#1 - Defining News

Without news, we would be living without knowledge of what is going on around us. Even at a young age, many of us are aware of significant events taking place in our nation and our world. By receiving news, we can gain opinions or even protect ourselves from harmful events. If I were to define news, I would say it is information worthy of a public audience. According to Oxford Advanced American Dictionary, the news is "new information about something that has happened recently." 

You can find an excellent example of news through the pandemic. For the last year and a half, we have been receiving information constantly regarding COVID-19, vaccines, new cases, deaths, and how countries are handling it. If we did not receive news regarding the pandemic, we would be unaware of how to protect ourselves or that the virus even exists at all.     

News is shared in different ways or on other platforms, for example, word of mouth, social media, newspapers, or televised news programs. Pew Research Center says that 86% of Americans receive news via their digital devices. People can find news via social media apps such as Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter. There is nothing wrong with receiving your news on different platforms, as long as the platform is trustworthy reporting events and information. 

                                        

I also believe that news is viewed differently depending on where you live. American news, depending on your news source, focuses on politics. One's political party will often affect where you choose to receive your news. Also, news in America is a privilege. Many countries cannot and do not receive accurate news due to government control. Some of these countries include North Korea and Saudi Arabia. 

News is more important to some people than it is to others. I have known individuals who will keep the news on their television all day long. Others will only keep up with what seems important to them. Still, others seem to ignore the news altogether. Regardless of how often one checks the news, in the end, we cannot avoid it. Major information will always find its way to an audience through one platform or another. As a country, we should be grateful we can receive news quickly and often and stay updated on what is constantly going on around us.