Like a lot of journalists, I surf my social media accounts for news headlines a lot. Lately, I find myself “smh” at headlines that trumpet news that you and I both knew all along, right?
Take these headlines from stories in my Facebook and Twitter feeds last week.
KING: Conservatives don’t hate a golfing President, but they hated an uppity Negro golfing President
Racism motivated Trump voters more than authoritarianism
In A Surprise To No One, Victoria’s Secret Thinks Thin, White Women Are Sexy
In The Huffington Post’s defense, the latter headline did state that no one was surprised by the Victoria’s Secret preference. So then, why write about it?
“Many on social media slammed the lingerie brand for its lack of diversity and inclusivity,” the story says. Unfortunately, this is what too often passes for a “news source” these days.
“Bold powerful confident” try young thin & white. Not fooled by @VictoriasSecret #WhatIsSexy #objectification list https://t.co/DxZ9OCHrME
— Melinda (@MelLiszewski) April 17, 2017
I get it; sometimes things we already know just need saying. But all this eye-rolling is getting a little hard on my eyes — and my nerves. But I found a solution when I stumbled across this headline:
Social Media Are Driving Americans Insane
If you’re feeling overly stressed lately, according to this Bloomberg story, you may be checking social media accounts too often.
Well, it’s not like I didn’t know this, but the American Psychological Association has confirmed it.
“Nowadays, 43 percent of Americans say they are checking their e-mails, texts, or social media accounts constantly. And their stress levels are paying for it: On a 10-point scale, constant checkers reported an average stress level of 5.3. For the rest of Americans, the average level is a 4.4,” the story says.
This story is a couple months old, but thanks to my Twitter feed, today I found an answer to stress abatement — log off.
Click.
Almost half of Americans are constantly checking social media, and it’s driving them insane https://t.co/4yUaZiVZjh pic.twitter.com/jxspEd9kte
— Bloomberg (@business) April 18, 2017
