For news and information - don’t use Facebook

I rarely get angry. That is good because I don’t like being angry. Anger is simply the result of someone or something else getting the better of a situation. I like to win the control over my emotions, the control over my physical reactions, the control over my vocabulary and responses.

Reading the news rarely, if ever, makes me angry. I am often saddened, frustrated, bemused, curious, and incredulous by the events of the day. True, most of the front page headlines don’t impact me directly. As an old middle-class white guy reports of racism, sexism, violence, epidemics, lack of social support structures, climate change, shootings, homelessness, and drunk driving arrests, while concerning, don’t put me in a rage.

But part of keeping rational might also be choosing where I get my news. I read two daily papers. I have a “GoogleNews” feed. I usually watch the local news broadcast in the evening and tune into NPR while driving . I read Newsweek, The Economist, and Kiplingers magazines. 

What I do NOT do is use Facebook or Twitter as a source of news. I would say I am a rather conservative user of all social media. My Facebook “friends” are only family and personal friends who know they will get their butts kicked off my account if they become too political. If political or news related advertising appears, I ask that it not be shown again. Sadly, ads for senior living centers and adult diapers have taken up that space. Do Facebook’s algorithms know more about me than I know about myself?

I probably spend over an hour or more a day reading and listening to mainstream news. And maybe 20 minutesor fewer a day scanning Facebook. The ratio is good for my emotional well-being.

Like any technology, social media can be wisely or foolishly used. How much time do you spend on Facebook each day. And more importantly, is the time spent making you a happier or angrier person?