Thirty-six people died in a fire at a warehouse in Oakland, California. Dylann Roof is on trial in Charleston, South Carolina, charged with killing several people who welcomed him into their Bible study class. President-elect Donald Trump has chosen to head the Environmental Protection Agency Scott Pruitt, an Oklahoman with ties to the fossil fuel industry.

In North Carolina, former Gov. Pat McCrory traveled to Washington to meet  with President-elect Trump. A change in the state health plan will allow coverage of sex change surgery. The UNC Tar Heels defeated the Davidson Wildcats in a close basketball game.

I learned these and other newsworthy facts this morning by reading them in two newspapers, The New York Times and the News & Observer of Raleigh. I trust these two newspapers, and others like them, to be accurate, through, balanced and ethical in their reporting. Unlike an increasing number of Americans, I get my news this way, not from social media on an electronic device.

Where do  you get your news? One young woman thus questioned replied that she gets her news from Jon Stewart, who at the time hosted The Daily Show on television. Stewart has earned our respect as a comedian and commentator  on current issues, but his show is not where I would turn to “get my news.” I prefer a news source that practices sober, ethical journalism. We all should. In today’s world, anyone with a cell phone can spread lies among thousands on social media, creating fake news. Sadly, we have learned that some people believe that stuff and act on it in dangerous ways.

We need reliable, factual information to conduct our lives in this fast-changing world. Quality newspapers are diminishing in number, but they continue to do a good job of reporting facts, comforting the afflicted and afflicting the comfortable. I’m grateful, and I trust them.