Information Diet
Use when someone feels overwhelmed by news, feeds, newsletters, or podcasts and wants to audit those inputs, cut some, schedule the rest, and choose higher-quality sources. Distinct from [[focus-blocker]] (blocks access during chosen hours), [[grayscale-mode]] (dulls the phone's appeal), and [[reading-capture]] (processes what has already been read).
An information diet is a deliberate choice about what to take in: which news, feeds, newsletters, and podcasts, how often, and for what purpose. Like any diet it is about fit and quality, not purity. This skill runs an audit of current inputs, cuts and schedules them, and picks sources that serve the user's goals. It stays politically neutral and does not rank publications.
Input required
- Inputs now: news apps and sites, social feeds, newsletters, podcasts, video channels, group chats, and alerts.
- Time and timing: how much time each takes and when it happens.
- Purpose: staying informed for work, learning, civic awareness, entertainment, or social contact.
- Effects: which inputs leave the user informed, anxious, drained, or wiser.
- Constraints: professional needs to follow certain topics.
Questions to ask first
Ask in one batch of at most five questions, skipping any already answered:
- List the news, feeds, newsletters, and podcasts you take in on a typical week.
- What do you actually need to know to do your work and run your life?
- Which inputs leave you better off, and which leave you anxious or tired?
- How many times a day do you check news or feeds, and when?
- Do you want to stay informed on any topic at a deeper level?
Method
- Inventory everything. Write every recurring input with its form, frequency, and rough time. Include alerts and passive background sources.
- Name the purpose of each. Mark each as needed for work, useful for learning, important for citizenship or community, enjoyment, or habit. Habit-only inputs are the first to cut.
- Rate the effect. For each, note the user's own answer to three questions: Did I learn something I used? Did it change a decision? How do I feel after? These are personal judgments, not measurements.
- Cut. Remove or mute the lowest-value inputs first: unsubscribe, unfollow, delete apps, turn off alerts. Cut a few at a time so the change lasts. Keep the news you truly need.
- Separate urgent from important. Breaking-news alerts rarely need a real-time response. Many people do well with a periodic summary or weekly source instead of continuous updates. Offer that as an option.
- Schedule what remains. Give each kept input a time and a limit: one slot for news, one for newsletters, podcasts during walks or chores. Do not check at bedtime if it harms sleep. Pair with Focus Blocker to enforce the windows.
- Choose sources deliberately. For each topic, consider features such as: - Does it distinguish reporting from opinion? - Does it name its sources and correct errors? - Is it transparent about who pays for it? - Does it include primary material or data? - Does it include more than one perspective on contested topics? Prefer a few reliable sources over many; mixing viewpoints is a user choice. Do not name or disparage specific publications.
- Add depth. Replace some shallow volume with something slower: a book, a long article, or a course. See Offline Learning.
- Review monthly. Re-run the audit: what crept back, what was missed, what can go.
Output format
- Audit table: input, purpose, time, effect, decision (keep, cut, limit).
- Cut list and how to cut each.
- Schedule: when and how long for each kept input.
- Source criteria the user will apply.
- Monthly review prompt.
Ground rules
- Stay politically neutral. Do not recommend or criticize publications, parties, or viewpoints; use the user's chosen sources and general quality criteria.
- Do not invent claims about the effects of news or feeds on health or attention. Use the user's own reports.
- Respect real needs. A journalist, trader, or researcher may properly consume more; design for the role.
- Wellbeing caution. If news or feeds worsen low mood or anxiety persistently, suggest speaking with a clinician; if there are thoughts of self-harm, advise contacting local emergency or crisis services.
- Tools are examples only.
Self-check before answering
- Did every input get a purpose and a decision?
- Are cuts staged rather than all at once?
- Do kept inputs have a time and a limit?
- Are the source criteria general and neutral?
- Is the review scheduled?
Common pitfalls
- Cutting too much and relapsing — a total fast fails fast.
- Replacing, not reducing — a podcast binge replaces the news binge.
- Alerts left on — the feed returns through the lock screen.
- Equating more with better informed — volume is not understanding.
- Single-source dependence — one voice shapes every view.
- Assuming a source is trustworthy for being familiar — check by criteria.
Example prompt
I check news and social media dozens of times a day and subscribe to far too many newsletters. Audit my inputs, tell me what to cut, set a schedule for the rest, and give me criteria for choosing sources.
Learn more
- Focus Blocker for enforcing the windows you set.
- Grayscale Mode for reducing the phone's pull.
- Reading Capture for getting value from what you keep.
- Offline Learning for deeper, slower inputs.