Doomscrolling

Vanessa Kisuule unearths poems that offer us insight into the issues that ail us most.

This week it's Doomscrolling - the obsessive habit of endlessly scrolling through negative content on our phones. We all lament it, yet very few of us can pull ourselves away. So, the question is not if it’s bad for us (we know it is), but what are we searching for on these ceaseless quests? What is happening to us while we scroll? And how might poetry offer not just a potential antidote, but a whole new language to help us get beyond simply chastising ourselves?

Can poetry make us sharper, wiser, and better equipped to change the status quo? Can it help us not just feel better, but do better?

With poetry from Vincent Toro, Franny Choi, Arji Manuelpillai, Caroline Bird and Christina Hutchins. With help from Chris McCabe at the National Poetry Library,

Produced by Ellie Richold in Bristol.