(WARRENSBURG, Mo.) – In the past two years, it has become clear to Americans that understanding what is going on in politics is vital. Within one year, America has experienced a tax cut that removed the Affordable Healthcare mandate, a government shutdown and a plethora of election upsets and scandals.

However, while government affects the lives of all Americans, over the years Americans have become less knowledgeable.

“Between 1972 and 2008, the share of people saying they follow ‘what’s going on in government and public affairs’ declined from 36 percent to 26 percent,” Senator Mike Lee from the Social Capital Project said.

If politics has such an impact on everyone’s lives, why do only 26 percent of Americans know what is going on in the government? There are a lot of reasons, but the most straightforward answer is that it’s a lot harder than ever to get all the information when the news is continually changing.

It’s easy for Americans in 2018 not to have a burning desire to stay informed and active in politics. The 24-hour news cycle in America has made listening to the news difficult with the extreme spectrums of coverage from channel to channel. Most news stations either change their topic coverage every ad break or drag out the coverage for hours.

Those reasons could explain the Pew Research data that concluded Americans are relying less on TV to bring them their news over the years but instead turn toward the internet for their news.

The internet offers quick snippets and highlights of multiple stories rather than a snail pace coverage of one. Those highlights do change how people understand the story; a news source would have the ability to frame the issue in a biased way by only reporting a part of the story.

Regardless of how people get their news, it is more important where a person gets their news.

Someone should try to find a network that offers balance or at least both sides of the political spectrum. Only listening to Fox News or CNN is a fantastic way to get confirmation of previously held beliefs but not to form new ones.

It is important to take a stance on issues but only after understanding what each side represents.

A more balanced news network would be one that owns the bias they have. A perfect example of this would be KCRW’s Left, Right, and Center. The hosts of the show will change from time-to -time, but the principle stays the same. The show’s foundation is being very upfront about where the hosts fall on the spectrum and why they believe their side is correct.

Another option could be to look towards local news stations and newspapers. Large news companies have access to large groups of people and can afford to show bias; the local news can’t afford to show a bias that could turn the small number of local citizens from tuning in. Regardless, if it is at a local, state or national level transparency is critical in finding a trustworthy source for news.

While becoming informed on what is going on in the country is of utmost importance, it is not an easy task. It takes a lot of time and effort to sort through all news companies to find the ones that are transparent.

Most students don’t have a lot of time to spend finding balanced media, so utilizing time spent finding quality coverage is vital. One should show strict scrutiny before accepting what they hear as the gospel truth, that is the only way someone can become informed in a balanced way.