Avoidance or Empathy? The Cost of Ignoring the News

Avoidance or Empathy? The Cost of Ignoring the News

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Commentary by Tracy Simmons | FāVS News

I was going to write about broken friendships this week, but that seems trivial now. Maybe I’ll save that for next month.

Like many of you, I feel paralyzed by recent news.

A study last year from the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism showed more and more people are selectively avoiding important news, such as stories about COVID, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the struggling economy. 

Why? Because those headlines are depressing. Most of those who said so were under 35 years old.

That study was from 2022. Add events from 2023, and I bet even more of us would say consuming news makes us sad.

Recent catastrophes, for example

Because I’ve tuned these stories out, and the media has largely pushed them aside, I had to force myself to look up the latest:

• September’s Storm Daniel in Libya has left more than 12,500 people dead or missing, according to the Washington Post.
• Also in September, a 6.8 earthquake in Morocco killed 3,000 people and destroyed 60,000 homes.
• The recent Herat earthquake in Afghanistan killed 2,000 people. Just one week later, Afghans had to endure a second massive quake. 
• Two months ago The New York Times reported that troop deaths and injuries in the Ukraine War was approximately 500,000 adding, “the civilians caught between the guns have died in the thousands while millions have been displaced.”

Add in the Israel-Hamas War, and it’s overwhelming. I feel like a finch who’s just hit a window and can’t move, stunned.

It’s easier to lie there, look away.

Entering another’s story

But it’s important not to. We need to grieve for these losses. 

I co-led students on a Study Abroad trip to Israel and Palestine in 2017, and I keep thinking about the people we met there, wondering if they’re alright. They probably aren’t.

I’m thinking about our Israeli tour guide who donned a rainbow umbrella hat so that we wouldn’t lose sight of her in the massive crowds in Tel Aviv. Is she OK? And what about the young Jewish man who served essentially as our translator and patiently helped the students with their assignments. Is he OK?

I’m thinking of our Palestinian bus driver who was forced off our bus at a checkpoint and searched, and our Muslim tour guide who waited outside in the searing heat because he wasn’t allowed in the same places we were. Are they safe? Are they still alive?

I’m not Jewish, nor am I Muslim. I’ve never been to Libya or Afghanistan or Ukraine. I’m only feeling a sliver of pain compared to those who have loved ones in, or attachments to these places. I worry, though, that it might be more than what some are feeling.

I fear that we, as a society, have become callous to news that doesn’t affect us directly. 

I get it. It can be a way to protect our mental health. 

Bad news can foster empathy

However, the people affected directly by these tragedies deserve our attention. We need to read and hear their stories. How else can we be empathetic?

We used to have FāVS t-shirts with quotes from religious leaders on them. My favorite was from Archbishop Desmond Tutu, “My humanity is bound up in yours, for we can only be human together.”

Sadly, these calamities are the human story right now. 

I’ve talked to people about why they avoid the news. Not only is it distressing, it leaves them with a feeling of powerlessness. What can we possibly do here on the Palouse, or in Spokane or in North Idaho to make a difference in all this mess?

We can start by caring, by opening ourselves up to the heartbreaking stories when they pop up in our newsfeed. 

Benevolence is always better than insensitivity, and I can’t help but think it’s a step in making this word better — one news story at a time.

The views expressed in this opinion column are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of FāVS News. FāVS News values diverse perspectives and thoughtful analysis on matters of faith and spirituality.