Illinois Public Radio

Statewide: Ways to handle news overload

NPR Illinois | 91.9 UIS | By Sean Crawford

Published August 7, 2025 at 4:39 PM CDT

24-hour news cycles can be overwhelming for those who want to stay up to date on what's happening. There is such a thing as information overload and it can affect your mental health. But how can you limit your news consumption and stay "in the know"? We talk with some experts for tips.

Also:

* Rich Egger reports on nine Western Illinois University faculty librarians whose positions were eliminated. They have spent time working to raise the profile of the job.

* Yvonne Boose has the story of a northern Illinois barber academy partnering with high schools.

* We talk about soap operas with the host and writer of "Stories Without End."

* Dave McKinney has details on the sentencing of a fourth Commonwealth Edison co-conspirator convicted in a scheme to bribe former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan.

* Peter Medlin tells us about a school where 37% of teachers were working in a grade level or subject for which they were not licensed.

* Pests and disease can kill trees quickly. We learn how some communities are preparing to avoid a widespread arboreal wipeout.