28 JANUARY, 2025
Who: Charles Darwin University Lecturer in Media and Journalism Dr Jennifer Pinkerton.
Topics:
- How to stay informed of current events without impacting your health and wellbeing.
- General non-fiction and journalism, including: solutions journalism, regional reporting, climate change reporting and storytelling.
Contact details: Call +61 8 8946 6721 or email media@cdu.edu.au to arrange an interview.
Quotes attributable to Dr Jennifer Pinkerton:
"News is driven by lots of things, but for the most part this is conflict and drama, which means much of the news we consume is overly negative - and even scary. For this reason, but perhaps also the state of the wider world in general, news avoidance has been a huge trend for the past ten years. In the 2025 Digital Media Survey by the University of Canberra, for example, 69% of respondents said they avoided the news, and this phenomenon is especially acute among women and those living in regional areas. News avoiders say they do so because news has a negative impact on their mood, can be untrustworthy, and simply wears them out. I understand this and experienced this myself over the Xmas break in particular.
“I recommend sticking to high quality publications or news outlets as much as possible, diving into weekend papers, longer reads, or other publications and sites that offer deeper insight into issues, as opposed to blow-by-blow shorter stories or posts about unfolding events - which can be really addictive once you're hooked into a given narrative, and trigger anxiety.
“Another idea is to have a 'digital sabbath'. For example, I try to stay off my phone, and therefore don't read or stream news on Sundays, and I take a longer news and digital sabbath during times when the news is stressing me out, and I can afford to engage less intensely (such as when I'm on holidays).
“Stay tuned in to how the news is affecting your mood, health and sleep, and adjust as needed. I also recommend avoiding social media news content, as this can platform and prioritise stories or posts that generate lots of division (in form of explosive comments) - a tactic that keeps us scrolling.”
Contact details:
Raphaella Saroukos she/her
Research Communications Officer
Marketing, Media & Communications
Larrakia Country
T: +61 8 8946 6721
E: media@cdu.edu.au
W: cdu.edu.au
Charles Darwin University acknowledges all First Nations people across the lands on which we live and work, and we pay our respects to Elders both past and present.
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