For better or worse I spend the majority of my day in front of screens. I write for a living so the computer and I are very well acquainted, and when I’m done with the computer I’m on my iPhone or in front of a television most of the time. My optometrist would be less than pleased with me if he read this! (Sorry Dr. Betmaleck!)
7:15 AM: I wake up for work and go right for my phone. I scroll through Twitter and Instagram to see if I missed anything from any east coast people that morning. Most of my Twitter timeline is full of random memes and people talking about a new hockey jersey that has been released or the Dancing with the Stars cast reveal. I also notice a lot of discussion about the US not providing flu vaccines to people that are detained at Border Control facilities.
8:15 AM: I get to work and load up my email. I have 64 unread messages, most of which are left over from the weekend and I haven’t marked as read. I scan through the new messages from yesterday and mark anything that needs to be done today as urgent. Then I start up Sprinklr, which is a program my work uses to sort through all our social media interactions. I spend the next 30 minutes responding to and sorting social media posts to our company’s Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
8:45 AM: I browse through Cruise Critic, an online forum for cruise guests. I check our company’s message board and see if there are any urgent issues I need to address. I spend about a half hour here just reading reviews and other random posts. Most of the things are mundane, some posts divulge into politics, a reminder that not even cruise message boards are immune to political discourse.
9:15 AM: I spend the next 15 minutes or so scrolling through the front page of Reddit, then going into the subreddits I follow including ones for Big Brother and The Bachelor, two of my favorite shows (I’m a reality television junkie.)
9:30 AM: I spend about an hour working on emails from various departments that are requesting we send email notifications to guests.
10:30 AM: I scrolled through my personal email and mark things read. I spend about 15 minutes on my Twitter timeline. I read some rumors about Vegas hotels, some people complaining about an unsigned NHL free agent, and people discussing comments made by the president this morning. Also people are still talking about the president trying to buy Greenland.
10:45 AM: I start working on more guest email notifications.
11:25 AM: I scroll through Twitter for a few minutes and read Big Brother updates.
12:00 PM: I’m working on communications about the fires in Alaska. I Google search for additional details not already provided and read an article from CNN. I click through a hyperlink in the article to a video on the Alaska Wildland Fire Information website. I also click a hyperlink to the Alaska State Trooper Facebook page.
1:30 PM: I go to lunch and spend about 15 minutes on Twitter and catch up on tweets I missed while working. I eat lunch outside and take a walk before going back to the office. I only really follow CNN as far as world news goes, so I saw a few of their headlines. I also read more Big Brother updates and read an article on Deadspin about the XFL. The video is interesting, and I have some discussion on Twitter and via text message with my friends about it.
3:00 PM: I take a coffee break and scroll through Twitter and Reddit a bit. I answer some unread texts and scroll through my personal email as well.
3:30 PM: I get sucked into the XFL discussion again, because honestly that video was insane and I have to talk it about more.
4:00 PM: I end up back on Deadspin reading what seems like the 500th article made about Mitch Marner not being signed.
4:15 PM: I go back to work and answer more people on social media, work on some more guest communications, and work on some other projects.
5:00 PM: My day has slowed down and my mind has started to wander. I go to The Athletic and read a few articles that I’ve been meaning to read. I also start listening to a hockey podcast and then work on a few more minor work items while I listen.
6:00 PM: I leave work and head home. Once at home I turn on the local news to see if anything interesting has happened today. There was a story about move-in day at USC and one about a man who was arrested for being under the influence after someone called authorities about his suspicious behavior. The fun part of that story, when the cops got there they found him trying to repair his flat tires with gauze and bandages!
6:30 PM: I’m making dinner while also scrolling through Twitter and Instagram. It’s pasta night!
7:00 PM: I have dinner in front of the television. Jeopardy is on, and I do my best to answer questions. I sweep the board on the ‘Food Stuff’ category!
8:00 PM: I watch Big Brother while also scrolling through Twitter and answering text messages.
9:00 PM: I spend the next hour or so doing some online shopping, scrolling through Twitter, and having a conversation about an upcoming trip with a friend via text.
10:30 PM: I get ready for bed and turn on my television. I don’t actually watch anything here, I just like the noise to help me sleep. I spend a few more minutes on Twitter and sending texts.
11:00 PM: Bed time!
Of the media sources I accessed I would their reliability as follows on a scale of 1-10 (1 being the least reliable and 10 being the most):
Twitter: 3 – I think Twitter can be a great source of news, but also everything here needs to be taken with a grain of salt. The fact that this is by far my most used media source is somewhat troubling as I know that it can lead to me not only funneling my media by who I follow, but that I can be susceptible to misinformation here.
Instagram: 3 – I would put Instagram about the same as Twitter. They both can be places where you can see news but also must be heavily vetted. Instagram isn’t really a great place to look for news stories, but you can search through hashtags and locations if you’re trying to find information.
Facebook: 3 – Again, I’m giving Facebook a 3 rating because while it can be a useful tool for information, you need to really check sources and do research on what you see.
Reddit: 3 – Reddit, like the other social media sources, has the same benefits and pitfalls.
Deadspin: 4 – While Deadspin is a sports website, they do have news articles and discussions about politics and current events. Most of the articles have a very heavy bias and must be read knowing that. They do a decent job of vetting sources though and some of their journalists are very good at getting things right.
Local News: 6 – The local news in Los Angeles is pretty decent and does an ok job at reporting. They are on scene of events very quickly and do a decent job of not reporting on facts they haven’t yet confirmed. They do obviously chase ratings, and are always willing to leave news stories for a police pursuit.
CNN: 8 – While I think that CNN is pretty quick to sensationalize certain stories, I do trust them a moderate amount. I think that they more often than not do their best to report stories accurately and fairly. Many of the journalists that work for them are very good at their jobs. They do often fall into the trap of making themselves the news to drive ratings however, and that’s why I don’t totally trust them on all topics.
Overall, I found this to be a really interesting look at my media habits. I found that I really don’t read or see as much news as I thought I did, and I can see how I could possibly fall into the trap of dishonest news. This was a really great way for me to think about my habits and biases and look at ways to improve them.
