This week I subscribed to the digital version of The New York Times. When I logged on, I realized something for the first time about the different categories listed at the top of its home page. The categories include “World, U.S., Politics, N.Y., Business, Opinion, Tech, Science, Health, Sports, Arts, Style, Food, Travel, Magazine, T Magazine, and Real Estate.” I wondered if other major news organizations had similar categories appearing on their home pages. In 2015, “ComScore.com” identified the top 51 online news sources used by Americans per The Pew Research Center website (http://www.journalism.org/media-indicators/digital-top-50-online-news-entities-2015). I purposely chose a list that includes traditional print sources (which now offer digital versions), TV news organizations, and digital-only news sources because Americans are now using all of these sources to obtain their daily news.

I checked all 51 sources and noticed that many of them share the same categories on their home pages as those listed above. Out of 51, only 1 listed “Education” as a category on their home page (www.upworthy.com). Very often, the “Education” link is buried inside another link, such as within “News”.

So, what’s my point? In an earlier post I claimed “popular media focus(es) on politics … business … sports … and TV / movies.” These 50 online sources provide an example of Americans favoring certain categories over Education. And, yet, education is the base or foundation for every other category in life. Think about it: even those seeking a career in business or sports receive an education, both in and out of school, to prepare them for their chosen profession.