reclaiming the signal from the noise

The internet has become a relentless cacophony of voices, ads, distractions, and demands for our attention. It’s a noisy, chaotic bazaar, and if we’re not careful, it can swallow us whole. In his brilliant post, “How to Survive Being Online”, Mike Monteiro reminds us that it’s possible—and necessary—to survive and even thrive in this mess. His advice is refreshingly simple: be intentional about your digital life.

Monteiro’s piece got me thinking about two ways we can reclaim the signal amidst the noise:

1. Listening to the Radio Again

When was the last time you truly listened to the radio? Not a Spotify playlist or a podcast, but a real radio station—something that flows out into the world without algorithms deciding what comes next. There’s something about the radio that feels almost subversive in our hyper-personalised age. You tune in and surrender to the moment, trusting the DJ or the host to guide you through a curated journey.

Radio thrives on serendipity. You might hear a song you haven’t thought about in years, a voice sharing a story you didn’t know you needed, or a discussion that sparks an idea. There’s no skip button, no “discover weekly,” no “you might also like.” It’s just you, the broadcast, and a kind of trust that’s becoming rare in our digital lives.

This return to radio feels like an antidote to the overstimulated, over-curated web experience. It’s a chance to reconnect with the joy of not knowing—of letting go of control and just listening. It reminds me of what I once loved about running an internet radio station. And after reading Mike’s post and listening to the radio station he recommended, KEXP, I feel half-tempted to restart the Musical Journey Show as a live broadcast.

2. Curating Your Web Experience

Monteiro’s advice about being intentional online is a call to arms: now more than ever, we need to curate our digital lives. The web doesn’t have to be a flood of doomscrolling and hot takes. We can shape it into a space that nourishes our curiosity, feeds our creativity, and inspires us to be better humans.

Start by cranking up the goodness—the stuff you want to engage with—and dialling down the noise. Follow blogs that make you think, newsletters that spark your imagination, and creators who challenge you to see the world differently. Unfollow the accounts that drain you, block the trolls, and close the tabs that scream for your attention without offering value.

Curating your web experience is about reclaiming your agency. You become the programmer of your digital world, broadcasting your values and priorities. RSS feeds, personal blogs, and newsletters are tools to step outside the algorithmic traps and rediscover the joy of seeking instead of passively consuming. It’s a way to return to the web as it was meant to be: a vast, living library of ideas, connections, and serendipity (sorry to beat that drum again!).

Monteiro’s post is more than just a survival guide; it’s a manifesto for a better way to be online. By listening to the radio again, we can reconnect with the beauty of the unexpected. By curating our web experience, we can turn the internet from a landfill into a library.

What would happen if we all started tuning out the noise and turning up the signal? The world might not feel so chaotic, and the web might once again become a space where meaning is made—not just sold.

So, here’s my question for you: What’s your signal? What’s worth turning the dial for? Let’s start cranking the goodness together.