The news makes me sad

In 2025, the news is not a place that brings joy or peace. Reading a news article or watching a video makes me more depressed than informed.

To stay informed is to stay depressed.

With the help of the internet, the news is categorized as more than just information and current events. News can cover a plethora of topics, including international affairs, entertainment, economic reports, food, sports and more. I keep experiencing media whiplash, going back and forth between a new mukbang video to an ICE kidnapping here in Santa Ana.

I remember watching this one Girl Meets World episode titled “Girl Meets the Real World” where the main character Riley has to defend whether people are inherently good or evil in a class debate.

Her friends created a “Riley committee” whose mission was to shield her from the evils of the world. Because Riley was naive, she was oblivious to the horrors of war, famine and poverty. When she is finally shown the news, she asks her friends, “This is the way the world is? You all knew?”

This feeling has stuck with me and is even more prominent as a journalist in the newsroom every day. My work requires me to look at headlines and content. It’s part of my duty to stay informed and knowledgeable about what is going on in my city and nation. But I question whether it is potentially better to be naive for my own mental health.

I find myself dissociating from violence, political conflict and more as I am instead drawn to entertainment or food content. My peers have expressed similar sentiments, as they no longer look at the news because it gives them anxiety and stress.

National headlines make me angry as President Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill” continues to defund programs that help or benefit people closest to me. Federal programs for higher education, low-income communities, the disabled, the homeless, and other marginalized groups are all increasingly in danger.

The bill has created major changes that cut budgets and add new requirements for programs like the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, which is now being shut down in over 25 states starting in November. Friends, colleagues and classmates will struggle to get food as Trump remodels the White House on their dime.

Trump has also proposed changes to Social Security that could cut the number of applicants accepted to receive disability benefits by 20%. This change would primarily affect the elderly receiving aid, those ages 50 or older, by nearly 80%. Disabled members of my family have to worry about their livelihood being at risk again. To ignore these changes blasted all over the news is to ignore the very real problems that affect my family and friends.

Along with these socio-economic problems, we are watching our planet die day by day. Environmental dangers continue to rise as sea levels increase, glaciers continue to melt at rapid speeds and weather increasingly becomes more and more unpredictable.

Nationally, Trump’s decision to pull out of the Paris Agreement for the second year in a row could affect the United Nations’ efforts to fight climate change. The Paris Agreement is a legal agreement between countries under the U.N. to keep the global temperature under 2 degrees Celsius.

I am informed on current events and international news. But at what cost? Knowing what goes on in my city and nationally feels like a constant weight on me. But to not be informed is to be ignorant. I’d rather be depressed than be unable to sympathize and support my family and friends who are suffering. Some may believe it’s better to stay ignorant since the news makes me sad. Change cannot be made without action. Now is not the time to be confused and unaware when policies and laws are changing every second.

The Supreme Court will be hearing a challenge on the legalization of same sex marriage next week, which could overturn the current law. Federal workers are not receiving their paychecks as the government continues to be shut down for 28 days and counting.

We are watching pivotal moments in our history happen, and members of our community are missing them. I urge you, as a college student, to keep up with the news; to vote and prevent the repeat of history. Attend every protest and contact your representatives about issues you are suffering from because the time to fight back is now.