NEWS TO ME...

Less local news has resulted in general disengagement from local democratic life, says a study by the Brookings Institution. As Americans have shifted away from local news, turnout in state and local elections has fallen, and communities that have lost reporters have seen fewer candidates run for local office.

STOP, LOOK, LISTEN!

News to me...
I heard a friend say today that she tries to tune out US news because she doesn’t trust ANY news source. Not Fox, not CBS, not NPR. Not The New York Times or The Boston Globe. And that is the dangerous fallout of our political moment.
If she is overwhelmed by the national news, what about something closer to home? Well, many communities in the United States are losing their local newspapers altogether, or having them gobbled up by media conglomerates that deliberately shrink the papers to increase profits.
Maybe then she gets her information from links that friends send her on Facebook or Twitter… and welcome to our national moment of misinformation, inaccuracy, and distortion.
—Kathy Sherretts

Essay:
Aeon: Bad Thinkers by Quassim Cassam
The gullible rarely believe they are gullible, and the closed-minded don’t believe they are closed-minded.

Podcast:
New Yorker/Politics and More: What Can Progressive Voters Do to Help Fix Our Broken Political System? (20 min)
For decades, conservative organizations have poured time, attention, and money into state politics. But in recent years, grassroots movements have helped progressive voters make their voices heard on the issues they care most about.

Article:
New Yorker: What W. E. B. Du Bois Conveyed in His Captivating Infographics by Hua Hsu
For the 1900 World’s Fair in Paris, Du Bois’ team used arresting charts and graphics to illustrate the evolution of black life since emancipation, featuring facts and figures about population growth and political participation, educational attainment and financial clout.

Video:
PBS: How these Massachusetts farmers are turning manure and food waste into power (7 min)
Getting methane from crap instead of from fracking.
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Ready to do more?
 
• Learn about the Green New Deal.
• Read the Indivisible Guide 2.0. 
• Check out the weekly action plan from Progressive Action, Global Exchange (PAGE) which mobilizes progressives living overseas. 
• Sign up for the Americans of Conscience Checklist, a weekly action list that also provides encouragement and good news. 
• Learn about climate solutions and actions at ClimateRecovery.org, a group organized by community activists and members of American Resistance Sevilla.