“I just can’t stand it.”

“Watching it depresses me.”

“I don’t have time.”

“It’s all lies.”

“I see all I want to see on my phone.” Blank looks.

are some of the responses I get from people when I bring up something in the news so I mainly keep my thoughts about what is going on to myself.

Headlines from today’s Los Angeles Times: Rising fuel prices weigh on small business; German far right targets voting by mail; EV growth persists despite federal curbs; Olympic plan will restrict freeways; For Walter, hardball is new: Dodger’s owner has kept a low profile and built loyalty; Pershing Square remained for local heroine: Biddy Mason, first AME church founder, gets her flowers from the city; Jury deadlocks in murder trail; ‘I wouldn’t call it a war,’ VP says; Olympics could displace 5,975

These headlines from page 1a raced before my eyes on this Saturday (September 5, 2026) as I brought up the second of the three newspapers I read most every day.

Each headline is a telegraphic summary followed by a series of short paragraphs that answer the most important questions about the item in descending order. If I find myself interested in the details and attributions, I keep reading into the inverted pyramid presentation of factual data. By the end of my reading, I think I know what is going on in Los Angeles and the world in general a little bit better.

I yearn to be connected. I want to be part of the big world beyond myself. My worries gain perspective and become smaller from the exercise.

What propels me to listen to NPR and watch the PBS News Hour is the chance to be in the presence of smart, informed people. I like “hanging around” with smart people. I often tune into CSPAN to see what the national conversation is on a given day.

My oddness is shared by millions of others but most of us–unlike in the years before “smart phones”– are retreating from a participation in a national dialogue that develops from following the news. That retreat is why I think we are more divided than we have been previously. Having a conversation beyond weather conditions is a tricky proposition these days.