A strategy for choosing what to read, watch and listen to
Last year, in AF Media Diet 2019, I compared media to food, and argued that:
Therefore, it’s crucial for our health to strategize and develop healthy media consumption habits as we would design a nutritious diet.
Now, in the face of a catastrophic pandemic, as we struggle to filter vital signals from harmful noise, it’s more important than ever to spend time and energy thinking about the content we consume.
As such, I’m going to revisit the media diet principles I sketched out last year to see how they hold up in the COVID-19 media landscape — where the stakes are higher, the noise is louder, and the right signal can save lives — and where we’re even more dependent on (and flooded by) digital social networks and distributed publishers.
Despite the fire hose of clamoring content, it’s times like these I value and appreciate free speech — despite the mess — more than ever. There’s more crap to swat away, but we know the truth is out there too. And it’s up to us — each one of us — to find the truth, follow it, question it, amplify it, and live it.
This article has two sections: the first presents my updated Media Diet Principles, and the second lays out my current menu of Media Staples.
I’m not asking you to agree with my principles or to read everything I read.
I am asking you to develop your own Media Diet strategy and take responsibility for the content you consume. Spend some time — even if it’s just 30 minutes, once a year, maybe during a quiet and calm lunch break — to slow down, take a step back, and think through your media consumption.
It’s important to be smart about this stuff because you’re under attack.
Think about how many high-powered agencies, strategists, analysts, scientists, executives, politicians, and advertisers are developing sophisticated strategies to get inside your head.
Think about their incentives, and what they’re trying to get you to do.
You need a sophisticated media strategy of your own to stave off the onslaught.
Here’s mine. Godspeed.
Media Diet Principles
These are the key values I follow to take back control — to the extent possible — of the food (media) that makes it onto my plate (into my head). More specifically and importantly, these guidelines help me identify the noisy crap that’s not worth my time, so I can keep my plate clear of poison. This list is constantly evolving, and it’s an updated version of the list I put together last year, which you can find (again) in AF Media Diet 2019. The two versions are very similar, and most of the original principles made it onto this second version, which I think is cleaner, and more colorful and comprehensive than the first.
1. Less is more.
- Ruthlessly limited to select trusted sources that deliver regular value.
- No news feeds. No TV news. No dubious or obscure brands.
- Stick to a few solid media staples and get on with your day.
2. Brutal honesty.
- No bullshit. No deception. No censorship.
- Authentic people who communicate like humans with unique voices, not soulless robots.
- Prioritize people with strong beliefs who also change their minds. This usually means they give a shit, they’re listening, they’re learning, and they have courage.
3. Diversified.
- Apply Nassim Taleb’s Barbell Strategy and dive into combinations of extremes, with a mix of perspectives, biases, topics and geographies.
- Have fun, get weird, sprinkle in some randomness every now and then.
- Follow personal recommendations from people you trust, and read everything that your mentors and favorite writers read.
4. Calm and complex.
- Thoughtful arguments that explore the other side in a respectful style.
- No talking heads. No pissing contests. No inflammatory rants for ratings.
- Spend your time — and enough time — with deep thinkers, tough topics, enlightening debates, inspiring narratives and subtle nuances.
5. Independent.
- Try to avoid ads
- Prioritize subscription-based models.
- Non-partisan and not beholden to larger interests that may skew incentives.
6. Non-perishable.
- Slow news.
- Classic books.
- Stuff that stands the test of time.
Media Diet Staples
These are the media sources I regularly read, watch and listen to. They’re organized from high to low in terms of consumption. For example, I read every article from the top two blogs on the list (Sinocism and Stratechery). I also usually read about 20 pages a day in whatever book I’m reading (currently War & Peace), and listen to one or two episodes from the podcasts I subscribe to.
- [New addition] Sinocism, by Bill Bishop, is a blog that will help you “Get smarter about China.”
- Stratechery, by Ben Thompson, is a blog that “provides analysis of the strategy and business side of technology and media, and the impact of technology on society.”
- Books, real books, with pages and margins in which I can underline and take notes.
- Podcasts:
- The Joe Rogan Experience nuff said
- The Portal is a podcast “exploration into discovery, including conversations with thought leaders.” Hosted by Eric Weinstein
- [Ad free!] Conversations with Tyler is a podcast where economist Tyler Cowen talks to interesting and smart people about everything
- The Bill Simmons Podcast is about sports and pop culture
- [Ad free!] Exponent, by Ben Thompson and James Allworth, is a podcast about tech and society
- [Ad free!] The Little Red Podcast is a podcast about China
- [Ad free!] EconTalk is a podcast hosted by economist Russ Roberts
- [Ad free!] Naval is a podcast of wisdom, thoughts and tips from Naval Ravikant
- [Ad free!] Hardcore History and Common Sense, both by Dan Carlin, are podcasts about history, news and politics
- Hidden Brain is a podcast “about life’s unseen patterns.”
- Masters of Scale is a podcast hosted by Reid Hoffman, co-founder of LinkedIn and investor at Greylock.
- Marginal Revolution, by Tyler Cowen and Alex Tabarrok, is a blog about economics and much more.
- The Economist weekly print edition and daily Espresso news briefings.
- Twitter Even though I generally say “No news feeds,” I use Twitter — pretty sparingly — for unique access to really smart people. It’s a constantly evolving mess that helps me “sprinkle in some randomness every now and then.”
- Live music and instruments when practicable. Spotify and vinyl records otherwise.
- Not much TV: NBA games in season; occasional movies and shows on Netflix.