half.
Whataboutism will not do. Yes, industry is producing lots of CO2 and the Chinese have been breaking into hyper-consumption (= fossil fuel use to the max) along with the rest of what was the under-developed world but it will not do to say, "I won't change anything that I do because look elsewhere."
Most readers will be long gone by now, but as I look at the frantic fuel burning world around me daily the conclusion can only be that it is crazy what we are doing. I am bound as a responsible person to sound the alarm to the extent that I can.
CO2 in the atmosphere measured at NOAA's lab on Mauna Loa:
https://gml.noaa.gov/ccgg/trends/index.html
Global average temperature change:
https://www.climate.gov/news-features/understanding-climate/climate-change-global-temperature
Please notice the advisory on that last site, Trump in action: "This website is an ARCHIVED version of NOAA Climate.gov as of June 25, 2025. Content is not being updated or maintained, and some links may no longer work."
Ken, I loved this column so much. Your trip sounds glorious.
Several weeks ago, I came to the realization that I don’t have to read “BREAKING NEWS!!!” the second it occurs. Instead of doomscrolling through Twitter 24/7, I connected myself to the #DogsOfTwitter. Rather than spitting into the wind at politicians, I found myself imitating my dog Barney to a group of humorous, clever and (above all) kind posters. Just as my therapist hinted at for years, my mood improved.
I’m not planning to bury my head in the sand, but I finally had The Epiphany. Too much news is too much news, especially when it’s all bad.
Merry Christmas!
Lovely trip! Glad you got away from snow & cold. Even happier that you were off the internet! I do it once a week when i can't take it anymore.
i noticed you were quiet a few days ago and first i checked my spam folder, and then i assumed the feds took you for good.
but on a serious note, THANK YOU for undertaking your own site. its so strange to me that everyone sees the damage caused by big tech companies and still volunteer to provide them with content.
Whew! I was worried you'd been visited by masked unidentified men in black. The Galapagos sounds great. We had planned an Easter Island trip a few years ago but the pandemic ruined it. Interestingly I had the same sort of epiphany without the benefit of separation from society. It's time to unplug a little bit from the doomscroll online media feed, even though I already practice "news hygiene" and am not on social media at all. Can't wait to see what projects you produce this year.
BTW - As far as the "island" thing, I wish you luck, but you may find that to be incredibly difficult to do if profits are a main goal. It's a tough environment out there both for small businesses in general, but for small media/journalism projects. There will inevitably have to be compromises in various areas, so try to keep your initial team as small and expertise-laden as possible and don't rush yourself or set unrealistic expectations for you or your team.
Ken, that was an awesome read - thank you. FYI, I sent it on to my two grown sons who, like me are oversaturated with social media in hopes they will reflect on your message. Oh, and btw I am now a paid subscriber. You earned that.
Thanks, Tom! Means a lot :)
Bravo, Ken, what a breath of fresh air this is. Looking forward to seeing what you have in store for us for the new year!
https://youtu.be/ekZTW2r4vb4?si=Ul7mXOd7JmvwtxIZ
lmao