"Imagine a notification chiming on your phone during a morning commute. The text displays brief points summarizing the most significant developments across the world. A few quick scrolls follow. You return the phone to your pocket; no distractions, sensationalism, or visual clutter. You absorb the essential information before getting off at the next stop. That is the vision of informed.now, a news by text service," founder Kira Shishkin says.
Over the past few decades, journalism, particularly in the United States mainstream media, has adapted to digital distribution channels and algorithm-driven content models, leading to a transformation in how headlines are crafted and consumed. There has been a shift from neutral, informative headlines to those designed to drive engagement through sensationalism, emotionally charged phrasing, and advertisement. "Editorial choices tend to focus on hijacking the reader's attention with clickbait and retaining it for as long as possible," says Kira. "Rather than informing the reader and stepping back."
Within that landscape, the line between reporting and persuasion can begin to blur. informed.now observes that identical facts are often presented through different editorial frames to trigger emotional responses such as fear or anger from the reader. The same wire report may be repackaged with contrasting emphases, and those editorial choices may shape how people feel about an event as much as what they know.
"This doesn't appear to stem from deliberate intent, but rather from a mix of commercial, editorial, and technological dynamics that influence content formats," Kira states. "Recognizing this complexity may help foster more thoughtful conversations about how news is designed and delivered."
According to informed.now, this editorial trend creates a sense of discomfort and disconnect with the reader. "Readers can sense that the narrative told by news has shifted towards sensationalism, and many respond by disengaging or by seeking simpler ways to understand what matters," Kira remarks.
Research reports echo those sentiments. Trust in mass media has reached a new low, with only 28% of Americans expressing confidence that news is reported fully, accurately, and fairly. Globally, audiences are disengaging as well, often describing the news as depressing, relentless, or boring. At the same time, Deloitte finds that Gen Z is redefining how news is consumed, favoring mobile devices, push notifications, and social media feeds over traditional formats.
Within this landscape, the classic newspaper risks drifting further from the habits and expectations of its future readers. Kira says, "Legacy news media has broken under the weight of structural sensationalism." It is from this vantage point that informed.now emerged. The concept began as a response to a simple question: "How might news be delivered so that it serves the reader first?" The solution rethinks both content and form.
Instead of long web pages designed to maximize screentime, informed.now offers a brief daily SMS that presents what actually changed the world within the last 24 hours. informed.now curates across the global information landscape to identify the most consequential stories and convey them in a concise message. Their editorial filter prioritizes significance, the kinds of developments that shape people's lives, freedom, security, and choice. Rather than layering commentary onto primary reporting, their approach empowers the reader to make up their own mind.
informed.now's delivery is intentionally minimal: plain text, direct, and focused only on context that aids comprehension, bypassing bias. The aim is to provide a first-order map of the day's developments without soliciting further attention. Key distinctions of informed.now include an editorial stance that is independent of advertiser influence, a format that favors short, purposeful summaries over attention-grabbing headlines, and an emphasis on factual framing rather than emotional triggering.
Kira's perspective on the evolution of news is inspired by his diverse experiences across regions where information has played a central role in shaping public understanding. Having grown up in Ukraine, lived in Israel, and now residing in the U.S., he has seen how news narratives inadvertently guide how communities understand and experience their times. These experiences highlight the value of accessible, transparent reporting. For Kira, strengthening reader trust begins with honoring the reader's time, discernment, and desire for clarity.
Overall, informed.now reimagines news as purposeful and reader-centered. By prioritizing significance, minimizing attention strain, and maintaining independence from advertiser incentives, informed.now restores the power of facts to the everyday American. Kira Shishkin remarks, "We give you the power to make up your own mind."
