I was a television news reporter with the BBC from June 1983 to December 2008. Twenty five years.
Now I'm a consumer not a producer. Guess what? I struggle to watch an entire TV news bulletin. I find it trite, irrelevant and, as my old Mum would have said, "a lot about nowt".
There's a good comment piece in the Guardian online, making the point that news is bad for you. OK it's exaggerated to make a point. But I find myself nodding in agreement more than shaking my head. It's worth a read.
I still want to know what's going on in the world. But news online is faster and I can select stories relevant to me and the country in which I live. The notion of a 'Scottish Six', a six o'clock news bringing the world's news to Scotland, seems almost quaint, it's that out dated.
I still make television programmes but I concentrate on factual documentary and adventure travel, avoiding news or current affairs. You know what? I don't miss news at all.
Now I'm a consumer not a producer. Guess what? I struggle to watch an entire TV news bulletin. I find it trite, irrelevant and, as my old Mum would have said, "a lot about nowt".
There's a good comment piece in the Guardian online, making the point that news is bad for you. OK it's exaggerated to make a point. But I find myself nodding in agreement more than shaking my head. It's worth a read.
I still want to know what's going on in the world. But news online is faster and I can select stories relevant to me and the country in which I live. The notion of a 'Scottish Six', a six o'clock news bringing the world's news to Scotland, seems almost quaint, it's that out dated.
I still make television programmes but I concentrate on factual documentary and adventure travel, avoiding news or current affairs. You know what? I don't miss news at all.