In this technological era we live in, most people use social media sites like Facebook,

Twitter, or Google+ to keep themselves updated on the world’s most current events.

We’ve all heard the saying “Don’t trust everything you read on the internet”

and this statement  is still true. For example, celebrities like Britney Spears, Bill

Cosby, and Betty White have been reported to be dead by false news articles posted on the

internet. These celebrities since then have publicly stated they’re not deceased, and they’re

obviously not since Spears is still on the radio, Cosby has a Netflix series in the works (although he has

other media problems now) , and  White is still “Hot in Cleveland”. These are the types of things you

never see in newspaper or even in online news outlets like CNN or MSNBC.

I go to a different source.  I get the news the old fashioned way, I read the newspaper. I do this for

several reasons.  First, I know the news I’m getting isn’t false. The internet and social

media are full of false stories, I trust in my local newspaper to get me the news I need.

Secondly, the opinion pieces help you keep the pulse of what’s important in your community and the

world at large. You can learn a lot just by reading couple opinion columns and either

agreeing or disagreeing with what the writer says. Finally , I get to pick what sections of the paper

I want to read. I’m  don’t care about who Justin Bieber is dating or when One Direction is releasing their

new album. I find that on social media sites, you sometimes have to scroll through article after

article just to find the story you want to read. It’s a waste of time, you could have picked

up a newspaper and found a different story to read in that same amount of time you took

scrolling through pointless tweets.

There is another way people get their news, television.  I don’t mind

watching my local news team report on the latest events at 5 o’clock, but they only

have so much time to get so much news out. I also think the media is biased and

reports too heavily on the negative side of news stories. Newspapers take a more in-depth look

at the current events in the world, they don’t just report from one

viewpoint, they report on the whole story all together and try to incorporate a number of sources.

Newspapers are not as profitable as they once were and are in many ways an outdated technology, but

for many people, and perhaps for a democracy, they are the public’s most reliable news source.

Television, even in an hour time slot, still comes up short on both volume and depth of content,

and social media is simply not a reliable source to get your news. I’m

certain there are a lot of people out there who disagree with my statement, but at least I

know I’ll still be flipping through the pages of the Daily News.