I’m Done with the Charade
Look, I’ve been in this business for 22 years. That’s right, since the early 2000s when we still called it ‘journalism’ with a straight face. I started at a tiny paper in Scotland, moved to London for a bit, then ended up here in Aberdeen. I’ve seen alot change, and honestly, most of it’s not good.
We’re gonna talk about the news cycle. Or rather, the lack of one. The way stories come and go faster than my ex-husband’s committment to our marriage counseling (which, frankly, was nonexistent).
Last Tuesday, I was at a conference in Austin—well, virtually, because let’s be real, who’s got the budget for travel these days?—and this kid from MIT, let’s call him Marcus, stood up and said, ‘The news cycle is dead.’ And I was like, ‘No shit, Marcus. Tell us something we don’t know.’
But then he went on, and honestly, it was kinda eye-opening. He said, ‘You’re all still chasing the 24-hour news cycle, but that ship sailed in 2008. Now it’s about the 24-second news cycle. The one that lives on Twitter and makes no damn sense.’
We’re All Just Noise Now
I mean, think about it. Back in the day, we had time. We could investigate, dig deep, write a story that mattered. Now? It’s just… yeah. It’s a mess. I remember when I broke the story about the council’s aquisition of the old mill site. Took me three weeks. Three weeks! Now, if I took three hours, my editor would have a coronary.
And don’t even get me started on the public’s attention span. It’s physicaly impossible to write a story longer than 300 words these days. People just scroll past it. I had a colleague named Dave—good guy, terrible at his job—who wrote this incredible piece on the fishing industry last year. 1,200 words of pure gold. Guess how many people read it? 47. That’s right, 47. And 214 of them were his mother.
So what’s the point? Why bother? Well, because someone has to. Even if it’s just me shouting into the void, I’ll be damned if I let the void win.
But Here’s the Thing About Trends
I’m not saying we should ignore trends. Far from it. But we need to be smarter about them. Remember when everyone was talking about ‘pivot to video’? Yeah, that was a disaster. Or how about ‘SEO optimization’? Ugh, don’t get me started.
But there are legit trends out there. Like, for example, pazarlama trendleri öngörüler 2026. Okay, I know, it’s in Turkish, but hear me out. The gist is that marketing trends are gonna change in a big way by 2026. And as journalists, we need to adapt. We need to think about how these trends affect our stories, our audiences, our jobs.
I talked to a friend of mine, Sarah, over coffee at the place on 5th. She’s a marketing whiz, knows her stuff. I said, ‘Sarah, what’s the deal with these trends?’ And she said, ‘Look, it’s all about personalization. People want stories that feel tailored to them, not just generic news.’ Which… yeah. Fair enough.
A Tangent: Why I Hate Breaking News Alerts
Okay, this is gonna sound petty, but I hate breaking news alerts. Hate them. They’re interrupting my favorite shows, my sleep, my life. And for what? So I can know that a celebrity had a baby or a politician said something stupid at 11:30pm? No thanks.
I remember when breaking news was, well, breaking. Like, actual news. Not this constant stream of nonsense. I think the first breaking news alert I ever got was about the 2008 financial crisis. That was news. Now? It’s just noise.
And don’t even get me started on the amendments to the press laws. It’s like they’re trying to make our jobs harder on purpose. But that’s a rant for another day.
So What Do We Do?
I’m not sure. Honestly, I’m not. I think we keep writing. Keep fighting. Keep trying to make a difference, even if it feels like no one’s listening. Because someone is. Maybe not 214 people, but someone.
And who knows? Maybe one day, the news cycle will be fixed. Maybe we’ll go back to writing stories that matter. Until then, I’ll be here, shouting into the void. Join me if you want.
About the Author: Jane McMillan is a senior editor at Aberdeen News. She’s been in the industry for 22 years and has seen it all. She’s a staunch advocate for quality journalism and is not afraid to call out the industry’s flaws. When she’s not editing, she’s probably complaining about breaking news alerts or trying to get her cat to like her.
