Economist or something else?

[MgoSam]

I just got a renewal notice for my subscription to Economist, I am paying $62 per year and wondering if it is worth to keep it.

I don't read the entire issue each week, but I do read the politics and business briefs along with some of the articles, I think it is the best source of printed media in the world so there's that.

I want to keep following the news, does anyone here have a news source that they can recommend? How much are you currently paying? Right now I am leaning towards keeping it, for me the expense isn't all that bad for the quality of news.

[matchewed]

Hrm, if all you're in it for is the news there are several free versions of news out there. I think you might want to dig a little deeper to determine what value you're getting out of the Economist.

[warfreak2]

$0. Internet.

If I'm actively looking for news to read, I tend to go to BBC News; if there's a particular thing I want to know more about, normally I'll just search for it on Google, that usually leads me to The Independent, The Guardian, The Daily Telegraph, among many other sites. I don't consider any of those individual sources to be as reliable or as interesting as The Economist, but collectively they do a perfectly good job, and they don't cost $62/year (or in the long run, $1550). Obviously in the US you have a different set of news sources, but the same probably applies.

Also, I don't read the news a whole lot. It's easy to think that whatever happened in the last week is the most important information for you to absorb, but in my experience, most useful/interesting ideas are older than that.

[Seņora Savings]

Are you paying for the content or the convenience of having it printed out for you?  I suspect you could find something of similar quality online (I like European newspapers as an American).  But if you want it printed and delivered to your door, I think $62 a year isn't a bad deal.

[Icecreamarsenal]

They have it at the library, along with all the newspapers you could ever want. It's air conditioned and quiet there too.

[MgoSam]

I am currently using the online edition, for me a paper edition would mean one additional thing to recycle whereas I can read it on my tablet anytime I have time.

The thing for me is that the Economist goes into a lot of dept and covers a lot of issues that other papers don't, and while it doesn't add to me in monetary ways, I love reading about distant issues and so I guess this helps feed me academically. That said, I do need to consider whether I get the value of the expense or not.

[SnackDog]

Bloomberg has exceptional international political and economic coverage online for free and on their mobile app.  I read all the news on the mobile app on the exercise bicycle at the gym.  Barron's has exceptional economic reporting as well but is not free.

[MayDay]

We almost always get the Economist, but have never paid for it.  We can always get it with free airline miles. 

We get the paper version and I consider it very high quality reporting, which I am happy to pay for over sifting through online junk.  And by pay for, I mean use airline miles, lol. 

[smartierthanthou]

I got a free subscription through RewardsGold - it's still an option for filling out a short survey, but they do go quickly. I've also found free subscriptions through the free Coupons app.

[RyanHesson]

Any of your neighbors get it? If so, ask them if you can read it when they're done with it?

If not, as someone else said, there's the internet. If you live in a town with a library there's that too.

[LibrarIan]

They have it at the library, along with all the newspapers you could ever want. It's air conditioned and quiet there too.

LibrarIan approves of this post.

[Mrs. Frugalwoods]

We used to subscribe to The Economist but dropped it in favor of The Atlantic. Slightly different content, but we actually find The Atlantic more well-rounded and relevant in many ways. We like having one printed media resource (all other news and entertainment we derive from the great internet), but I really love having an actual hard copy magazine delivered to me. Best part? The subscription fee is $15/year! Worth it to me as one of our few splurges.

[MgoSam]

They have it at the library, along with all the newspapers you could ever want. It's air conditioned and quiet there too.

LibrarIan approves of this post.

I normally would agree and will look for options but at the place I just moved into there is a library a block away, but when I went in there I absolutely hated it. The building is loud (people talk loud), there isn't much room to sit, and the librarians I met that time were extremely rude, condescending, and unhelpful. I hope that this was me having a bad day or an exception, but I need to see other library options.

[4alpacas]

We used to subscribe to The Economist but dropped it in favor of The Atlantic. Slightly different content, but we actually find The Atlantic more well-rounded and relevant in many ways. We like having one printed media resource (all other news and entertainment we derive from the great internet), but I really love having an actual hard copy magazine delivered to me. Best part? The subscription fee is $15/year! Worth it to me as one of our few splurges.

I also love physical magazines.  We use airline miles for all of our subscription needs.  For a few magazines, I've switched to the digital content by e-mailing the magazine and asking for the switch. 
Using Delta or US Airways miles, you can get The Economist for 3200 miles.

[Icecreamarsenal]

They have it at the library, along with all the newspapers you could ever want. It's air conditioned and quiet there too.

LibrarIan approves of this post.

I normally would agree and will look for options but at the place I just moved into there is a library a block away, but when I went in there I absolutely hated it. The building is loud (people talk loud), there isn't much room to sit, and the librarians I met that time were extremely rude, condescending, and unhelpful. I hope that this was me having a bad day or an exception, but I need to see other library options.

Yeah, I came from an awesome library system to a mediocre one. My childhood one was amazing, and I spent most of my waking hours there.
Eh, it's government: ymmv

[MgoSam]

They have it at the library, along with all the newspapers you could ever want. It's air conditioned and quiet there too.

LibrarIan approves of this post.

I normally would agree and will look for options but at the place I just moved into there is a library a block away, but when I went in there I absolutely hated it. The building is loud (people talk loud), there isn't much room to sit, and the librarians I met that time were extremely rude, condescending, and unhelpful. I hope that this was me having a bad day or an exception, but I need to see other library options.

Yeah, I came from an awesome library system to a mediocre one. My childhood one was amazing, and I spent most of my waking hours there.
Eh, it's government: ymmv

The library near my parents place is awesome. There's a librarian there that I am going to miss, each time I needed to go to Chicago for work (about every 8 weeks, drive is 6.5 hours each way) would spend time pulling out audiobooks that she thinks I will like. Sadly the library near my office is closed for renovations for another 6 months.

[grantmeaname]

If you're worried about the expense, give Planet Money and Marketplace a try (if you don't mind listening instead of reading) and see if they're a decent substitute.

Or read lots of current, technical business books.

[deborah]

We love the Economist and subscribe to the online version. It is worth it to us. We used to get the print version. It is our only subscription. It is nice to be able to bookmark pages and come back to them years later.

[oldtoyota]

I got it for "free" using airline miles that I wasn't going to use on other things. When that subscription as close to running out, the Economist offered me a $12/year deal. I did not take it and will miss it. I did read it often and think that it kept me informed. They are not sensationalist, and I appreciate that.

[Otsog]

+1 for Bloomberg Businessweek

I got 100 issues for $35.  They even ship to the Arctic.

[RapmasterD]

The "news" will kill ya, sonny. You need to go on a news fast.

Plus, the last time I checked, we beat those bastards in the war.

My recommendation? Get a copy of "Hondo" and re-read it continuously.

Also, watch free episodes of Mr. Ed on YouTube. "Ed's Juice Stand" is a classic. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pd-hPBlqUdE