Here's the thing. It's a bit like herd immunity. It almost doesn't matter if you in particular read the journalism or not. It matters if nobody reads it. (Mostly for the social effects, but partly because then the industry can't afford to do real journalism for anybody).
At that point things start to fall apart; that's when ill-informed power-brokers put dangerous options like Brexit in front of even-less-informed voters.
Not reading a newspaper may not have impacted your life much. Living in a world where vastly fewer people are reading them already is.
Do you think that's unique to television news, or do you think the same is true of people reading newspapers (analog or digital)?
The useful news is usually not 'up to the minute', not particularly eye catching or entertaining, and is very well sourced. It usually takes the form of things like journal papers, voting records, or the results of careful document audits. It rarely is concerned with any single person and is much more concerned with the actions of many people over time.
Basically, 'news' now seems mostly about entertainment, and telling people "you have an obligation to follow this particular form of entertainment" seems like a very silly thing to say.
it directly affects how much money i make, how much inflation my assets will enjoy or suffer from, how much i will be taxed, and under what circumstances (i.e., should i decide to sell my company this year? should i sell my house now or next year?)
it also directly affects the rights that i or my friends may or may not have as a citizen. i.e. gay marriage, gun ownership, abortions, marijuana legalization, etc.
if you don't think any of this really matters, then uhh, i guess we disagree.
again, if anyone thinks none of this matters, i am just going to say, okay, great, but it matters to me.
Something in the news actually changed who you would vote for?
>where i put my money/investments
Okay, granted.
>whether or not i sold my company 2 years ago
You sold your company because you saw something in the news? And if you didn't watch political news you would still own it? Sorry, but I have hard time imagining how that worked.
>in the next 2 years, it's going to 100% determine where i live.
If you know in advance that something will determine where you live, it's by definition not something you need to watch news for. You can just wait for two years and run a search for the info you need.
I have stopped reading them or watching tv a while ago, and even started to actively avoid mainstream media. My life has not been impacted in any way except having a little more free time.
News is not necessary. It doesn't enrich your life. It's just something to put on and feel smarter than if you put on a sitcom.
Try this, I do it every time I'm home: watch people watch the news, and then ask them what was on. Pretend you didn't hear some segment or just flat out ask them to summarize. Most people most of the time won't be able to tell you. And they're perfectly functioning, intelligent adults.
At best it doesn't matter. At worst it's actively harmful by giving you these easily accessible stories that bear no relation to your life. Good riddance.