Hello everyone,
So I’ll be entering college in a few months, and I’m now realizing that I am really not in the loop with any of the current events that are happening. After taking an AP Gov class during high school, I found politics to be pretty interesting, and I found that I became more opinionated because of it.
However, I am still lacking in terms of keeping in touch with current events and being informed about politics. Can any of you recommend a way to become more informed in this way? I would say I’m slightly liberal, especially socially (I’m not religious, so that probably explains why), if that helps at all. I try to watch CNN as much as I can, but realistically, it rarely happens. I have the CNN app on my phone, so that helps, but that doesn’t help too much with developing my political opinions. Any advice would be great!
[Economist student subscription](https://subscriptions.economist.com/NAM/SRCH/G/STU/?cid1=d/ppc/google/sub/student/20150406-00:00am/paid/none/none/NAM-SEM/economiststudentsubscription/none/US/none&gclid=Cj0KEQjwkIurBRDwoZfi1bGCxocBEiQAmcs-ek-Y63wMj-WnBIeNedJmrHO63i42YiCuadxVOaCnzoEaAgzj8P8HAQ) is only $15 for the first 12 weeks. After that, you’ll be in college which will subscribe to magazines like the Economist, Foreign Affairs, and other high quality publications.
[New York Times has a special college rate](http://www.nytimes.com/subscriptions/edu/lp3KU6Q.html?campaignId=48U9F). I’m not sure about this one since I’m not sure if you can just subscribe for a few months or if it must be a year, but check it out.
If you commute to work or regularly drive [listen to your local NPR station](Support Public Radio: Donate To Your Local NPR Station : NPR).
When working out download podcasts from the BBC, NPR, or other high quality sources to stay informed.
Most universities offer a remote access option for students who want to access their journal, magazine, and newspaper subscriptions away from campus. If you already have a library account and password set up, you should look into this so you don’t have to pay.
Personally, I get my news from the three major networks (NBC, ABC, CBS) through TV, their websites, Facebook pages, and Twitter accounts. Apart from that I read all the articles that come up on Google News every day whether they be from Fox News, MSNBC, CNN, New York Times, the Washington Post, Huffington Post, The Blaze, etc. I find that in doing this, I know more about current events than the average person.
I registered to vote as soon as I came of age and have voted in every single election since whether they were on the local, state, or federal level. Before voting I research every candidate and/or issue so that I have the best possible understanding prior to voting. In doing this, I feel like I have developed my own points of view and opinions.
It is really nice to see someone take an interest in current events and our political system. Not enough people do in my opinion.
Become involved with local politics, both at home and where you end up attending college. Make sure to register to vote, and just follow campaigns and decide which candidates you support. Many local politicians are always looking for volunteers as well, if you wanted to get really involved.
Use Twitter. Follow the major networks, NYT, WaPo, Time, Economist, Politico, NPR, Guardian, and whatever else you can think of. You can check it on your phone any time you have a spare minute/are bored/whatever.
All you need to do now is figure out what particular aspects of politics or what particular issues interest you. Once you know this, it becomes easier to know what types of sources, literature, and outlets are available to you.
I pretty much just use reddit. If there’s any particular thing you’re more interested in there’s probably a subreddit for it, and if not there’s just /r/worldnews and /r/news.
I have heard BBC is pretty good as a nonbiased source. Honestly, it is not difficult to do. I just read TIME magazine, and go to the home pages of some news sites sometimes when I am bored/trying to procrastianate, heck even facebook helps on occasion. I think it is good to be exposed to a variety of opinions/sources though. You don’t want to be stuck in a political bubble where you only hear one side consistently
It seems like the Economist is a publication that keeps coming up. Perhaps I’ll invest in a subscription to it. Thank you all for the advice! I’m making it a goal for this summer to spend at least an hour or so a day getting caught up on current events and developing my political ideals.