I’ve always felt a responsibility to educate myself about current national and international affairs, but I usually get overwhelmed by the variety and quantity of publications available for fulfilling this responsibility.

I subscribe to a newspaper now, but rarely have the patience to read it because most of the articles inundate readers with details about a single recent incident without giving a broader, generalized context for the story (for instance, an article might focus on a single car bombing without restating why there is even a war going on in the Middle East).

Given my dilemma, it seems like my question is two-fold.

First, what are the best sources for getting the "reader’s digest" version of current national and international affairs?

And secondly, once a general understanding has been reached, what are the best sources for daily enhancing that knowledge?