Are You “Numbing Out”?

Are You “Numbing Out”?

From ICYMI by Slate Podcasts

May 6, 2026 · 32 min

About this episode

The episode discusses the phenomenon of people 'numbing out' from news consumption and the balance between self-care and ignorance.

On today’s episode, host Kate Lindsay is joined by Andrea González-Ramírez, a senior writer at The Cut whose recent piece explores why so many people have stopped reading the news. Instead, we’re “numbing out” after years of constant bad news on social media, to the point that even an assassination attempt on President Trump doesn’t earn a mention in our group chats. But how do we draw the line between necessary self care and privileged ignorance?  This podcast is produced by Vic Whitley-Berry, Daisy Rosario, and Kate Lindsay. Need to set up your Slate Plus feed? If you subscribed through Slate.com, check out our FAQ at slate.com/podcastfaqs for easy instructions. Members subscribed via Apple Podcasts get automatic access—no setup required. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

People in this episode

Host: Kate Lindsay

Guest: Andrea González-Ramírez

Topics covered

  • news consumption
  • self care
  • social media
  • privileged ignorance
  • current events

Keywords

  • numbing out
  • news
  • social media
  • self care
  • current events
  • President Trump
  • The Cut

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: The Cut

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