For this assignment, I logged my activity from 9:00 AM Friday to 9:00 AM Saturday. Usually my media usage is pretty similar day-to-day in the summer and changes during the school year, as I’m less active online due to working and school activities.
9:00 AM Friday – Woke up and picked up my phone. Went to Facebook, Gmail, and Tumblr, but didn’t click on any news content. Didn’t make any comments on social media, but got emails including advertisements for furniture and makeup.
10:00 AM to 12:00 PM – Changed from my phone to the computer. Watched YouTube videos from channels like Bon Appetit and Jenny Nicholson. Saw news on Facebook about Spiderman being transferred from Disney back to Sony.
3:30 PM – Went to see the movie Yesterday in the theater and saw media ads for other movies such as Little Women and Downton Abbey. Went to the mall afterwards and saw ads for Fenty Beauty makeup dispersed throughout the clothing racks.
8:00 PM – Browsed Instagram during dinner; my friend posted artwork she’d done which was based off of a podcast she listens to. I went out for dinner, but ordinarily I would be at home watching some form of news on TV. I often watch CNN with my family, especially the Don Lemon and Anderson Cooper hours.
11:00 PM – Saw ads for football and shows like The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel when I opened my Fire Stick menu. Watched a show called The Durrells in Corfu. My mom and I have been watching it steadily for about a week now, and we just started season 2 (because British TV shows have seasons that are much shorter than what we’re used to in the US).
12:00 AM – Went on social media again–Facebook, Gmail, and Tumblr. Didn’t click on any news articles but did see some information about the current election cycle. Liked a few of my friends’ posts but didn’t make any comments. I don’t often make comments unless someone is explicitly asking for information, as I prefer to do most of my communication privately through Messenger.
12:40 AM – Watched an episode of Frasier on Netflix with my mom and then went to bed.
9:00 AM Saturday – Woke up and read an article from The Guardian about Taylor Swift and her new album. Made a comment on a Facebook group I’m in about why I write novels. My brother sent me a YouTube video about a man from 1700s France who ate everything in sight, with an accompanying Tweet about the video.
Overall, I encountered less news content than I usually do. I was checking social media less often this weekend because I actually left my house, and when I was at home I primarily watched YouTube videos that were not news related. But if I take into account my habits over the course of a week or so, patterns start to emerge. I rarely click on news articles or go to specific news sites unless something particularly interests me and I can’t glean all of the necessary information from the title and blurb. My primary news source is CNN because it’s often on in the background at my house and we enjoy several of the programs it offers. I think CNN is a generally reliable source, but it is often left-leaning, so I have to make sure I’m supplementing it with other sources to get the most objective take on what’s happening in the world right now. Sometimes I think I should actively seek out more news content instead of waiting for it to filter in, but I also think that our nation is saturated with so much content that engaging with it too heavily can increase depression and anxiety. Therefore, it’s important to me to find a balance between staying informed and getting overwhelmed.
Site Trustworthiness Ranking:
CNN – 8. Generally trustworthy with a goal of reporting the news accurately. Sometimes features a left-leaning slant that needs to be considered when analyzing their content.
The Guardian – 8. Similar reasons to CNN. Trustworthy reporting with a left-leaning slant. The Guardian is also a British publication, which gives Americans a different take on some of the same stories.
Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, Tumblr – 1-7. The trustworthiness of the content depends entirely on who is sharing it and what their intentions are. I’ve learned a great deal from social media sources but they have to be properly vetted before they can be entirely trusted.
