Not "do you read the news", but "does it move you?"

Just possessing knowledge alone does not make someone a good person. Most politicians are probably aware of more things  happening around the world than the average citizen, but that in itself does not make them good people.

The real question is ‘does it move you?’

In school I remember teachers who opened their class at the start of the year by having the students raise their hand if they read the newspaper ("and not just the comics"), and then proceed to chide anyone who didn’t.

The world is not a better place because someone put the newspaper back down on the table. The benefit of knowing is when it is used to deepen understanding what others are facing; letting it sink in can move a person inside and out; it can help refine their perspective, make them more sympathetic or appreciative, and then perhaps lead to some positive actions, big or small.

This effect is not inherent, so instead of asking "do you read the newspaper?", a question of more value to me is "does what is happening move you?"

Better than when a person can list 100 problems that don’t move them at all, is when a person knows of even just one thing happening and uses it to motivate them to be kind.