The Secret Joy of Watching Eagles Live on YouTube: A Journalist’s Daily Escape

I have a parasocial relationship with a family of eagles living in Big Bear Valley, California. Every day, I watch them for hours through a live-streamed YouTube camera mounted above their nest. The nonprofit Friends of Big Bear Valley, which operates the webcam, has named the parents Jackie and Shadow. They currently have two unnamed chicks, whose names will later be chosen by third-grade students in Big Bear.

I turn on the livestream at the start of my workday, usually on my second monitor. Sometimes, I switch to full-screen mode on the TV. While I type Slack messages, Jackie and Shadow hunt, feed their babies, maintain their nest, and watch for threats. When my husband calls on his way home, I update him on their progress.

“How was your day?” he asks.
“It was good, but a little stressful because Jackie and Shadow had to leave the chicks to chase off some ravens that were getting too close to the nest.”
“Oh,” he says, “that is stressful,” kindly refraining from pointing out that this tells him nothing about my day.

My day, like theirs, is usually good but occasionally stressful. I run the fact-checking department at Mother Jones, reading news reports for logical leaps, factual discrepancies, or legal issues. I believe in the work of the Center for Investigative Reporting, but the weight of journalism in today’s world can feel overwhelming. Sometimes, the news itself—or simply existing—is enough to weigh on me.

Then I hear Jackie’s crow. My dog dislikes the sound and paces the living room, searching for its source. Usually, Jackie shrieks in delight as Shadow delivers a fish from the lake. She immediately feeds her chicks. The chicks are about two weeks old now but growing rapidly. They’ll fledge the nest in about eight weeks.

It reminds me of my husband returning home with a small treat—a piece of chocolate or a bag of chips. I crow with delight too, though my pantry is full just feet away, while Jackie’s is 145 feet in the air, nestled in a Jeffrey pine tree. Everything about watching these birds delights me—and puts my own life into perspective.