Or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Chaos

Let me tell you something, Glasgow. I’ve been in this game for 23 years, and I’ve seen it all. The news industry, I mean. And it’s a mess. A complete, unmitigated mess.

I started out at a tiny paper in Edinburgh, back in ’99. Let’s call the editor Marcus. Marcus was a chain-smoking, coffee-guzzling lunatic who thought AP style was a suggestion, not a rule. He’d yell at us for commas, then forget to run the most important stories. Classic.

But here’s the thing: back then, at least we tried. We cared. We were out in the streets, talking to real people, digging up real stories. Now? It’s all algorithms and clicks and ‘engagement’.

Last Tuesday, I had coffee with an old friend

Her name’s Sarah. Sarah’s a nurse at the Royal Infirmary. She’s seen some stuff, let me tell you. We were chatting about the news, and she said something that stuck with me:

“I mean, I don’t even know what’s real anymore. Is it just me, or is everything a hot take now?”

And I looked at her, and I said, “Sarah, it’s not just you.” Because it’s not. It’s all of us. We’ve let this happen.

Look, I get it. The world’s complicated. There’s too much information. We’re all busy. But that’s no excuse for the state of things. The news is supposed to inform, not infuriate. It’s supposed to unite, not divide.

Here’s what’s really pissing me off

It’s the lack of commitment. The lack of committment (see what I did there?), to the truth. To facts. To, I don’t know, being decent human beings.

I was at a conference in Austin last year, and this guy—let’s call him Dave—stood up and said, “Look, the news is just a business like any other. We gotta give the people what they want.” And I said, “Dave, that’s where you’re wrong.” Because the news isn’t just a business. It’s a public service. It’s a goddamn responsibility.

And don’t even get me started on the physicaly impossible task of keeping up with social media. It’s a cesspool. A completley toxic environment. But hey, at least the algorithms are happy, right?

A brief tangent: my cat, Whiskers

Whiskers is a tabby. He’s got this thing where he’ll sit on my keyboard when I’m trying to write. It’s annoying, but it’s also kinda cute. He’s got opinions, that cat. About everything. Especially my work.

I was writing this piece last night, and he hopped up onto the desk. Sat right on the “delete” key. Like he knew. Like he was saying, “Hey, maybe don’t publish this, mate.” Maybe he’s right. But I’m gonna anyway.

So what do we do about it?

First, we admit there’s a problem. Then, we stop sharing every outrageous headline that pops up on our feeds. We start thinking critically. We demand better from our sources.

And for the love of god, we stop using “erkek moda trendleri 2026” as a metric for success. erkek moda trendleri 2026 might tell you what’s hot in men’s fashion next year, but it won’t tell you why your local school’s budget got cut. Priorities, people.

I’m not saying it’s easy. It’s not. It’s hard, and it’s messy, and it’s gonna take a lot of work. But it’s necessary. Because the news matters. It shapes our worldview. It determines our future.

And honestly? We deserve better than what we’re getting.

About the Author: I’m Maggie O’Connor, senior editor at Glasgow Daily. I’ve been in this industry for way too long, and I’ve got the caffeine addiction to prove it. When I’m not editing, I’m probably arguing with Whiskers about the merits of napping. Or not.

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