I have spent a large part of the past week without access to my usual sources of media –  and it’s been an interesting experience.

I am on holidays, currently in Vietnam and reliant on my smartphone for access to news.

Because days are so full and tiring, I have been largely restricted to Facebook.

Pundits have been arguing for some time that we will soon get all our media needs from social media – but in my case, I would say that is over stated.

Yes, I have heard the basics of the news (Jakarta terror attack, Glenn Frey dying, a Space-X rocket crashing, the US Democratic Party debates).

But what else have I missed? I don’t know. And that’s a problem.

If all of my Facebook friends are into entertainment, or US politics, or whatever, then I will only see what they see and post.

And that places me into an echo chamber, where I rarely hear dissenting voices.

For all the criticism of the mainstream media, it does provide us all with a base if knowledge from which we can operate, make decisions, and share our thoughts.

And long may it do so.. Because I am not sure the alternative is healthy for society