People, often lament about lack of good journalism and diveristy in their information diet. I see that as a side effect of living inside the filter bubbles, a phenomenon exacerbated by the emergence of the social web. In reality, a lot of good journalism is happening all around us — we just don’t have the ability to find it easily, because of the information utilities — Facebook, Twitter and Google work.
And perhaps that is why, more than ever we need new ways to find, curate and disseminate good journalism, great writing, and diverse opinions. Email newsletters and specialist blogs are still an effective way to get more brain food. I won’t be able to go through a single day without my friend Jason Hirschhorn’s newsletters. My understanding of IOT would be a lot less if it was not for Stacey Higginbotham’s newsletter. And there is Techmeme, which has evolved with the times and become a great resource for technology news.
And then there is Longreads. It is an old-fashioned blog, that curates some of the best writing on the Internet. It is not for a quick hit, but instead, it is about taking time to consume good solid journalism. There are no advertisements. And the site is very mobile friendly. I typically save most of the stories in Pocket and then read them when enjoying my tea.
It is a great resource for non-obvious stories. They work hard to find great journalism worth reading from across the web. And that is not all — they are paying writers to create originals. That is why it is important for me to support them, both with my attention and my dollars. I am a long time supporter. They are currently running a fundraising drive of $25,000 — and each dollar they raised is matched by another $3 from their corporate benefactor, Automattic. If you love good reads, then it might be a great idea for you to support them — with as little as $5 or as much as you feel like.
From my vantage point, we need more of these curated and focused newsletters and websites. With smarter curation comes better information diet.
by Om Malik | Read more:
Image: uncredited
[ed. Hey, Om. Maybe you should get out a little more? Check out Duck Soup, it's only been going for what, five or six years now? With no advertisements (but you can donate if you want to). Tell your friends.]
