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Avoiding news does not always mean missing it

Someone who says they often avoid the news may still encounter headlines. The response can describe a frequency without revealing whether the person feels overwhelmed, uninterested, skeptical, or simply needs a break. The 2026 Digital News Report's question wording helps distinguish the measure from possible explanations for it.

3–7 min

Questions you could explore

  • Which follow-up question would help distinguish different reasons for avoidance?
  • How could occasional deliberate avoidance coexist with encountering news through friends or social media?

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Media and information

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A diary and a history book stand in different relationships to the past, but neither is automatically beyond question. What counts as a primary source also depends on what you are trying to find out.

3–5 min

What makes a historical source primary?

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Media and information

Following a web claim back to its source

Five webpages repeating the same claim may lead back to one original report. Lateral reading looks beyond an unfamiliar page to investigate its publisher; following links upstream helps reveal where the evidence began.

8–10 min

Following a web claim back to its source

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Media and information

What can a photo’s metadata actually prove?

An image file may carry a date, camera information, or a caption alongside its pixels. Those details can be useful clues, but some can be changed or removed as a file is edited and shared.

4–5 min

What can a photo’s metadata actually prove?

Media and information4–5 minAn image file may carry a date, camera information, or a caption alongside its pixels. Those details can be useful clues, but some can be changed or removed as a file is edited and shared.

Avoiding news does not always mean missing it | Speech Topic | speaking.app