B2 News Psychology & Behavior · May 25, 2026

Why 40 per cent of people are avoiding the news, according to a psychologist

Four in ten people now avoid the news — and a psychologist explains exactly why our brains struggle.

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Switch if this feels too hard or too easy.

Nearly 40 per cent of people around the world now say they actively avoid the news — and that number is the highest ever recorded. A recent Reuters Institute report found that 69 per cent of Canadians at least occasionally tune out. People describe the feeling as standing under a waterfall of perpetual bad news: overwhelmed, powerless, and exhausted before the day has even started.

As a researcher in developmental psychology, focusing on social development and psychological well-being, I argue that news fatigue is not laziness, weakness or a generational decline in civic interest. It's actually a perfectly logical response from a brain built for a very different world. Our ancestors evolved a negativity bias — a tendency to prioritize threats over good news — because missing a predator could be fatal. That same wiring now processes a war, a financial shock, and a climate disaster all before lunch. A study of over 105,000 news headlines confirmed the pattern: each additional negative word boosted click-through rates, while positive words had the opposite effect.

For some groups, the toll is even heavier. Racialized communities and immigrants face a compounded cognitive load when the news directly targets people like them — and simply switching off is rarely an option when the stories hit close to home.

So what actually helps? Containing news consumption to defined windows of time reduces the sense of being overwhelmed. Choosing one well-reported long-form article beats scrolling through emotionally charged social media posts. And learning to spot "rage bait" — content deliberately designed to provoke rather than inform — creates valuable distance between you and the chaos. The news won't get lighter, but your relationship with it can become far more deliberate.

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📚 Key vocabulary

negativity bias (noun)
The human tendency to pay more attention to bad news and negative experiences than positive ones
"Marketers who understand negativity bias know that warnings about product risks often grab more attention than promises of benefits."
cognitive load (noun)
The total amount of mental effort and information a person's brain is handling at one time
"Open-plan offices can increase cognitive load, making it harder for employees to focus on complex tasks."
compounded (adj)
Made worse or more serious by additional problems or factors added on top
"The team's deadline pressure was compounded by the sudden resignation of two key members."
deliberate (adj)
Done consciously and carefully, with clear intention rather than by habit or accident
"Successful executives tend to be deliberate about how they spend the first hour of their working day."
provoke (verb)
To deliberately cause a strong emotional reaction, especially anger or outrage, in someone
"The advertising campaign was designed to provoke debate rather than simply sell a product."

✨ Useful phrases for this topic

"standing under a waterfall of perpetual bad news"
Use this vivid image when describing the feeling of being completely overwhelmed by a non-stop flow of negative information.
"After three back-to-back crisis meetings, she said it felt like standing under a waterfall of perpetual bad news with no way to step aside."
"rage bait"
Use this term to describe online content that is deliberately designed to make people angry in order to get more clicks, shares, or engagement.
"Before sharing that article in the team chat, ask yourself whether it's genuine analysis or just rage bait designed to provoke a reaction."
"choose depth over volume"
Use this phrase when advising someone to focus on fewer, higher-quality sources of information rather than consuming large amounts of unreliable content.
"When preparing for a negotiation, I always tell junior colleagues to choose depth over volume — read two expert reports thoroughly rather than skim twenty news summaries."

Advanced sentence structures

Patterns from this article you can use in meetings, emails, and everyday English

Structure 1

In context

As a researcher in developmental psychology, focusing on social development and psychological well-being, I argue that news fatigue is not laziness, weakness or a generational decline in civic interest.

The skeleton

Frame: I argue that [noun/noun phrase] is not [noun], [noun] or [noun phrase].

What it does: States a clear position by rejecting common misconceptions about a topic.

Quick swap: "I argue that employee burnout is not weakness, selfishness or a lack of professionalism."

More examples

  • "I argue that remote working is not laziness, disengagement or a threat to company culture."
  • "I argue that taking a gap year is not avoidance, failure or a sign of poor ambition."
  • "I argue that asking for help is not weakness, incompetence or an admission of defeat."

Easy exercise

Arrange the words and add the missing structural elements to build a correct sentence.

  1. news avoidance · a civic failure · laziness · I argue that · weakness · is not · or
  2. I argue that · carelessness · or a lack of discipline · making mistakes · is not · ignorance
Show answers
  • "I argue that news avoidance is not laziness, weakness or a civic failure."
  • "I argue that making mistakes is not ignorance, carelessness or a lack of discipline."

Open exercise

Write your own sentence using this structure. You can write about anything — here are some ideas if you need them:

  • A common misunderstanding about how people consume social media
  • A workplace behaviour that is often judged unfairly
  • A personal choice that people sometimes criticise without understanding

One possible answer: "I argue that setting firm boundaries at work is not rudeness, selfishness or a sign of low commitment."

Structure 2

In context

Containing news consumption to defined windows of time reduces the sense of being overwhelmed.

The skeleton

Frame: [Verb-ing] [noun phrase] to [defined limit or condition] [verb] [result or outcome].

What it does: Presents a practical action and its positive result using a gerund as the subject.

Quick swap: "Limiting screen time to one hour per evening reduces the difficulty of falling asleep."

More examples

  • "Restricting meetings to thirty minutes per session increases the team's overall productivity."
  • "Dedicating study sessions to a single subject at a time improves long-term retention of information."
  • "Reducing your coffee intake to one cup a day lowers the risk of afternoon energy crashes."

Easy exercise

Arrange the words and add the missing structural elements to build a correct sentence.

  1. news consumption · two trusted sources · containing · reduces · the risk of misinformation · to
  2. email checking · twice a day · limiting · improves · focus during deep work · to
Show answers
  • "Containing news consumption to two trusted sources reduces the risk of misinformation."
  • "Limiting email checking to twice a day improves focus during deep work."

Open exercise

Write your own sentence using this structure. You can write about anything — here are some ideas if you need them:

  • A habit that could help someone manage stress from the news or social media
  • A change to a daily work or study routine
  • A health or lifestyle adjustment you have heard about or tried

One possible answer: "Restricting social media use to thirty minutes in the evening reduces the feeling of anxiety before bed."

💬 Discussion questions

1

Think about your own morning routine — do you check the news first thing, and how does it affect your mood and energy for the rest of the day?

2

The article says avoiding the news is dangerous for democracy, but constant exposure is harmful to mental health — how do you think society should balance these two problems?

3

In your professional life, how do you decide which information is worth your attention and which is just noise? Could those same strategies apply to news consumption?

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