This previously ran in our October 2022 Print Issue.

We live in a corrupt society, one filled with fear, anger, and hatred. Every day our phones light up with notifications from news broadcasters, telling us that day’s events. Some let it affect their mood for the day, and others just delete the notification. 

Wars, natural disasters, mass shootings, racial inequality; these are just some of the topics that we label as breaking news. These topics are on the forefront of every news station for a week, or maybe a month if the issue “becomes trendy.” Everyone’s social media is flooded with different people’s opinions, donation requests, news articles, and photos of the incident.

But what happens after that high? Does the issue just disappear until next time? Until the next person is killed? 

The Russian-Ukrainian War is a prime example of a major news event that, when it first happened, everyone seemed to care about it. But the war isn’t over. To this day, people are still dying, losing their homes, fighting for their rights. What happened to the donation links and the Ukrainian flag waving from people’s homes? 

According to The Guardian, Ukrainians fear the loss of Western support because of the loss of media recognition. They are all people who deserve and need our help – not just when we feel like it or when we feel it’s trendy to support. Putin has threatened a missile attack which could cause horrific damage to Ukraine, but only the people engrossed in the news would know. This event could greatly affect the war and yet no one seems to care anymore. 

Another topic that is greatly cared about and discussed when it is first in the news is school shootings. 

Every time a school shooting happens, people argue with each other to change laws. People protest against U.S. policies on gun control, their Second Amendment rights, and the safety of students in school. Then a week or two passes, and many people seem to not care anymore or they seem to forget. The want for change stops and the pity for the parents goes away. Do we not care about seeing change? 

Parents still grieve for their children who went to school thinking it was a normal day and not that it was their last. When the Sandy Hook Massacre occurred, people across the nation rallied that this would be it. Never again. Yet how many times since has it occurred — all while people made money over the deaths of children by calling it a hoax of so-called news outlets. 

Time goes by and everything goes back to “normal,” and then another school shooting occurs and the cycle repeats itself. 

News is a part of our everyday life, and yet people seem to only care when it is breaking news or seen as trendy to be in support of it.

As soon as the high dies down, people seem to not care anymore, leaving the victims to fend for themselves.