One of my friends texted me the other day, shocked, saying, “Alexei Navalny died.” For those unaware, Navalny was the imprisoned leader of the Russian political party opposed to the corrupt rule of Vladimir Putin. He died in prison under mysterious circumstances.

My friend had texted me this on February 19, three days after news of the death broke out. It was hard to resist taunting my friend for living under a rock, as the death of any democratic voice like Navalny’s is major. However, the news was broken to me through a Canvas announcement by one of my professors. In that moment, my cluelessness to what was happening in the world matched my friend’s.

With midterms week and the increased workload that comes with it, it’s easy to find yourself too busy to keep track of the news cycle. As stated in the other ops article this week, you need to put in the work for your degree, regardless of what your major is. Even if you adopt the mindset of “C’s get degrees” – if it worked for Bush it can work for you –  there are other things like work, grocery shopping, etc. that can keep you busy.

However, it’s still important to remain informed. While it is not recommended to do this all the time, even just scrolling through headlines can keep you more informed about the world. This is especially true for people who don’t have the time to read multiple articles.

Many people also argue that there are too many paywalls to bypass in order to access news content. There are still many options for price-conscious readers. NPR, a publicly-funded and donor-supported news service, has a free online app that provides both online articles and podcast episodes ranging from a variety of topics. Let it be clear, NPR hasn’t sponsored me. However, the app is extremely easy to use compared to the clunky, browser-based sites of other news providers.

This app and other publicly-funded or donor-supported forms of media are helpful to those of you who don’t wish to resort to the unimaginable, inhumane and all-around villainous act of using easy-to-access ad blockers. Using an ad blocker when reading Pittsburgh Post-Gazette articles will forever be encouraged, though. That, or outright avoiding Post-Gazette content until the Gazette workers on strike receive a fair contract. If you want to read their work, read the Pittsburgh Union Progress instead.

There’s also an argument that mainstream news “sets an agenda” that tells people what to think. This isn’t true. As one of my professors once said, “It’s impossible to tell an American what to think.” Sure, mainstream media can inform the public on what to think about through focusing on certain stories and refusing to focus on others. However, the idea that paying attention to the news will brainwash you to follow a certain agenda is absurd. If anything, the bias inherent in all media promotes the concept of reading more articles. This way, you can pull from a variety of sources.

This Spring Break will serve as the perfect time to create a habit of consuming news stories. You should incorporate reading news articles or listening to news podcasts into your daily routine while taking a break from your school schedule.