In Real Time
Technology has always been a useful, if not often revolutionary tool. It allows us to connect with people all over the world, get information in real time, and sometimes endlessly refresh an ongoing election while draining all our energy.
Despite my opening statement, I really don’t want to talk about it. What I do want to talk about, is the way that technology allows us to get information so quickly, if not as it’s happening. People have always been witnesses to history as it’s happening, but technology gives us a front row seat, and seemingly makes it impossible to tear our eyes away.
I’m certainly no scholar, but I do think the way that information spreads is both interesting, and has changed rapidly in recent history. Probably in ways that we haven’t really reckoned with. I doubt the modern phenomenon of “doomscrolling”, spending excessive amounts of time reading the news, was happening back when the newspaper was invented.
Now, expect this to be surface level wikipedia information, but I’m going somewhere, probably, so bear with me. The newspaper, probably the first ever source of news, it’s in the name afterall, started around the 17th century. It was produced weekly, and mostly focused on economic, political, or military news.
Newspapers at this time were also rather exclusive. The first barrier to entry was of course, literacy, and the next was money. Content was rather tightly controlled by the government, often requiring official approval before publishing. This would slowly change over the years, becoming more diverse and accessible by the 19th century.
The first big step towards being able to get information at much higher speed, was the telegram. Developed in the early 19th century, this device allowed people to communicate instantly over longer distances. Of course, at this time it still took much longer for this instantaneous information to get distilled, and then circulated to the broader public.
Next comes the radio, which is probably where I’ll leave off this history tangent, you’re welcome. Because with it, comes near live coverage. A (in)famous example is of course the Hindenburg disaster. While not quite aired live, it was aired only a few hours later, but the recording was taken live. From a matter of hours, this gap would only shrink until it lead us to our current landscape.
To try and give you an example of how this directly impacts our lives, and isn’t the most recent example, let’s look at January 6, 2021. Now, I live in Canada, and on this day it was simply a normal day for me to go to work. As I was at my desk, killing a bit of time between tasks, I happened to stumble upon a developing story.
Frankly, I couldn’t believe it. I read article after article about the events. It was being reported on by major news outlets, journalists, people on social media, the people at the capitol were live streaming their very actions. I was watching the most major attack on modern democracy unfolding through my computer screen. I also had work to do.
I was in a fugue state the rest of my work day. It felt like my very being was being sucked into my phone or my computer. I couldn’t tear myself away. How was I supposed to process this information? What was I supposed to do with that information? I had no answers, and yet I could not stop watching.
I ended that day feeling drained, both mentally and physically. I was in another country, had completely unrelated things to do, and was spending all my time on something both distant, and incredibly present.
Unfortunately, I can go on to list so many other things from here. We can talk about how we can see constant updates on wars, genocides, elections, basically any future event we will be able to witness, no matter how horrific it may be. That is a very difficult burden that has been placed on people, and I don’t think it’s one that anyone was prepared for.
That’s not to say this is all bad, you can watch some positive things in real time too! Sports, weddings, concerts, and more are available to you as well! It just feels like the scale of these things is so disproportionately massive. Regardless of how a sport event shakes out, I’m sure you can handle it, but nothing prepares you to see something like January 6th unfold on your phone or computer screen.
This is of course exacerbated by the fact that many people use a computer for work. You’re forced to be in front of a machine that gives you unlimited access to events happening at this very moment. You could check, there could be an update, you might have missed something. So you check. And you scroll. Over and over.
Especially if your job involves a computer, you can’t simply disengage. You can’t turn your computer off and walk away, that temptation remains ever present. Every minute of downtime between tasks, you could just open a new tab, check for a new update, and perhaps learn about some new event that might have ramifications on the lives of millions of people for years to come.
Here is the point where I would try to offer up strategies and solutions that have worked for me, but I suffer from this exact problem. So, instead, here’s some ideas that I’ve been thinking about and will (hopefully) try out next time I catch myself doomscrolling, or obsessing over a developing issue or story.
Set a timer.
One of my biggest problems is that a “quick check” ends up stretching into 5 minutes, or 10, or 15. Social media especially is designed to keep your attention, and it can be tough to pull yourself away, even moreso when there’s a big issue developing. You want to see what your friends are thinking or saying, who is speaking out, what the newest take is.
The thing is, those will all still be there later. If anything, snap judgements and responses are likely to be less measured then those that will happen after the fact. If you must check up on something, set a timer for 5 minutes, and then go back to whatever it was you were doing.
Only allow yourself to check at set intervals
Instead of letting yourself check for any updates anytime you think about, set time markers for when you’re allowed to check. Letting yourself only check in every hour, and setting a timer when you do, will probably lead to more considered engagement with the event at hand. Checking 4 times in the last hour is probably more detrimental than helpful.
Decide on a frequency of engagement that works best for you, limit that time, and do so mindfully. To give another example, during the recent US election, I was updating the results every time I checked my phone, which could be something like every 5 minutes. More often than not, nothing changed, but the general anxiety I felt would come roaring back.
I encourage you to explore other solutions, or comment them below! Personally, anything these two steps just feel somewhat extreme. Turning off your devices or unplugging your internet could work, but we use both those things for leisure as well. If I turn off my wifi, sure I can’t doomscroll, but I also can’t watch the netflix show I’m using as a distraction.
Living in the modern age is tough, and I feel like so many of us were never prepared, or have really considered the position we find ourselves in. We’re hit with a constant stream of information, and during pivotal moments in history or society, it’s far too easy to get caught up. We really need to be mindful of our own mental health, and try to set boundaries before it becomes detrimental.
The next time I find myself getting caught up in my phone, endlessly scrolling on social media or news platforms, I’ll try to use and both limit the time I spend, and also the frequency of how often I check. By reducing both of those, I think I can use the time that I do spend doing those things more mindfully, and probably more productively.
What works for you though? Or is this even a problem you’ve noticed in yourself? Either way, I’d love to hear from you. Because more than anything, we’re in this together. Being able to lean on each other, and being mindful of ourselves and each other is how we can deal with the world we find ourselves in.
Doomscrolling is a difficult, modern issue, but setting boundaries that allow you to engage with the world mindfully is incredibly important. I want you to save your energy so you can channel it towards things that really matter. Constantly refreshing the results of an election won’t change them, but there are things that you can change, go find them.