big idea day 2017
​october 14-15

​Hot Off the Press:
consuming the news in 2017

For Morning Meeting at the Mountain School, students rotate through the job of updating the community about current events in the news. During a recent semester, one student chose a particular story and relayed the details through the lenses of several different news sources. The story varied notably from one news outlet to another.

Today, how we consume the news and which sources we choose have changed significantly since most graduates' time at the Mountain School. While we have greater access to worldwide news than ever before, how we consume it—which version to believe, how to make sure we're not staying within an echo-chamber—is more challenging than ever. 

For Big Idea Day 2017, the Alumni Committee invites graduates to gather and discuss how you consume news in this hyper-partisan world, where bias influences everything. Below are some questions that may help guide conversations. (You can also email us if you have a discussion question you'd like added to this list.)

  • How have your sources and approaches to consuming information evolved?
  • Have you tried to limit or expand the breadth of perspectives you’re exposed to?  If so, how and why?
  • What responsibility do we have, if any, to seek and incorporate a range of perspectives and viewpoints in our news feeds?
  • Can you avoid the news today?  If yes, what are the tradeoffs?
  • How do you participate in the news dialogue? Do you engage in conversation at home, work, online, not at all?​​​​

details & registration for big idea day events:

Birmingham, AL
​Boston, MA
Brooklyn, NY (Friday)
Brooklyn, NY (Sunday)
Durham, NC
​Eugene, OR
Leadville, CO
London, UK
​Montpelier, VT
Nashville, TN
​New York, NY (Saturday)
Providence, RI
​San Francisco, CA
​Sau Paulo, Brazil
​Seattle, WA
Washington, DC
Suggested Readings

If you have an article you'd like to add to this list, email us the link. 
​

The Difficulties of Consuming News

Fatigued by the News? Experts Suggest How to Adjust Your Media Diet

Reading, Writing, Fighting Fake News: How schools are teaching kids to separate fact from fiction