The Best News Sites to Break Out of Your Filter Bubble

When's the last time you read something that made you seriously question your opinion, in a real and meaningful way? If you're like most of us, that happens less and less often, mostly because it's so easy to only read news sources and opinions like our own. This is called a "filter bubble," and it's important to break out from time to time. Here are some great places to challenge yourself to do just that.

If you're not familiar with the term "filter bubble," it describes what we get when the services we use only recommend things they know we would already like. The side-effect is that we're shielded from anything potentially challenging. We begin to surround ourselves only with news that appeals to us, makes us feel good, and caters to our own opinions. While it can be comforting to assume everyone agrees with us and we're right, it's critical to break out of it sometimes to understand the world around us, get to the truth, and learn to find common ground with people who disagree.

The first step though, is to gradually expose yourself to alternate points of view, according to this report from the MIT Technology Review. Not for argument's sake, but to try and understand where they come from, challenge your own confirmation bias, and decide rationally where you believe the truth lies—whether it's where you started, or somewhere else.

Since we're talking about news, let's talk about some news souces that will do just that—challenge you. We have some of our own, and we'll share them in the discussions below, but instead of just throwing a list of items together, we want you to share your own favorite smart news sources with us too, on the same terms. Here's how to format your favorite news site or source:

  1. Include a picture! A logo, a screenshot of the front page—anything to add a little visual interest.
  2. One tool per comment please! Let's keep it simple and easy to read—if you have multiple journals, news sites, or blogs, add them as separate comments!
  3. Try not to repeat apps! If you see someone who's already shared your pick, click the star or reply to their comment to give it a boost!
  4. Tell us how why you enjoy it. Why does it rate highly with you? What have you read or seen recently that you thought was particularly eye-opening or challenging?

So then, let's begin! We'll get you started with some of our favorite news sites and services in the discussions, but we're really interested in yours, so fire away.

Title photo made using Nemo and Openclips.