Next week, as an experiment, I am going on a "news diet." This information junkie is going to attempt to go cold turkey on most news produced by the pros for seven consecutive days beginning Sunday, May 30. I will not pick up a newspaper, magazine, watch TV news, or visit a news Web site. The only way I will stay up to date on what's going is by reading what's posted on other Weblogs. I will also not click any blog links to journalist-written stories or browse non-blog RSS feeds.
There are only a couple of small exceptions: 1) I will still continue to read essential news published about my clients, their core industries and competitors and 2) as needed, I will read old news stories I need to pull from Factiva for normal work-related research. (Hey, I gotta eat!)
I am doing this to prove to myself that the blogosphere has reached a critical juncture. My theory is that there are enough really smart, influential individuals out there who will essentially filter "all the news that's fit to blog." All I need to know about life I can learn from blogs. (Please don't criticize me for using two hackneyed clichés in one paragraph!)
My self-imposed info-hunger strike, however, does not mean that mass media is going away anytime soon. In fact, it will only become more relevant as blogs act like a media magnifying glass and perform essential "checks and balances" on news reported by the pros.
At the end of the week I would like someone - ideally with authority, like a journalist - to send me some basic current events quiz questions that cover any or all of the following topics: U.S. top stories, business news, entertainment news and sports news. I will also, naturally, blog about my experiences along the way. I think I can score a passing grade or higher (66% or better). Any testing volunteers? Does any one care to join me on my week-long "news diet" and share their experiences? Send me an email or add a comment to this posting.
