doomscroll

American  

[doom-skrohl] / ˈdumˌskroʊl /

Or doom-scroll

verb (used with or without object)

Digital Technology.

1. to obsessively check online news for updates, especially on social media feeds, with the expectation that the news will be bad, such that the feeling of dread from this negative expectation fuels a compulsion to continue looking for updates in a self-perpetuating cycle.

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Etymology

Origin of doomscroll

First recorded in 2015–20; doom ( def. ) + scroll ( def. ) (in the sense “to move text up, down, or across a display screen”); influenced by doomsday ( def. )

Explanation

Ever find yourself scrolling through endless bad news, disturbing videos, unpleasant comment sections online? That’s what it means to doomscroll, a habit that keeps you glued to your screen, even when it’s time to call it quits. A straightforward blend of doom and scroll, the verb doomscroll describes the feeling of getting sucked into a spiral of bad news that seems impossible to escape. This term emerged in the age of smartphones and 24/7 news cycles, where a quick glance at your phone can turn into an hour-long journey through all the world’s problems. Recognizing when you're caught up in doomscrolling can help you know when it’s time to put the phone down.

Example Sentences

This was the real-life version of a mindless doomscroll, when all of the world’s atrocities barely register.

From Salon • Apr. 25, 2026

There are so many overwhelming ideas in “Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die” that, at over two hours, it does have the sense of a dissociative doomscroll.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 12, 2026

For thousands of New Jersey residents, Reddit proves its worth every day by giving commuters a place to doomscroll about NJ Transit External link.

From Barron's • Dec. 24, 2025

Baroness Kidron also criticised other harmful design choices such as the "many hundreds of small reward loops that make up a doomscroll or make a game addictive".

From BBC • Jul. 11, 2023

In hindsight, it is clear that the most ferocious phase coincided with the height of the pandemic, when everyone had nothing to do but doomscroll and get into fights on social media.

From Washington Post • Dec. 30, 2022