Summary
A new AP poll reveals widespread political fatigue among Americans, with two-thirds limiting political media consumption post-Trump’s election.
Viewership on CNN and MSNBC has plummeted, with declines of 35-54%, as many Democrats and independents step away from politics.
In contrast, Fox News has seen a 12% ratings surge, dominating cable news.
The trend mirrors post-election slumps in previous cycles, though the erosion is sharper this year.
Some suggest focusing less on Trump and more on broader issues to re-engage disenchanted audiences.
What does studying cable news do for me? Nothing. All I can do is vote. No sense in overconsumption when the Democrats seems to lose every election on purpose.
I had to disengage from the news a bit, too. I put my News follows on Mastodon on a separate list and stopped listening to NPR Up First.
We’re fucked, but hearing about it non-stop wasn’t good for my mental health.
Same same. Watch the pbs news hour headlines and if they’re about trump I turn it off immediately. As soon as topic switches to domestic politics I’m out. Same with Lemmy feed, adding musk, trump, RFK, and other words to my block list. It’s not that I don’t care - I do care deeply - but it’s ruining my mental health. As long as the majority of voters in this country want it my reading about the constant fucking clown show will change nothing.
I’m betting a lot of people need to tune out for their mental health.
And beyond the exhaustion, this is how representative democracy is supposed to work. We have an election, everyone decides which candidates are taller and have better hair, then we go back to our lives and let the politicians worry about politics until the next election.
