Overview
You would think that having access to all of humanity's collective knowledge — from our darkest failures to our wildest successes — would make us, generally, smarter. Instead, we've just become overwhelmed — collectively. We've essentially somehow failed upwards, in that uniquely human way we have of doing things.
But, who can blame us? Nearly half of us feel stressed all or most of the time (nice to know it's not just me), and we've all felt the deep financial, physical and emotional impact of living in a pandemic for more than 18 months.
Most days, that uncertainty makes a lot of things scary.
Slightly nerdy fun fact (stay with me here): A common term for the press and journalism is the Fourth Estate. It harks back to days in early modern France, just before the French Revolution, when there were three broad social hierarchies. The three estates were known as the First Estate (the clergy), the Second Estate (the nobility) and the Third Estate (commoners and bourgeoisie). The Fourth Estate is a term that recognises the not-insignificant power the media holds in influencing conversation, opinion and action in society.
That power has even more weight in today's world.
That's why Concrete Playground has committed to bringing you news and information about COVID-19 and vaccinations that is relevant, accurate, useful and actionable. And, without the doomsday spin.
We've even teamed up with a group of other publishers on this — BuzzFeed, Junkee, The Latch, Man of Many, Urban List and Zee Feed. Together, we've committed to keeping harmful headlines and messages off our pages and to only publish COVID-related stories and information that will help inform Aussies and open up Australia.
The industries, businesses and individuals that are essential to Australia's culture and lifestyle and all the things you like reading about on this website — the arts, events, live music and hospitality — are among those most impacted by the ongoing effects of the pandemic. We want those industries to get back to thriving and for the rest of us to be able to enjoy them again.
Our part is to help young Australians feel informed in a way that makes them comfortable and confident in taking the steps to get vaccinated — but also alleviate some of the anxiety caused by alarmist headlines.
So, expect everything from the latest information on mask-wearing rules to expert commentary on vaccines; couch potato recommendations and being a cheerleader for the little guys. This is your spot for feel-good stories, COVID-safe recommendations and informative news. We're thrilled to have you here.
Concrete Playground is part of an Australian Publishers Partnership in a joint COVID mission and coverage pledge which includes: putting science first, standing for healthy headlines, considering image choices, avoiding triggering imagery and not partaking in alarmist headlines. The joint mission will be in effect until Australia gets 50% of the under 40s population vaccinated.