The Guardian Weekly is a welcome dose of perspective for me. It remembers to point out the really big events, like the fact that the Arctic ice cap has pretty much melted, so that it would be easy to miss just digesting the rolling news. I value the international coverage, the letters from all corners and the odd injection of positivity. Every page offers something and has to be at least skimmed through, with the exception of Sports.
I’ve read the Weekly ever since my parents got me a subscription as a birthday present about 20 years ago. I’m glad to still get it as my birthday present every year. Unlike many readers, I’ve lived and worked in the UK all my life – in England initially, but in Wales for the last 14 years.
I’ve made a career in recycling, from collecting sacks of waste paper from offices in the late 80s to managing contracts for thousands of tonnes of mixed materials. Newspapers, like all printed media, have been on the critical list throughout this time. But my Weekly has accompanied me on recycling rounds, sat in rock pools and one of the few times I encountered a fellow reader – crossing the Sinai desert in a minibus.
My kids consume their news online, but with discernment, so I was glad to find out one of my daughters read the same Comment piece as me last week on our different media.
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