Hey there. You. Yes, you. Do you ever feel …

• Overwhelmed by the number and speed of stories flying around?
• Alienated by big news stories because they don’t give you the background you need?
• Bored with the way news is presented?
• Helpless to do anything to make positive change?
• Like anything that might be called “news” isn’t for you?

If you do, you’re definitely not alone. That’s why we created Kicker.

Maybe you haven’t been tuning in lately and don’t know where or how to start now. Or maybe you just go off the grid for a while sometimes (who doesn’t?), and it feels like too much work to catch up. Or maybe you’re just really busy and don’t have time to follow dozens (or hundreds!) of stories a day.

You might even think you don’t care about what’s going on in the world.

But then … Jimmy Fallon slow jams the news, and you laugh but don’t quite get it. Or the hottie at the party brings up the upcoming election, and you don’t have much to say. Or you have an interview for a school or job, and you want to sound knowledgeable, but you’re worried about seeming shallow.

Meanwhile, new links are popping up in your Facebook news feed and Twitter stream and Tumblr dashboard every second. Which ones are worth clicking on? How can you tell? Aagh!

This is where Kicker comes in. We’re your starting point, your on-ramp, your crib sheet, your guiding light, your Yoda.

Here’s what we’re all about:

Slow news: Here, you can opt out of the crazy news cycle and find out about what’s really important. You won’t find breaking news on Kicker. Being first is over anyway. Instead, we provide a daily must-read that gives you an overview of the most pressing issue or event of the day, along with ways to go deeper if you want.

Access: We want to help you feel smart, not stupid. So on Kicker, you won’t find unexplained references to people, places and ideas that policy nerds know and love but that might leave you feeling left out. No need to click away to Google, Wikipedia or TMZ – or to just fake your way through. We’ll just tell you what you need to know.

Engagement: At Kicker we aim to tell you who’s who and what’s what in a natural voice that talks to you. And we tell every story in a combo of writing, images, video, tweets and more. We think that’s way more interesting than big boring blocks of third-person text, don’t you?

Honesty: No blaring link-bait headlines that scream at you. But no equal play for every viewpoint on the planet, either. We’ll be candid with you about what’s going on and how important it seems to be. No underselling, no overselling.

Empowerment: We never want you to feel helpless or hopeless. No matter what happens in the world, there’s always something you can do about it. Really! We’ll tell you how you can engage in self-improvement, advocacy, awareness-raising, fundraising, volunteering, or maybe just a little bit of fun.

Why “Kicker”?

When someone’s telling you a story, the kicker is the gist, the takeaway, the zinger. (It’s also, by the way, what journalists call the conclusion section of an article.)

The kicker to any story we tell you is that you can start taking action. Right now. And we’ll point you in the right direction.

We’re calling the whole thing Kicker because that’s how psyched we are to help you actually do something when you get worked up about what’s going on in the world.

And when you impress your family at the dinner table or that cutie at the gym with your dazzling knowledge of the latest banking scandal or scientific discovery, we don’t mind if you tell them about Kicker. You don’t have to, but it would be nice.

So, welcome to Kicker! We’re glad you’re here. Dive in, and let us know what you think!