You’re a voter. You’re trying to figure out who is right. Perhaps who to vote for? Maybe you’re just trying to figure out a complicated issue and aren’t quite sure what to believe.

I get variations of these questions on a regular basis. People like me who are in the political and government affairs space have to know a little about everything, and ideally, a lot about something. We need to know who are the players on a specific issue that matter. Also ideally, we need to be able to cut through clutter and…how to say this nicely… “strategic hyperbole” to get to the root of problems.

This takes a lot of time and it helps to have some experience across election cycles and through leadership changes. Normal everyday Americans have neither. They don’t just want shortcuts; they need them.

Our news media used to fill this role. Local newspapers still fill this gap for most issues which originate and can be solved close to home. I’m thankful to continue to be afforded space where you are reading this. 

These outlets are struggling, though it’s worth paying attention to the efforts of the Georgia Trust for Local News, which now operates many of the papers where this can be read.  A newer rescue operation just began with Chattanooga’s paper in Tennessee which covers the extreme NW corner of Georgia. A couple of local entrepreneurs who have expertise in trade publications purchased the Times Free Press, cut out a couple of layers of management, but have stated the focus is to replace syndicated reporting from the New York Times and AP with locally generated and focused content.

When searching for answers to the original questions, I continue to advocate to start local. Understand your community first. Know your community leaders. Some have elected titles. Many do not. But if you want to be part of the solution, you first need to know the people in your area who understand what the problems are AND are working with fellow citizens and the elected officials and bureaucracies at higher levels to solve them. 

The next step is to ask yourself if your consumption of news is for information or entertainment. Be honest.

Too many get all of their information from one or two sources. The TV channel never changes from FoxNews or MSNow. The radio dial is set to AM talk or NPR.

If you consider yourself well informed but watch or listen to programming with which you always agree, you’re not being educated. You’re being indoctrinated while you’re being entertained. 

A related trap too many fall into is to latch onto one person who loudly picks fights with political entities with whom you disagree. Way too many people see the battle they’ve long want waged, and then believe the person picking said fight is an honest person or broker.

One of the most recent examples of this fallacy can be seen in Northwest Georgia, where many believed Marjorie Taylor Greene should be anointed the “True Conservative” crown and/or the person best suited to lead the MAGA efforts in a post-Trump Republican party. She’s now called for President Trump’s removal from office and has said she’s no longer a Republican.

Meanwhile, the news networks who were happy to point out every logic cul de sac she entered as they ridiculed her for being the point person for everything they felt was wrong with America and the GOP are now happy to promote her “expert” opinions. The producers of The View can’t book her often enough. 

The point here is that you can’t outsource your opinions to one person, nor can you ever fully write off someone with whom you disagree. Politics is weird, and sometimes even the person you think is “the worst” today may be a vote in odd circumstances you need tomorrow.  It’s worse when the person you truly believed in becomes a shill for the other side.

The lesson here that should work for most people is to diversify your news consumption and to whom you pay attention. You need to read and listen to sources with which you disagree. You need to ask yourself where they may be right, or be able to articulate clearly why they are wrong. This helps you remain cognitively engaged while avoiding the trap of consuming news as entertainment.

It also helps if you find someone you respect but often or at least sometimes disagree. You need both parties (or a non-partisan) represented here. Understand what a politician’s red lines are, and on what subjects they hold as dogma. 

Never blindly follow anyone who is just for 110% of what the party line is today. These are the people who will always be for what is popular but often hide when it is time to do what is right.

All of this takes a bit of work, on an ongoing basis. Operating a Republic isn’t easy, but protecting our constitutional rights should be worth the effort. 

The alternative is outsourcing the machinery that makes America unique and awesome. The consequences of what can go wrong if we set our governance to autopilot are too dear for us to let that happen.