Lost in Bad News

All I wanted was a quick cup of coffee and to check the latest football scores on my news app. Instead I found myself reading about migrant boats capsizing, escalating conflicts and violent clashes. I was reminded of ongoing crises and wars, and heard about the latest devastation wrought by wildfires, droughts and catastrophic floods, which are causing despair and suffering.

Given the current state of the world, we face a constant barrage of grim headlines that are difficult to avoid in the age of social media and instant news. This can weigh us down and be hard to cope with. Even if we put our phones back in our pockets, one of the many other screens in our daily lives is bound to confront us with what's going on around the world. How are we supposed to keep a level head, which is necessary if we are to remain informed citizens?

Statistics confirm this trend. According to the Digital News Report published by the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism at Oxford University, the percentage of people actively avoiding the news has increased from 29% in 2017 to 40% in 2025. In Switzerland, a study conducted by Anne Schulz and Sophia Volk in 2023 found that 30% of people are considered active news avoiders. 65% of survey respondents immediately or often delete certain news content, such as newsletters, while 54% switch off push notifications in their news apps. Half of those surveyed turn off their devices completely, either spontaneously or at specific times, to escape the endless stream of news. Such news breaks can be a valid strategy for coping with the abundance of news. "However," Schulz says, "if this news abstinence persists, people's knowledge of the world will suffer, undermining the basis on which they form opinions - a basis that is fundamental for a functioning democratic society."

People who have completely turned away from the news are referred to as disconnected users. According to the Digital News Report, there are roughly 540,000 disconnected users in Switzerland, accounting for around 6% of the population. What does it mean for society if more and more people disconnect from world events and withdraw from the political process, or engage only on the basis of misinformation?

In her next study, Anne Schulz plans to investigate voter turnout among the various user groups. Do news avoiders or disconnected users still go to the ballot box at all? And if they do, how do they reach their decisions? "Misinformed people, in particular, risk voting against their own interests, for example when they have been misled or manipulated," the communication scientist says. After all, it could be that these people consume large amounts of information but not from reliable sources.

In Switzerland, most people still value reputable sources of information. More than half of the population get their information offline from Swiss public broadcasters SRF and RTS, while a third do so online. And no less than 70% to 80% of the population consider Swiss public media outlets trustworthy, according to the 2025 Digital News Report. "It's incredibly important for independent media, which stand for high-quality journalism and truthful reporting and thus, in a way, represent the Fourth Estate, to reach and be able to appeal to the younger generations," says Schulz. "This way, young people can recognize professional and reliable sources in the vast information landscape and distinguish them from misinformation."

Complaints about information overload are nothing new. In the ancient world, the Greek poet and scholar Callimachus struggled with the sheer volume of information and sought ways to bring order to it, says Anne Schulz. Much later, after the invention of the printing press, the intellectual elite in particular suddenly found themselves facing an unprecedented deluge of information. In the 17th century, the German philosopher Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz warned against the "terrible mass of books" that was causing almost insurmountable disorder. In the history of communication, this is a recurring pattern. "Technological innovations often contribute to the growing volume of information, whether it's the printing press or, more recently, digitalization, which has further increased the plurality of media and media practices," says the communication scientist.

Many people also appreciate this wealth of options. "Those who read the news in a targeted manner don't feel overwhelmed," says Schulz. Nor do they feel helpless. "In our study, 56% of respondents said they valued the abundance of options available to them for news, entertainment and personal communication," the researcher explains. This mostly applies to an older, predominantly male audience with high incomes and high levels of education. By contrast, more than a third of respondents (38%) reported feeling overwhelmed by the volume of information.

How can we manage negative news and the relentless flood of information while staying informed and protecting our mental health? "We need to consume news in a more targeted way and cut through the noise - that's something we still need to get better at," says Anne Schulz. In our 24/7 information society, news is available anytime and anywhere, which can compel us to constantly follow it. Here are some ways to push back:

Establish habits

Just as people in the analogue era would sit down to watch the evening news at the same time each night, you can set a fixed time - for example, during your commute or while unwinding at the end of the day - to listen to a news podcast or check a news app.

Take news breaks

Make sure to ditch your device and avoid the news for specific periods of time. For example, spend a weekend without accessing any news.

Turn off notifications

Push notifications are a constant distraction. Disable them, and instead, open your news app at a time of your own choosing to check the latest updates.

Put your phone away

Try placing your phone in a drawer or even a different room. Out of sight, out of mind (at least for a while). This can make you feel less dependent and remove the temptation to sneak a quick look at whatever pops up on the screen.

Set time limits, delete apps

Set realistic time limits for certain apps to avoid getting carried away scrolling through the news. And don't hesitate to delete apps that you no longer use.

Communicate thoughtfully

Taking responsibility for how we communicate also helps shape the flow of information. Ask yourself: Does this e-mail or WhatsApp message really need to be sent right now? And does every message have to be sent from your phone?

However, all these strategies may backfire, warns Anne Schulz. Fear of missing out, or FOMO, when switching off is a well-documented phenomenon. "In the worst case, FOMO can weigh on us more heavily than any temporary information overload," she says. The key is to try out different approaches until you find a solution that works for you personally.

But how can we best navigate the constant stream of information we all face today? What if I'm tired of scrolling through news apps but still want to stay informed about current events? These are the questions the communication scientist aims to tackle in her next project. She wants to understand how people can stay informed while preserving their mental health. Together with a news portal and a fellow researcher from ETH Zurich, Schulz is developing a filtering algorithm that can be integrated into a news app.

This algorithm will be able to filter information responsibly, guided by ethical principles. First, the researchers will analyze how to identify negative news. Then, they will create a text-analysis tool that can scan articles fed into an app and mark negative news, flagging it with a button that could appear next to the usual news feed on users' smartphones - similar to the Nutri-Score label on supermarket products. Depending on their mood or personal preferences, users could choose a red, yellow or green flag to temporarily filter out distressing articles. This is some good news to help us ditch the doomscrolling - at least for a while.

Prof. Dr. Anne Schulz

Sustainable News Project