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The Importance of Critical Thinking for News Media Literacy

With news available at the tap of a finger, keyboard, or remote, we are often exposed to a barrage of news media. Some of it is high quality, informational news, while other pieces may be riddled with biases, inaccuracies, and misinformation. That’s why it’s so important for students to learn to properly evaluate the news they’re consuming. Read on for an exploration of news media literacy and the importance of critical thinking in supporting it.

News Media Literacy

News media literacy is the ability to critically analyze, evaluate, and interpret the information presented in news media. It involves understanding how news is produced, identifying bias and misinformation, and being able to distinguish between fact and opinion. In our modern world, where information is instantly available and constantly changing, news media literacy has become an essential skill for individuals of all ages to navigate the media landscape and make informed decisions.

Students being taught news media literacy develop a variety of interrelated and crucial skills and knowledge. They learn to identify when news sources are presenting biased or misleading information and to seek out additional sources to confirm or refute claims. News literacy also helps students understand how news is produced and distributed, including the role of journalists, media organizations, and the impact of social media on the news cycle.

A study in the Journal of Media Literacy Education found that highly news literate teens were:

More intrinsically motivated to consume news
More skeptical
More knowledgeable about current events

This is important because it can help prevent the spread of misinformation and disinformation, both of which can have serious consequences, such as spreading false information about health, elections, or social issues. News media literacy skills can help students recognize harmful reporting or sharing, and take steps to stop their spread.

The difference news media literacy makes is not limited to the student alone, but can also impact their wider community. Authors Hobbs et al. explore this concept in their article “Learning to Engage: How Positive Attitudes about the News, Media Literacy, and Video Production Contribute to Adolescent Civic Engagement.” They found that “the best predictors of the intent to participate in civic engagement are having positive attitudes about news, current events, reporting, and journalism.”

Given its importance and wide-ranging impact, news media literacy is an essential part of education today. Here’s how teachers can use critical thinking to build up news literacy—and vice versa—in their students.

Critical Thinking Skills for News Literacy

Critical thinking is a key component of news media literacy, as it allows individuals to assess the accuracy and credibility of news sources, identify biases and misinformation, and make informed decisions. Critical thinking involves questioning assumptions, evaluating evidence, and considering multiple perspectives, which are all crucial skills for navigating our complex and constantly evolving media landscape. Let’s explore these critical thinking skills and their impact on news literacy in more depth.

Evaluating Sources and Evidence

One essential critical thinking skill that supports news literacy is the ability to evaluate sources. In today's world, where anyone can publish information online, it is important to be able to distinguish between credible sources and those that lack credibility. This means understanding the differences between primary and secondary sources, recognizing when a source is biased or unreliable, and evaluating the credentials of the author or publisher.

Being able to evaluate sources and evidence for credibility and accuracy allows students to identify fake news and other harmful media. Research on fake news and critical thinking highlights critical thinking as “an essential skill for identifying fake news.”

Analyzing Information

Another critical thinking skill that supports news literacy is the ability to analyze information. This involves breaking down complex information into its component parts, evaluating the evidence presented, and considering the implications of the information. For example, if a news article presents statistics about a particular issue, it is important to evaluate the methodology used to collect the data, the sample size, and the relevance of the statistics to the issue at hand.

Identifying and Evaluating Biases

Critical thinking also allows students to identify and evaluate biases. News sources may have biases based on political or social values, financial interests, or personal opinions. It is important to be able to recognize these biases and to evaluate how they may affect the presentation of information. By developing these critical thinking skills, students can become more discerning consumers of news media, and better equipped to make informed decisions based on the information presented.

How Practicing News Literacy Develops Critical Thinking

Becoming more news literate can also help develop critical thinking skills in turn. By engaging with news media and seeking out diverse perspectives on issues, individuals can develop their ability to question assumptions, evaluate evidence, and consider multiple perspectives. This can lead to a more nuanced understanding of complex issues and a greater appreciation for the diverse perspectives that exist in society.

This creates a powerful education win-win. News literacy and critical thinking effectively support each other and allow students to become informed and discerning consumers of media.

How THINKING PRO Helps Students Build News Literacy

Our THINKING PRO system is built around local news media and teaches students media literacy and critical thinking in a meaningful and impactful way. It walks students through a simple but effective process for analyzing news media, involving:

Differentiating simple statements (answers to who, what, when, and where questions) and complex claims (answers to why and how questions)
Evaluating evidence supporting each
Differentiating evidence and opinion in complex claims

Our interactive learning videos allow students to hone these media literacy and critical thinking skills. With THINKING PRO, students will learn to:

Identify various categories of claims that can be made within an informational text (e.g.: cause and effect, problem and solution, value judgments)
Evaluate internal logic of informational text by:
analyzing the consistency of information within the text and with one’s own background knowledge, and
identifying conflicting information within the text.
Synthesize information, as well as claims and their supporting evidence, across multiple passages of texts, and integrate it with one’s own understanding

Here at Thinking Habitats, we use thinking tools to empower young people to lead successful lives and contribute to the wellbeing of their communities. Our online platform has helped students improve their critical thinking, reading comprehension, and news media literacy, and has had significant individual and community impacts. Try THINKING PRO today , and join our students who feel more empowered in decision-making, more mindful with their news engagement, and more connected to their local community!

Hobbs, R., Donnelly, K., Friesem, J., & Moen, M. (2013). Learning to engage: How positive attitudes about the news, media literacy, and video production contribute to Adolescent Civic engagement. Educational Media International , 50 (4), 231–246. https://doi.org/10.1080/09523987.2013.862364

Machete, P., & Turpin, M. (2020). The use of critical thinking to identify fake news: A systematic literature review. Lecture Notes in Computer Science , 235–246. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-45002-1_20

Maksl, A., Ashley, S., & Craft, S. (2015). Measuring News Media Literacy. Journal of Media Literacy Education , 6 (3), 29–45. https://doi.org/10.23860/jmle-6-3-3

Research guides: Identifying bias: What is bias? . University of Wisconsin Green Bay. (n.d.). https://libguides.uwgb.edu/bias

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Article contents

Critical media literacy in teacher education, theory, and practice.

Jeff Share , Jeff Share University of California Los Angeles
Tatevik Mamikonyan Tatevik Mamikonyan School of Education, University of California Los Angeles
and Eduardo Lopez Eduardo Lopez University of California Los Angeles
https://doi.org/10.1093/acrefore/9780190264093.013.1404
Published online: 30 September 2019
This version: 20 September 2023
Previous version

Democracy in the digital networked age of “fake news” and “alternative facts” requires new literacy skills and critical awareness to read, write, and use media and technology to empower civic participation and social transformation. Unfortunately, not many educators have been prepared to teach students how to think critically with and about the media and technology that engulf us. Across the globe there is a growing movement to develop media and information literacy curriculum (UNESCO) and train teachers in media education (e-Media Education Lab), but these attempts are limited and in danger of co-optation by the faster growing, better financed, and less critical education and information technology corporations. It is essential to develop a critical response to the new information communication technologies, artificial intelligence, and algorithms that are embedded in all aspects of society. The possibilities and limitations are vast for teaching educators to enter K-12 classrooms and teach their students to use various media, critically question all types of texts, challenge problematic representations, and create alternative messages. Through applying a critical media literacy framework that has evolved from cultural studies and critical pedagogy, students at all grade levels can learn to critically analyze the messages and create their own alternative media. The voices of teachers engaging in this work can provide pragmatic insight into the potential and challenges of putting the theory into practice in K-12 public schools.

critical literacy
critical pedagogy
media education
media literacy
critical media literacy
social justice
politics of representation
cultural studies
teacher education

Updated in this version

The authors made minor revisions to this text to reflect more recent scholarship. The reference list and further readings have similarly been updated.

Introduction

It is a formidable challenge to prepare critical educators to work inside a system in which every brick in the wall has been laid to transmit the information, skills, and ideas necessary to reproduce the social norms, inequities, ideologies, and alienation that are undermining the quality and sustainability of life on this planet. However, education can be a powerful tool to challenge these problems and create opportunities for students to work in solidarity with others to create a more socially and environmentally just world. To support these changes, we need teachers ready to engage students in critical inquiry by posing questions about systemic and structural issues of power, hierarchies of oppression, and social injustice. In the current media and information age, information communication technologies (ICTs) are available to either continue the control and degradation or to deconstruct the systems of oppression and reconstruct a more just and sustainable society.

Digital technology is opening opportunities for individual participation and alternative points of view, while at the same time a handful of enormous media and technology corporations have become the dominant storytellers, often repeating the same story at the expense of countless different perspectives and creative ways of thinking. Many of these storytellers are actually story-sellers, more interested in peddling ideas and products than informing, enlightening, inspiring, or challenging. While young people are using more media, they are also being used more by media companies. Giant transnational corporations are targeting youth as one of the most valuable markets for building brand loyalty and selling to advertisers. Researchers found 8- to 18-year-olds in the United States spend well over 10 hours a day interacting with various forms of media, such as music, computers, video games, television, film, and print ( Rideout et al., 2011 ). Another investigation discovered that 95% of American 13- to 17-year-olds have access to a smartphone and 97% say they are online daily and 46% use it constantly ( Vogels et al., 2022 ).

Not only is the amount of time with media increasing but the quality of that engagement is also changing by becoming more commercial and rarely critical. Researchers at Stanford University administered six tasks to 3,466 high schools across 14 states in the US to judge their ability to assess online information. In one task, students were asked to evaluate the credibility of a website that claimed to “disseminate factual reports” and 96% failed to learn about the site’s ties to the fossil fuel industry. In a different task, over half of students believed an anonymously posted video purporting to show voter fraud in the US was real, even though it was filmed in Russia ( Breakstone et al., 2021 ). In another study, Vosoughi et al. (2018) examined approximately 126,000 stories tweeted over 4.5 million times between 2006 and 2017 . The researchers were interested in understanding what accounted for the differential diffusion of verified true and false news stories. They found that false news stories spread “farther, faster, deeper, and more broadly than the truth because humans, not robots, are more likely to spread it” (p. 5). In analyzing the tweets, the authors concluded, false stories were 70% more likely to be retweeted because people found them not only more novel but the stories also inspired emotional responses of fear, disgust, or surprise.

The concern about “fake news” has encouraged many people to recognize the need for critical readers and writers of media. Some have suggested that we simply need better cognitive skills to determine truth from lies. However, making sense of the media and our information society is far more complicated than a reductionist idea of simply finding the truth. Rather than judging information as either true or false, students need to learn to search for multiple sources, different perspectives, and various types of evidence to triangulate and evaluate findings. In order to best evaluate and understand the information, they also need to question the influence of media in shaping the message and positioning the audience. Since all knowledge is an interpretation ( Kincheloe, 2007 ), interpreting the meaning of a message is a complex process that requires skills to probe empirical evidence, evaluate subjective biases, analyze the medium and construction of the text, and explore the social contexts.

This is an opportunity for educators to guide their students to think critically with and about the ICTs and media that surround them. Morrell et al. (2013) argue that the technology itself will not bring about transformative educational change. “That change will only come through teachers who draw on critical frameworks to create learning communities where the use of these tools becomes an empowering enterprise” (p. 14). Therefore, the changes in media, technology, and society require critical media literacy (CML) that can support teachers and students to question and create with and about the very tools that can empower or oppress, entertain or distract, inform or mislead, and buy or sell everything from lifestyles to politicians. Now more than ever, teachers should encourage students to be reading, viewing, listening to, interacting with, and creating a multitude of texts, from digital podcasts to multimedia productions.

Teacher Education

Even though youth are immersed in a world in which media and technology have entered all aspects of their lives and society, few teacher education programs are preparing teachers to help their students to critically understand the potential and limitations of these changes. It is crucial that new teachers learn how to teach their K-12 students to critically read and write everything, from academic texts to social media.

This means that schools of education responsible for training the new wave of teachers must be up to date, not just with the latest technology, but more importantly, with critical media literacy (CML) theory and pedagogy in order to prepare teachers and students to think and act critically with and about media and technology. In Canada, where media literacy is mandatory in every grade from 1 to 12, most new teachers are not receiving media literacy training in their preservice programs ( Wilson & Duncan, 2009 ). Researchers investigating media education in the United Kingdom and the US have found that many teachers are unprepared to teach media education and that professional learning opportunities are limited ( Butler, 2020 ; Kirwan et al., 2003 ). The progress has been slow, especially considering that inclusion of media literacy in formal public education has a history dating back to the 1980s in Australia, Britain, and Canada. However, nonformal media education has been occurring in many parts of the world for decades ( Hart, 1998 ; Kaplún, 1998 ; Kubey, 1997 ; Pegurer Caprino & Martínez-Cerdá, 2016 ; Prinsloo & Criticos, 1991 ).

While it is difficult to know for sure who is and who is not teaching critically about media and technology ( Mihailidis, 2008 ), there seems to be an increased interest in media literacy in the United States. In 2022 , the National Council of Teachers of English published a position statement recommending implementation of media education in English Language Arts along with two special issue journal publications ( Lynch, 2021 ; Kist & Christel, 2022 ) devoted to critical media literacy, arguing that “media education must be an essential component of the professional identity of teachers” ( National Council of Teachers of English, 2022 ).

As technology and media continue to evolve and increasingly enter public and private spaces, more educators are recognizing the need for training new teachers about media literacy ( Domine, 2011 ; Goetze et al., 2005 ; Hobbs, 2007a ) and some are even addressing the need to teach about CML ( Flores-Koulish et al., 2011 ; Funk et al., 2016 ; Robertson & Hughes, 2011 ; Trust et al., 2022 ). Researchers Tiede et al. (2015) studied 64 universities or colleges of teacher education in Germany and 316 U.S. public educational institutions that provide teacher training and graduate studies, concluding that very few offer more than media didactics (basic educational technology that teaches with media, not about media). From their data in the United States, they report, “media education, with emphasis on the instructional practices associated with the critical evaluation of media, culture, and society, were scarce, representing only 2% of all study programs in teacher training programs” (pp. 540−541). In Germany, the percentage increases to 25%, but “media didactics tends to be emphasized to the disadvantage of media education in both countries” (p. 542).

In 2011 , the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) published a curriculum guide online in 11 languages for training teachers in media education ( Grizzle & Wilson, 2011 ), declaring that “teacher training in media and information literacy will be a major challenge for the global education system at least for the next decade” ( Pérez-Tornero & Tayie, 2012 , p. 11). 1 In Europe, Ranieri and Bruni (2018) analyzed the successes and challenges of training preservice and in-service teachers about media and digital literacy. An initiative called e-Media Educational Lab, funded by the European Commission, provided blended training to 279 preservice teachers and 81 in-service teachers in six countries. Based on surveys and fieldnotes, Ranieri and Bruni (2018) reported that the preservice and in-service teachers found critical media analysis and media production to be very important; they described their intent to transfer their media competency to their classrooms and expressed a desire to learn more practical ways to help their students develop media competencies.

UNESCO’s approach to media education combines media and information literacy (MIL) to include many competencies, from learning about and using information communication technologies to thinking critically about ethics and democracy. Carolyn Wilson (2012) explains, “MIL is both a content area and way of teaching and learning; it is not only about the acquisition of technical skills, but the development of a critical framework and approaches” (p. 16).

Combining information technology with media-cultural studies is essential, but still infrequent. Within the current wave of educational reform that prioritizes the newest technology and career readiness over civic engagement and critical inquiry, schools are more likely to adopt only information technology or information literacy and not critical media education. In the United States, few universities offer more than a single course in media literacy and most do not even offer that ( Goetze et al., 2005 ; Meehan et al., 2015 ).

Schwarz (2001) asserts that because of the power of emerging literacies, “teacher education needs media literacy as an essential tool and an essential topic in the new millennium” (pp. 111−112). She calls for integrating media literacy across all subject areas of teacher education, “from methods courses and educational psychology to foundational courses and student teaching” (p. 118). This interdisciplinary approach for media education could be easier now for K-12 teachers in the United States since the Common Core State Standards require literacy to be taught and technology to be used across the curriculum ( California Common Core State Standards, 2013 ; Moore & Bonilla, 2014 ; Trust et al., 2022 ).

Two studies with a total of 31 preservice teachers found a discrepancy between their positive attitudes for teaching media literacy and the lack of attention and support in their teacher education programs to prepare them to teach MIL ( Gretter & Yadav, 2018 ). Based on interviews with these preservice teachers, Gretter and Yadav (2018) report that they associated MIL with critical thinking skills and expressed concerns about not knowing how to teach MIL because their teacher preparation program encouraged “teaching with technology and not necessarily about technology” (p. 115). These preservice teachers complained about “a lack of preparation to help them transfer their knowledge of digital media to MIL pedagogies that would benefit students” (p. 111). This highlights the importance of preparing educators with the theory and conceptual understandings as well as the pedagogy and practical applications for how to teach their students to critically analyze and create media.

Teaching Teachers Critical Media Literacy

Transforming education to critically use media, technology, and popular culture for social and environmental justice is the overarching goal of a critical media literacy (CML) course in the teacher education program at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). The authors of this article have been involved in designing and teaching this course to in-service and preservice teachers. Through combining theory from cultural studies and critical pedagogy with practical classroom applications of digital media and technology, this course prepares K-12 educators to teach their students how to critically analyze and create all types of media. In 2011 , this four-unit course on CML was officially approved and became a required class for all students working on their teaching credential at UCLA.

The teacher education program at UCLA is primarily a two-year master’s and credential program that accepts about 130 candidates annually. The program is committed to developing social justice educators to work with and improve the schooling conditions of California’s ethnically, culturally, and linguistically diverse children. While most of the students go through the two-year program, additional pathways for earning a teaching credential and master’s degree have been offered, such as a master’s-only program for in-service teachers with two years or more of full-time teaching experience.

The CML class is taught in separate sections, usually divided by subjects, with 25−50 students per section. Most of the candidates taking the class are student teaching at the same time, except for the master’s-only candidates, who were teaching full-time while attending the class once a week in the evening. The class includes lectures, discussions, and activities interwoven into each session during the 10-week quarter.

Beginning with a theoretical overview, the course explores the development of media education that is defined less as a specific body of knowledge or set of skills and more as a framework of conceptual understandings ( Buckingham, 2003 ). Much of the theory behind CML has evolved from cultural studies, a field of critical inquiry that began in the 20th century in Europe and continues to grow with new critiques of media and society. From the 1930s through the 1960s, researchers at the Frankfurt Institute for Social Research used critical social theory to analyze how media culture and the new tools of communication technology induce ideology and social control. In the 1960s, researchers at the Centre for Contemporary Cultural Studies at the University of Birmingham added to the earlier concerns of ideology with a more sophisticated understanding of the audience as active constructors of reality, not simply mirrors of an external reality. Kellner (1995) explains that cultural studies has continued to grow and incorporate concepts of semiotics, feminism, multiculturalism, and postmodernism. Incorporating a dialectical understanding of political economy, textual analysis, and audience theory, cultural studies critiques media culture as dynamic discourses that reproduce dominant ideologies as well as entertain, educate, and offer the possibilities for counter-hegemonic alternatives ( Hammer & Kellner, 2009 ).

Critical media literacy includes three dimensions ( Share & Gambino, 2022 ). The first involves the content students learn about systems, structures, and ideologies that reproduce hierarchies of power and knowledge concerning race, gender, class, sexuality and other forms of identity and environmental justice, as well as general understandings about how media and communication function. The second dimension engages the skills to critically think and question media representations and biases, to deconstruct and reconstruct media texts, and use a variety of media to access, analyze, evaluate, and create. The third involves developing a disposition for empathy, critical consciousness, and empowerment to take action to challenge and transform society to be more socially and environmentally just. This third dimension is based on Freire’s (2010) notion of conscientização , a revolutionary critical consciousness that involves perception as well as action against oppression. These three dimensions of critical media literacy pedagogy are supported through an inquiry-based democratic approach that follows ideas of transformative educators like John Dewey and Paulo Freire. We incorporate feminist theory and critical pedagogy to analyze relationships between media and audiences, information and power ( Carlson et al., 2013 ; Garcia et al., 2013 ). When we first began teaching the course, we used a simple framework with five core concepts and key questions from the Center for Media Literacy. 2 To emphasize the critical potential of these ideas, while providing an accessible tool for teachers to use in the classroom, the following critical media literacy framework was developed, with six conceptual understandings and questions, as shown in Table 1 ( Kellner & Share, 2019 ).

These six conceptual understandings and questions are referred to regularly and are addressed in all lesson plans. It is important for teachers to understand the concepts and questions because theory should inform practice for all three dimensions. However, it is better for K-12 students to learn to ask the questions rather than memorize the concepts, since the questions, with appropriate guidance, can lead students on a path of inquiry where they are more likely to make meaning themselves, related to the conceptual understandings.

The CML framework is designed to help teachers and their students question the role of power and ideology that socialize and control society through making some people and ideas seem “normal” and “natural” while the rest are “othered” and “marginalized” ( Hall, 2003 ). This critical framing supports teachers and students to deepen their explorations of racism, sexism, classism, homophobia, overconsumption, environmental exploitation, and other problematic representations in media. Candidates analyze and discuss current media examples, while also learning how to use various ICTs to create their own media with alternative counter-hegemonic representations. Using an inquiry process and democratic pedagogy, problems are posed to the students to collaboratively wrestle with, unpack, and respond to through media production.

Critical media literacy promotes an expansion of our understanding of literacy to include many types of texts, such as images, sounds, music, video games, social media, advertising, popular culture, and print, as well as a deepening of critical analysis to explore the connections between information and power. In our digital networked media age, it is not enough to teach students how to read and write just with print while their world has moved far beyond letters on a page. Literacy education in the 21st century requires breaking from traditional practices to include all the varied ways people communicate with media, technology, and any tool that facilitates the transfer of information or connects people. This calls for new skills and understandings to decode and analyze as well as to create and produce all types of texts. The California Teaching Performance Expectations also require teacher education programs to expand this view of literacy and integrate media and technology into coursework in order to “deepen teaching and learning to provide students with opportunities to participate in a digital society and economy” ( California Commission on Teacher Credentialing, 2016 , p. 9).

Each class starts by reviewing and applying the conceptual understandings and questions. Since one goal of the course is for candidates to understand that literacy includes reading and writing all types of texts, we encourage students to analyze as well as produce media. A series of assignments requires candidates to work together to create various types of media projects such as visual posters, photographs, podcasts, memes, digital stories, and social media. The candidates are also expected to work collaboratively on a CML lesson plan and learning segment that they write up, present a summary of to the whole class, and when possible, also teach it. For a detailed description of this course, see Share (2015) and visit the UCLA Library Critical Media Literacy Research Guide for links to articles, videos, and websites used in the course. 3

Table 1. Critical Media Literacy Framework

From a desire to explore if and how former students are applying the skills and knowledge gained from the critical media literacy (CML) course into their teaching practice, we created an online survey for students who had taken the course. Through purposeful sampling, we sent out the survey to the 738 students who had taken the CML course and ended up with 185 usable responses (25% response rate), 153 preservice and 32 in-service teachers. Of the 185 respondents, 53 taught elementary school and 132 were secondary-level teachers. The breakdown of the middle school and high school teachers was: 38 science, 34 math, 33 social sciences, 28 English, and several reported teaching a combination of subjects as well as some who taught other areas such as music, visual arts, Spanish, English language development, or adult education. The span of experience was wide; some just started teaching and some had been teaching over seven years, yet most of the teachers (52%) had been teaching between two and three years.

The mixed method survey included 20 questions. The first eight sought to identify participants’ teaching background. The remaining 12 questions inquired about their experiences teaching CML skills and concepts to their K-12 students. Ten quantitative questions used a Likert scale with a choice of responses, including very frequently, frequently, occasionally, rarely, and never, as well as an option to choose not applicable. The final two qualitative questions were open-ended in which respondents could type their thoughts about any “memorable moment(s) teaching critical media literacy” and “any additional comments.” During the analysis phase, we found it helpful to combine the categories very frequently and frequently and refer to them as VF/F.

Voices From the Field

Using mixed methods of quantitative and qualitative data, we analyzed the survey responses to explore teachers’ ideas about what they had been doing with their students. The overall feedback suggested that the majority of the respondents had brought aspects of media literacy education into their K-12 classrooms, and sometimes even incorporated CML. One of the most recurring patterns we noticed was that these teachers had been expanding the traditional concept of literacy by engaging their students with various types of media.

Teaching With Media

In reply to the first question, most of the respondents reported having integrated media into their class activities: 64% VF/F, 30% occasionally, 6% rarely, and no one responded never ( N = 185). The responses to Question 1 were very similar for elementary and secondary teachers, with only a 1% to 5% difference. Where we saw greater variation was when comparing the subject matter of secondary teachers. The English and science teachers had the highest percentages (75% and 76%) of VF/F responses to Question 1 about integrating media into class activities. Math teachers, by contrast, reported the lowest percentage, with 44% reporting VF/F and 15% rarely integrating media into the curriculum (see Figure 1 ).

Figure 1. Responses from secondary teachers to Question 1 about how often they integrated media into class activities.

While these responses demonstrated an overall high amount of media integration, it was not clear how the teachers integrated media and what students were doing with the media. The responses from Question 5 (“my students have created the following media”) provided more information about the students’ interactions with media, showing that the vast majority of respondents (92%) had their students create some type of media (see Figure 2 for a list of the various media students created).

Since the question only asked teachers to check the box for the type of media their students created, we did not know how often this occurred or with what degree of analysis. Questions 1 and 5 indicated that teaching with media occurred with over 90% of the respondents.

Figure 2. Responses to Question 5 about the different types of media that all 185 respondents report their students have created. They were asked to choose all that apply.

Teaching About Media

The second question tried to find out more about those interactions with media by asking respondents to rate how often they had given their “students opportunities to engage in media analysis.” For Question 2, about one-third of all 185 respondents, 32%, reported VF/F, 43% occasionally, 21% rarely, and 4% never. When comparing responses from Questions 1 and 2, the respondents seemed to have been doing more teaching with media (Question 1) than teaching about media (Question 2) (see Figure 3 ). A similar finding was mentioned in the research conducted in Germany and the United States by Tiede et al. (2015) .

Figure 3. Comparing all responses from Question 1 about integrating media into class activities (teaching with media) with Question 2 about engaging in media analysis (teaching about media).

A more nuanced perspective of Question 2 is possible when comparing the responses about media analysis from different content area secondary teachers. In response to Question 2, the teachers who reported VF/F were the following: 63% of English teachers reported giving the most opportunities for their students to engage in media analysis, as compared to almost half as often by 32% of science teachers and about five times less often by 12% of math teachers (see Figure 4 ). Since literacy is a primary goal of English instruction, it is not surprising that English teachers reported the highest levels of media analysis ( Hobbs, 2007b ).

It is important to recognize that teaching about media can be a highly complex and multifaceted undertaking, especially when done through a CML lens. For example, the second conceptual understanding encourages students to analyze the codes and conventions of the media text and the medium through which they travel by asking how the text was constructed and delivered or accessed. This, in itself, can have many layers and yet is just one of six questions intended to help students think critically about media. Livingstone (2018) asserts, “media literacy is needed not only to engage with the media but to engage with society through the media .” As Luke and Freebody (1997) argue, it is not enough to only have a psychological approach to literacy, as if reading and writing is just an individual cognitive process. We need to also bring a sociological lens into the process of questioning the contexts, the dominant ideologies, and the systems that make some things seem “natural” or “normal.” The CML framework is a holistic tool for thinking about and questioning the dynamic role media play in our relationships with ourselves, each other, and society. Responses and comments to other questions in the survey provide more insight into how some teachers have engaged their students in various types of media analysis.

Figure 4. Comparing responses from different content areas about Question 2 regarding how often secondary teachers gave their students opportunities to engage in media analysis.

Evaluating Information and Advertising

In the qualitative responses to Questions 11 and 12, teachers mentioned embracing basic media literacy principles in the ways students were evaluating the credibility of information and advertising as well as creating different types of media. The popularity of the term “fake news” and the growing amount of disinformation have increased the challenge to distinguish misinformation and propaganda from journalism and scientifically researched facts ( Rogow, 2018 ). An elementary teacher who reported “frequently” integrating media into the classroom, asserted:

Though my students are younger and some of these concepts are more difficult to teach than others, I find it important to bring up especially in terms of making sure they don’t believe every YouYube video they watch. We’ve had many meaningful discussions about what can be created for a video shouldn’t just be accepted as the truth. For example, the ‘mermaid’ documentary that came out a few years ago had all of my students convinced that they had found a mermaid. It led to an interesting discussion on hoaxes and further reading about Bigfoo[t] and other such stories.

Since all media contain bias because they are created by subjective humans, it is important for teachers to help their students to recognize the bias and also be able to judge the credibility of information. A high school math teacher wrote:

It has not happened until this school year, when I began teaching Statistics. I introduced some pictographs for students to analyze and an article for students to read about how a website stated that if polls were unskewed, Trump would be leading the polls for election. I had students read and discuss about the validity and why/why not it is trustable.

Several respondents mentioned having their students study political advertising, and since all U.S. elections are now multimillion-dollar advertising campaigns (e.g., Barack Obama’s 2008 presidential campaign won the top prizes at the Cannes Lions International Advertising Awards), there is little distinction between selling products, ideas, and political candidates.

Analyzing advertising is an important aspect of media education because advertising is the motor that drives commercial media and has become so common in our lives that there are few spaces that are completely ad-free ( Jhally, 2003 ). Several respondents reported about their students investigating advertisements for false health messages, misleading packaging, political campaigns, tobacco, alcohol, and different perspectives. One secondary English teacher wrote, “My students took pictures of advertisements that surrounded their neighborhood and we analyzed them for patterns, themes, and purposes.” A high school science teacher reported, “I had many times this past year where students were able to reflect on marketing strategies and how they affect the viewer’s perspective of their life and themselves. Students made great connections.”

During the critical media literacy (CML) class, students scrutinize consumer culture and the role advertising plays in creating anxieties, shaping desires, and normalizing representations about all things, from consumption to gender, race, and class. Candidates in the CML class learn about these ideas through readings, by analyzing advertisements, and also by creating ads for different target audiences. When asked about the media their students had created, one third reported their students created advertisements.

Creating Different Types of Media

When students are taught print literacy, they are instructed how to decode letters on a page and how to write with those letters to construct words, sentences, and paragraphs. The same process of teaching reading and writing should be applied to visual images, movies, songs, video games, social media, and all the various multimedia texts that students are encountering daily. In responses from the survey, teachers reported about having their students write and create many different types of texts beyond print (see Figure 2 ).

One English teacher wrote that having students create media was “very successful. They loved being able to create memes, posters, Prezis, etc. to present their work.” An elementary teacher shared about students “creating podcasts/npr style news stories regarding UN sustainability goals.” Several respondents commented on their students designing commercials or challenging ads by producing spoofs that parody the ads. One middle school teacher shared, “students analyzed ads for nicotine and alcohol products, then used the practice with critical media skills to create ‘anti-ads’ with Google drawings.”

During the first year of teaching, a high school science teacher reported about a memorable moment when “creating a multi-lingual, easy-to-understand and scientifically supported pamphlet on the hazards in LA’s environment.” A high school Spanish teacher wrote about his students creating critical memes in Spanish, like the ones they created in the critical media literacy (CML) class. During the session exploring racism and media, candidates challenge racist representations through creating racial myth-busting memes. As a strategy to demonstrate the value of media production, the CML class has students create various media in almost every session, and these activities are often the favorite lessons mentioned in the end of course evaluations.

Increasing Engagement

While engagement is not a learning objective, all teaching benefits from students being engaged in their learning. One of the patterns that emerged from the responses was teachers’ observations that student engagement increased. An eighth-grade English teacher wrote that after incorporating media literacy, the students’ “entire attitude toward learning shifted. Especially the hard to reach students.” An elementary teacher reported, “Media literacy has made great contributions in my class with science research in the past. The simple act of using google images, google maps and finding credible sources has sparked learning and interest in my class.” Another elementary teacher shared about using critical media literacy (CML) to analyze food justice issues: “They were instantly engaged and students who had a difficult time writing and with critical thinking then did not.”

A secondary science teacher reported, “Students spent the entire class engaged in discussion when I intended for it to only be an introduction to the unit.” Another high school science teacher wrote, “When I did teach a class specifically geared towards media literacy, it was great because students were engaged. They were quick at analyzing images and creating their own.” A third science teacher wrote, “using critical media literacy made engaging my students in abstract chemistry concepts more meaningful and engaging.” Engagement tends to increase when students are genuinely interested and intrinsically motivated, something that often comes out of personal connection, a sense of meaningfulness, and an authentic belief in the value of the learning ( Dewey, 1963 ). These are all elements of good CML pedagogy. A high school science teacher described the feelings of students and their parents as they responded to their CML work: “My favorite moments are students exuding pride and passion over the work they are creating that speaks to their perspectives and experiences; parents proud of their students’ media creations.” Feelings of pride and passion are important for all students to experience; they help lower students’ affective filters for learning ( Krashen, 1995 ) and increase intrinsic motivation to want to learn.

Critical Media Literacy

As we analyzed teachers’ written responses, we saw a number of comments in which they were taking basic media literacy concepts to deeper levels of criticality. Several mentioned how useful the class was to understanding critical theory and be able to see how it can be enacted in their K-12 classroom. Similar findings were mentioned after Joanou (2017) analyzed data about a critical media literacy (CML) class taught to master’s-level practicing K-12 educators. Joanou (2017) reported, “critical media literacy helps bridge the gap between theory and practice” (p. 40). The use of media texts and popular culture can provide relevant examples for entry into abstract concepts that are often politically and emotionally charged, and sometimes too sensitive or too distant to begin discussing on a personal level.

Teaching about the connections between information and power reflects a key goal of CML ( Kellner & Share, 2007 ) and our respondents demonstrated this through their qualitative comments about recreating counter-narratives, analyzing the politics of representation, making critical connections between history and current events with media texts, and engaging in political, social, and environmental media activism. Questions 3 and 4 attempted to assess the frequency in which teachers were bringing critical aspects of media education to their students.

Question 3 asks teachers to rate how often: “My students have engaged in media analysis by exploring media representations of ideology, race, class, gender, sexuality, environmentalism, and/or other social justice issues.” Elementary and secondary teachers reported almost identical frequencies in response to Question 3: 22% in both groups reported VF/F while 42% (elementary) and 45% (secondary) stated occasionally. When asked Question 4 about making connections between information and power, the differences increased: 39% of the secondary teachers responded doing this VF/F while just 23% of the elementary teachers reported doing this VF/F.

In-service teachers reported higher frequencies for Question 3: 54% of in-service teachers reported VF/F while preservice teachers reported 14% VF/F. For Question 4: 56% of in-service teachers reported VF/F compared with 30% of preservice teachers who reported VF/F.

When comparing responses separated by subject matter with secondary teachers, 33% of English teachers and 30% of social science teachers reported VF/F for engaging in critical media analysis, as seen in Question 3 about exploring media representations. This is considerably higher than the 16% of science teachers and 9% of math teachers reporting VF/F. The math and science teachers reported the highest percentages for rarely or never having their students explore media representations of social justice issues (see Figure 5 ). The literature supports similar findings. Garii and Rule (2009) reported that student teachers had a difficult time integrating social justice into math and science content due to several factors. In their research with novice elementary teachers, Garii and Rule discovered that the candidates were not confident in their ability to teach math and science and had limited and unsophisticated knowledge of the content. They also viewed math and science “to be a set of routinized, algorithmic practices that lead to a single, correct answer and neither science nor mathematics are assumed to be closely connected to real-world issues and concerns” (p. 491). Given that they are struggling to learn and understand the content, math and science candidates turned to classroom textbooks to guide instructional practices. Incorporating nontraditional practices or making connections to students’ lives becomes a challenge because they disconnect social justice from their teaching and focus on teaching to the content ( Garii & Rule, 2009 ).

Figure 5. Responses to Question 3 from secondary teachers about how often they engaged their students in critical “media analysis by exploring media representations of ideology, race, class, gender, sexuality, environmentalism, and/or other social justice issues.”

One of the more significant findings of the study is the number of respondents reporting they “noticed that using critical media literacy encourages critical thinking among students” (Question 9). Of the preservice respondents, 61% reported VF/F, and for the in-service teachers, the percentages jump to 81% who reported VF/F. In both cases, the majority of respondents expressed their feelings that CML promotes critical thinking most of the time (see Figure 6 ). A middle school social science teacher wrote that after teaching CML, “students were deeper thinkers and our discussions were so much richer. Students were highly engaged and more invested in the classroom.” When comparing grade levels for Question 9, we see 78% of elementary teachers reported that using CML VF/F encourages critical thinking, and 61% of secondary teachers reported VF/F. This large percentage of elementary teachers reporting about CML encouraging critical thinking shows great promise for the potential of CML in the early grades.

Figure 6. Comparison of preservice and in-service teachers’ responses to Question 9 about how often they have noticed CML encourages critical thinking among their students.

Creating Counter Narratives and Supporting Students’ Voices

Many of the responses regarding transformative education centered on guiding students to create counternarratives and supporting student ideas and voices. Respondents mentioned activities that enabled their students to recreate media texts with a critical lens. These counternarratives included recreating superhero comic books, news, advertisements, digital storytelling, national holiday observances, and poems. A high school English teacher noted, “after analyzing recent and popular superhero comic books, my students used the comic medium to tell an autobiographical story wherein they exhibited power in the face of oppression.” A middle school English teacher reported:

The most memorable lesson I’ve taught involving critical media literacy was a unit based on perseverance and the power of the human spirit in regards to power structures and oppression. After analyzing multiple types of media, students created their own VoiceThread using spoken word in order to share their own messages of perseverance. It was incredibly powerful to hear their messages.

For most respondents, the notion of enabling their students to share personal stories using multimedia tools meant that they were integrating critical media pedagogy into their teaching practice. Traditionally, personal and experiential knowledge as a form of literacy is not often valued; thus, it is a critical pedagogical orientation to encourage students to recreate media texts that reflect their intersecting realities and challenge the pervasive dominant ideologies. Students’ personal histories become scholarly pursuits when digital storytelling encompasses media production skills taught through a critical media literacy (CML) framework. Vasquez (2017) asserts, “students learn best when what they are learning has importance in their lives, using the topics, issues, and questions that they raise should therefore be an important part of creating the classroom curriculum” (p. 8). A middle school math and technology teacher commented about incorporating CML into her master’s inquiry project:

The project we ultimately created was a digital storytelling project, in which students interviewed their parents or someone they admire and created some sort of media project around that story to tell counter-narratives to the dominant story told in media about people of color.

Guiding students to create counternarratives can be an empowering instructional strategy that nurtures their personal realities and supports their voice. Considering the context of urban education, it becomes particularly important for low-income students and students of color, who have been historically denied the power to be heard, to engage in their learning as empowered subjects through creating digital counter-narratives.

Politics of Representation

A major difference between critical media literacy (CML) and the more common media literacy practiced in the United States is the rigorous examination of the politics of representation; an analysis of how historically disenfranchised social groups are represented in media ( Funk et al., 2016 ). Many of the respondents discussed analyzing issues related to representations of different identities with their students. A high school visual arts teacher reported that through “using current events in the media, students created headline news with people of color perspective.” The majority of the responses highlighted engaging in discussions related to gender and a few responses about race. One elementary teacher noted:

My grade level did a Critical Media Literacy unit and after it was over, a week later, a student showed me a box of Chips Ahoy cookies and said that it was made to be sold to boys and girls. She compared it to a rainbow pop tarts box made for girls and a basketball cereal box made for boys that we had discussed during the CML unit.

A high school social science teacher reported:

My 11th and 12th grade Sociology class created representation boards. Each group was assigned an identity (‘white male,’ ‘Asian male,’ ‘black female,’ etc.). When each group was done, we compared the images and discussed the similarities between representations of race and gender. It really opened their eyes.

The politics of representation explores the complexities and intersections of identity markers, such as ethnicity, culture, gender, class, sexual orientation, religion, and ableism. Several candidates alluded to the intersectionality between race and gender in their responses, mostly engaging their students in discussions related to the unequal representation and socialization of gender roles. They also noted that discussing stereotypical gender roles challenged their students’ internalized notions of gender. Responses such as the following highlight the shift in their students’ perspectives about gender: An elementary teacher wrote, “We’ve had some successful discussions around gender stereotypes and I’ve heard the language change in the classroom and students be more thoughtful about others’ choices.” Another elementary teacher reported, “My students showed greater acceptance. After teaching a lesson invoking gender all my male students felt accepted to choose any color paper—the favorite was pink for the rest of the year.”

Making Critical Connections

In response to the open-ended questions, an array of items was mentioned that demonstrate critical engagement, from teaching about racism and whitewashing, to numerous examples of analyzing gender and sexism, as well as projects on environmental justice and climate change at all grade levels. Some respondents discussed their transformative practice through the way their students analyzed and created media to make critical connections between historical and current events.

A high school social science teacher stated, “I had students create videos explaining the situation in Ukraine and relating it to the Cold War. In United States history, I often had students look at political cartoons and think about current examples of imperialism and how they’re represented in media.” Similarly, another social science teacher described a memorable moment of teaching critical media literacy (CML) as: “When students could make the connection between yellow journalism in Spanish-American War and media sensationalism during the War on Terror.” An elementary school teacher wrote:

My students began to think critically about history after showing them the spoken word poem ‘History Textbooks,’ which talked about world history being American Propaganda. Through this poem, they began questioning: who gets to write history and whose stories are told? It was a really powerful lesson we returned to over and over again throughout my course.

Analyzing media texts by acknowledging their historical continuity is vital because marginalization and exploitation are historically bound. Discovering these historical connections helps teachers and students learn how dominance and ideology are perpetuated, transcending time and space. Bridging the gap between the past and the present enables students to identify the common thread of hegemony across various spheres of social life. This instructional approach of CML promotes critical thinking with a social justice emphasis.

Another topic on which respondents commented was using CML to teach about environmental issues, especially the climate crisis. This is an important area for CML, since so many media messages about climate change distort the scientific evidence and mislead the public ( Beach et al., 2017 ; Share & Beach, 2022 ). A high school science teacher reported, “My class analyzed the politics behind climate change denial and how climate change is represented in the media. It was very easy for my students to see the connection between the message and its creators.” Exploring the connection between media ownership and media messages, another high school science teacher commented that a memorable moment was having a “discussion with students about where they were getting their information about environmental issues, and talking about who owns and controls Univision.”

In addition to becoming more aware, being engaged in critical analysis and creating counternarratives, some respondents noted that their students had engaged in political, environmental, and social media activism. A high school science teacher mentioned:

My class was looking at environmental justice and one student took that information and used it for an English project she was working on and that project transformed into a petition to the city council to plant more trees as her contribution to offsetting pollution in the inner city.

Another science teacher reported about how his “students created social media campaigns to raise awareness about animals affected by climate change. Different groups created the ‘Puffin Dance’ and #peekatmypika to help their campaigns get going.” A kindergarten teacher wrote about her students creating a video with opinion posters for change they shared with their school community.

Activism can be enacted in multiple ways; some efforts are more explicit, like petitions and protests, while others are more subtle, such as creating alternative media. Teacher responses reflect their students’ activism related to social, environmental, and political issues materialized through local and issue-specific efforts.

In analyzing the responses, we found many encouraging and hopeful comments about how critical media literacy (CML) has helped teachers rethink their pedagogy and increase student engagement. However, the responses also highlight challenges for implementing CML, such as limited resources, support, and clarity about how to integrate it into the curriculum. An elementary teacher wrote about the scarcity of technology at the school and how that “makes it difficult to do anything around critical media.” From the answers to Question 7 (incorporating CML into my teaching is difficult), secondary teachers reported more difficulty teaching CML (35% VF/F) than elementary teachers (26% VF/F). This is another place where the potential for CML in the lower grades surfaced, since they seem to have less difficulty incorporating it than secondary teachers. The design of most elementary classrooms, which requires the same teacher to cover all subject matter to the same group of students throughout the day, opens the potential for integrating CML pedagogy through thematic teaching, project-based learning, or problem-posing pedagogy.

A first-year middle school social science teacher shared wanting to use more CML, but had little departmental and administrative support. An elementary teacher shared about an administrator who “is reluctant to have me teach how to be critical of all media.” Three responses focused on wanting more resources, instructional strategies, and school-appropriate material in order to be able to implement CML in their classrooms. These qualitative statements of lack of support can be seen in the quantitative responses to Question 10 in which respondents rated the statement: “I feel supported by people at my school when teaching critical media literacy”: 36% VF/F, 24% occasionally, 18% rarely, 6% never felt supported, and 17% not applicable.

The group that shared the most challenges for implementing CML consisted of five teachers who taught secondary math and science. Their qualitative responses broadly discussed the difficulty of integrating CML into their content and finding only limited application. One of these responses from a high school math teacher mentioned:

I remember how when I was in the [CML] class, it seemed all over the place. I was unable to fully find the purpose of the class and how we can use it in a math class. In a traditional math class, such as Pre-Calculus or Calculus, it was rather difficult to find ways to incorporate the idea of CML.

This same person also commented that once he began teaching statistics, he was able to find ways to integrate CML. Of the 34 math teachers who answered Question 7, 59% of them reported that incorporating CML into their teaching was difficult VF/F. This is about double the VF/F responses from the other subjects.

A high school math teacher saw the value in teaching students CML but limited its application to challenging students’ misinformation about math and who is or is not a mathematician:

Critical Media Literacy is pretty important for students, especially in an age where they’re exposed to various forms of media, a lot of which is very skewed in one way or the other, and usually takes a reductionist viewpoint of the issues it addresses. I try to use CML to help students understand the misinformation about mathematics, the nature of mathematics, and challenge stereotypes of who is or isn’t a mathematician (examples: Not all mathematicians are white or Asian, there are Latino and African/African American mathematicians, there are mathematicians from faith backgrounds, mathematics isn’t just about calculations, etc.).

Two additional respondents also acknowledged the benefits of CML but felt challenged by the additional work needed to integrate it into the curriculum. A high school science teacher shared:

When I took the Critical Media Literacy class, it felt like it was more geared towards the humanities and not necessarily for the sciences. While it would be great to come up with lessons that connect chemistry and critical media literacy, it is immensely time-consuming when I can’t find other people to brainstorm with.

Another secondary science teacher also felt CML was important but struggled to find ways to integrate it into the classroom:

It was a great shared learning space and I got a ton of inspiration from taking the class; however, it has been difficult to use CML when direct instruction does focus on the explanation of scientific concepts. That’s not to say it is impossible, it just does take one more step of planning and student buy in.

Researchers in Canada found that after teaching CML concepts and skills in a Language Arts methods course, their preservice teachers felt enthusiastic about teaching media literacy, but challenged when designing CML lessons ( Robertson & Hughes, 2011 , p. 51). Robertson and Hughes (2011) list five reasons why teaching CML was so challenging for their students: (1) when these preservice teachers were K-12 students, most did not experience CML lessons; (2) the majority of their mentor teachers did not teach CML or know much about it; (3) critical analysis practices are not easy; (4) few resources are available; and (5) some schools have little technology and technical support. These are many of the same challenges that our teachers reported.

Intent and Importance of Incorporating Critical Media Literacy

Numerous teachers wrote about how meaningful, vital, transformative, and important this class was for them. A high school science teacher shared that the critical media literacy (CML) class, “was transformative! I’m still working on ways to fully integrate what I learned, but I have had my students creating media ever since.” A middle school English teacher commented about how the CML class “gave us techniques, projects, lessons that we can incorporate in our classrooms. Teaching students how to be critical of information related through the media is highly important because student[s] gain that critical awareness necessary for a technology-based society!”

A desire to bring more CML into the classroom surfaced throughout many of the qualitative responses. When asked to indicate any additional comments, 16 out of 64 respondents (25%) expressed their intention to integrate concepts related to media literacy or CML. A high school math teacher who wrote about having students create ads to represent data in graphs stated, “I wish I could incorporate more. I’ll keep trying.” A kindergarten teacher commented, “I wish I had more time to engage my students in this topic. As I grow in experience and expertise, I incorporate it more and more. Teaching in urban areas is a challenge but I do find the ideas of the course to be valuable in the classroom.”

The data and voices of these teachers raise practical, theoretical, and policy implications for future work in supporting teachers in adopting a pedagogical approach that can ignite engagement, make learning relevant, and deepen critical thinking with media, technology, and all information. In order for this to happen, teacher education programs need to address some of the challenges and limitations highlighted in the study.

The teachers surveyed reported challenges for implementing critical media literacy (CML) such as limited access to resources, lack of support, and a struggle to understand how to integrate it into the curriculum. This was especially evident for the math and science teachers. CML courses need to help teachers in all content areas rethink the silo approach to separate subject matter instruction and recognize the ways literacy is used in all areas and how information is connected to students’ lives through issues of power, privilege, and pleasure. To help teachers integrate CML into the curriculum, it is important for them to see content and grade-level examples while also receiving ongoing support and resources.

One way to support teachers in various subject matter is to create groups or projects modeled after the Stanford History Education Group (SHEG) or the Center X professional development projects. 4 The SHEG is a research and development group that provides free online resources and lesson plans for history teachers to support students in developing historical thinking skills. In a similar way, the Center X projects provide resources, lesson ideas, and professional development to support working teachers and administrators, while also creating curriculum, providing trainings, and engaging in research. The creation of a CML project or research and development group could provide ongoing professional development for new and experienced teachers in order to sustain CML implementation and support the growth of CML as an important field of investigation.

In-service teachers in our survey reported higher rates of integration of CML, perhaps because experienced teachers have figured out issues of classroom management, lesson planning, and how to balance work and life expectations. As a result, they are better situated to build and expand their curricula and teaching practices to bring CML into their classrooms. While creating a site modeled after the SHEG or Center X projects will require a significant investment of time and money, a more immediate and economical way to provide support for preservice teachers could be through integrating CML across various teacher preparation courses, especially in methods classes. This integration would require working with teacher educators to explore the CML theoretical framework and co-construct new practices and curricula for integrating these ideas throughout different content areas.

Despite the challenges reported by our teachers, the data also suggest promising possibilities for CML. While we do not claim causality between their teaching and the CML course, the data provide a window into how our preservice and in-service teachers have supported critical engagement with the information, entertainment, and social media embedded in the lives of students.

The similarities between elementary and secondary teachers suggest that CML can be just as appropriate for lower grades as it is commonly assumed to be for older students. The work in critical literacy by Comber (2013) and Vasquez (2014) offers support for the notion that young children can engage deeply in critical thinking and social justice education. The elementary teachers in our study demonstrate these ideas through the work they have done to engage their young students with media analysis and critical media production from kindergarten on up. While some teachers reported deep levels of critical analysis more often than others, many expressed their belief in the importance of CML and their desire to teach about social justice. Vasquez (2017) reminds us that critical literacy should not be a topic to teach: “Instead it should be looked on as a lens, frame, or perspective for teaching throughout the day, across the curriculum, and perhaps beyond. What this means is that critical literacy involves having a critical perspective or way of being” (p. 8). Developing social justice educators who internalize a critical way of looking at the world and questioning systems of power is the project for which CML provides a pragmatic framework and pedagogy.

It is impressive to see the majority of teachers reporting that using CML encourages critical thinking, something more important than ever in the age of fake news and alternative facts. There is hope in the teachers’ voices as they describe the activities they have been doing with their students, the successes they have encountered, and the challenges they have struggled to overcome. The comments about their intentions to teach CML and the importance they attribute to teaching these concepts provide encouragement for teacher educators to embrace CML. More than anything, the data demonstrate the potential for teaching CML in elementary and secondary settings with preservice and in-service teachers and in all content areas, even though some are more challenging than others. The use of media and technology offers opportunities for teachers to build on students’ prior knowledge, create a bridge to connect the outside world with school learning, and provide the raw material to examine everyday experiences of power, marginalization, and resistance.

Simply integrating media into the curriculum is not enough to develop critical literacies given the changing and multiple literacies associated with new digital information and communication technologies and practices. In the contemporary moment, there is a pressing pedagogical need to navigate the increasingly consequential artificial intelligence (AI) systems that collect, collate, process, predict and disseminate information determined by algorithms. Data from the survey suggest that our teachers are teaching more with media than critically analyzing it. Further studies are needed in order to better understand how to develop teachers’ CML frameworks and support more implementation.

Preparing educators to teach CML is not easy, and unfortunately, few institutes of higher education are attempting the challenge. However, it is possible, and in fact, it can be highly rewarding. By listening to the voices of teachers who have taken a CML course, we see the potential. As one high school science teacher commented, “CML changed me, changed my teaching, continues to change my students.”

While information communication technologies are integrating into all aspects of our lives, we are also witnessing increasing divisions between the haves and have nots, out-of-control climate change, and the weaponization of information and media. In order to create a socially just democratic society and sustainable planet, we must have people who can critically read and write the word and the world ( Freire & Macedo, 1987 ). The need for CML has never been greater. A high school English teacher wrote, “there is no literacy without media literacy. There is not critical pedagogy without critical media literacy.” It is our hope that this article serves as a resource to continue exploring the potential that CML offers to transform students, schools, and society.

Acknowledgments

We would like to thank the following educators who helped us design and teach this critical media literacy course: Shani Byard, Peter Carlson, Steven Funk, Antero Garcia, Mark Gomez, Clifford Lee, Elexia Reyes-McGovern, and Martin Romero. We are grateful to Megan Franke for her guidance with the creation of the survey. We also appreciate the assistance of Jarod Kawasaki, Jose-Felipe Martinez, and Brandon McMillan with helping to organize the survey data.

Media Literacy in the Modern Age

How to understand the messages we observe all day every day

Cynthia Vinney, PhD is an expert in media psychology and a published scholar whose work has been published in peer-reviewed psychology journals.

why is critical thinking important in media literacy

Steven Gans, MD is board-certified in psychiatry and is an active supervisor, teacher, and mentor at Massachusetts General Hospital.

Morsa Images / Getty Images

How to Practice Media Literacy

Media literacy is the ability to apply critical thinking skills to the messages, signs, and symbols transmitted through mass media .

We live in a world that is saturated with media of all kinds, from newspapers to radio to television to the internet. Media literacy enables us to understand and evaluate all of the media messages we encounter on a daily basis, empowering us to make better choices about what we choose to read, watch, and listen to. It also helps us become smarter, more discerning members of society.

Media literacy is seen as an essential 21st-century skill by educators and scholars, including media psychologists . In fact, the mission statement of Division 46 of the American Psychological Association , the Society for Media Psychology and Technology , includes support for the development of media literacy.

Despite this, many people still dismiss media as harmless entertainment and claim they aren't influenced by its messages. However, research findings consistently demonstrate that people are impacted by the media messages they consume.

Media literacy interventions and education help children and adults recognize the influence media has and give them the knowledge and tools to mitigate its impact.

History of Media Literacy

The earliest attempts at media literacy education are often traced back to the British Film Institute's push in the late 1920s and early 1930s to teach analytical skills to media users. Around the same time in America, the Wisconsin Association for Better Broadcasters sought to teach citizens to be more critical consumers of media.

However, the goal of these initial media literacy efforts, which continued into the 1960s, was to protect students from media by warning them against its consumption. Despite this perspective, the dominance of media—and television in particular—continued to grow, even as interest in media literacy education waned.

More recently, the advent of the internet and portable technologies that enable us to consume media anywhere and anytime has led to a resurgence in the call for media literacy. Yet the goal is no longer to prevent people from using media, but to help them become more informed, thoughtful media consumers.

Although media literacy education has now become accepted and successful in English-speaking countries including Australia, Canada, and Britain, it has yet to become a standard part of the curriculum in the United States, where a lack of centralization has led to a scattershot approach to teaching practical media literacy skills.

Impact of Media Literacy

Despite America's lack of a standardized media literacy curriculum, study after study has shown the value of teaching people of all ages media literacy skills.

For example, a review of the research on media literacy education and reduction in racial and ethnic stereotypes found that children as young as 12 can be trained to recognize bias in media depictions of race and ethnicity and understand the harm it can cause.

Though the authors note that this topic is still understudied, they observe that the evidence suggests media literacy education can help adolescents become sensitive to prejudice and learn to appreciate diversity.

Meanwhile, multiple studies have shown that media literacy interventions reduce body dissatisfaction that can be the result of the consumption of media messages.

In one investigation, adolescent girls were shown an intervention video by the Dove Self-Esteem Fund before being shown images of ultra-thin models. While a control group reported lower body satisfaction and body esteem after viewing the images of the models, the group that viewed the intervention first didn't experience these negative effects.

Similarly, another study showed college women (who were at high risk for eating disorders ) reported less body dissatisfaction, a lower desire to be thin, and reduced internalization of societal beauty standards after participating in a media literacy intervention. The researchers concluded that media literacy training could help prevent eating disorders in high-risk individuals.

Moreover, studies have shown that media literacy education can help people better discern the truth of media claims, enabling them to detect "fake news" and make more informed decisions.

For instance, research into young adults' assessment of the accuracy of claims on controversial public issues was improved if the subjects had been exposed to media literacy education. In addition, another study showed that only people who underwent media literacy training engaged in critical social media posting practices that prevented them from posting false information about the COVID-19 pandemic.

The evidence for the benefits of media literacy suggests it is valuable for people of all ages to learn to be critical media consumers. Media scholar W. James Potter observes that all media messages include four dimensions:

Cognitive : the information that is being conveyed
Emotional : the underlying feelings that are being expressed
Aesthetic: the overall precision and artistry of the message
Moral : the values being conveyed through the message

Media psychologist Karen Dill-Shackleford suggests that we can use these four dimensions as a jumping off point to improve our media literacy skills. For example, let's say while streaming videos online we're exposed to an advertisement for a miracle weight loss drug. In order to better evaluate what the ad is really trying to tell us, we can break it down as follows:

On the cognitive dimension we can assess what information the ad is conveying to us by asking some of the following questions: What does the ad promise the drug will do? Does it seem likely the drug can deliver on those promises? Who would need this kind of drug?
On the emotional dimension, we can evaluate the feelings the creator of the ad wants us to feel: Do they want us to feel insecure about our weight? Do they want us to imagine the positive ways this drug could change our lives? Do they want us to envision the satisfaction we would feel after the drug delivers its quick fix?
On the aesthetic dimension, we can determine how the ad employs messages and images to make us believe the product will deliver on its promises: Does the ad show "before" and "after" images of someone who supposedly took the drug? Does the "before" image look sad and the "after" image happy? Does the ad offer testimonials from people that are identified as experts?
On the moral dimension, we can examine what the ad makers wanted to say: Are they equating thinness with happiness? Are they sending the message that it's a moral failing when someone is overweight? Are they saying that one has to be thin to be loved and respected?

This is one avenue for learning to practice media literacy in everyday life. Remember, the purpose of media literacy isn't to enjoy media less, it's to give people the tools to be active media consumers.

Not only will media literacy enable you to detect, analyze, and evaluate negative or false media messages, it will actually enable you to enjoy media more because it puts control over the media back into your hands. And research shows this is likely to increase your health and happiness.

About the Society for Media Psychology & Technology . Society for Media Psychology & Technology, Division 46 of the American Psychological Association. 2013.

Dill-Shackleford KE. How Fantasy Becomes Reality . New York: Oxford University Press; 2009.

Arke ET. Media Literacy: History, Progress, and Future Hopes . In: Dill-Shackleford KE, ed. The Oxford Handbook Of Media Psychology . 1st ed. New York: Oxford University Press; 2012. doi:10.1093/oxfordhb/9780195398809.013.0006

Scharrer E, Ramasubramanian S. Intervening in the Media's Influence on Stereotypes of Race and Ethnicity: The Role of Media Literacy Education . Journal of Social Issues . 2015;71(1):171-185. doi:10.1111/josi.12103

Halliwell E, Easun A, Harcourt D. Body dissatisfaction: Can a short media literacy message reduce negative media exposure effects amongst adolescent girls? Br J Health Psychol . 2011;16(2):396-403. doi:10.1348/135910710x515714

Coughlin JW, Kalodner C. Media literacy as a prevention intervention for college women at low- or high-risk for eating disorders . Body Image . 2006;3(1):35-43. doi:10.1016/j.bodyim.2006.01.001

Kahne J, Bowyer B. Educating for Democracy in a Partisan Age: Confronting the Challenges of Motivated Reasoning and Misinformation . Am Educ Res J . 2016;54(1):3-34. doi:10.3102/0002831216679817

Melki J, Tamim H, Hadid D, Makki M, El Amine J, Hitti E. Mitigating infodemics: The relationship between news exposure and trust and belief in COVID-19 fake news and social media spreading . PLoS One . 2021;16(6). doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0252830

Potter WJ. Media Literacy . 4th ed. Los Angeles: SAGE; 2008.

By Cynthia Vinney, PhD Cynthia Vinney, PhD is an expert in media psychology and a published scholar whose work has been published in peer-reviewed psychology journals.

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Why all 21st-century educators must teach media literacy & how

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From our Educator Guest Blogger Series

With technology being an integral part of classrooms and students’ lives in general, I realize that my job as a teacher involves helping students successfully navigate the online world.

My goal this year is to help every student develop 21st-century skills, including being responsible users of technology and critical consumers of media they encounter., as a teacher reading this, you are likely integrating digital media in your classroom. i challenge you, too, in the new year to include media literacy as a part of your daily instruction. but you may wonder, “why should i be responsible for teaching media literacy, and how can i do it on top of an already packed curriculum”, why do all educators need to teach media literacy.

Linda Ellerbee, host of Nick News (1992-2015), said, “Media literacy is not just important, it's absolutely critical. It's going to make the difference between whether kids are a tool of the mass media or whether the mass media is a tool for kids to use.” In other words, do we want students to be manipulated by media, or do we want to empower them to use media?

I firmly believe that it’s every teacher’s job to prepare students to become knowledgeable, productive 21st-century citizens. With tweens and teens spending an average of 6 and 9 hours respectively using media ( Common Sense Media , 2015) -- and that’s not including homework! -- it’s no longer a question of whether our students will be digital citizens, it’s whether they will be good digital citizens and digital leaders! With media literacy instruction they can be both!!

Media Literacy and 21st-Century Skills

Teaching media literacy provides students with skills that will help them foremost think critically about media. It also cultivates other 21st-century skills like creativity, collaboration, and communication, as well as increasing digital literacy skills through interacting with media, information, and technology. Media literacy instruction can also help your students develop into active consumers of information, determine credible sources, acknowledge biases in media, and be responsible creators of media.

Whether you teach science, English language arts, social studies or art, there is a place for the development of these skills in your instruction!

But HOW Can Educators Include Media Literacy as an Integral Part of Daily Instruction?!

The National Association of Media Literacy Education defines media literacy as “the ability to ACCESS, ANALYZE, EVALUATE, CREATE, & ACT using all forms of communication.” Let’s look at some ways educators can help students develop into media-literate individuals.

Access to Quality Sources. We need to ensure students can access quality sources that are current, reliable, and unbiased when they are interacting with media at school.

Provide students a curated collection of quality resources through links in their learning management systems or tools like Padlet or Waklet .
Provide access to quality content collections like Pebble Go , Epic !, and NewsELA .
Teach older students strategies for searching for information. Reach out to your media specialist, and I’ll bet he or she will be happy to help you!

Analyze/Evaluate Using Critical Thinking . But how do students know which sources are credible when the encounter them without our support? Whether they are watching YouTube, reading news, or analyzing images, students need skills to understand information, put it in context, and differentiate between real and fake. One way to do this is to teach students to ask questions when analyzing and evaluating media:

Who is the author?
What is its purpose? (inform, entertain, persuade)
How might different people interpret this message?
Are there certain groups of people being represented and/or excluded?
Were certain details left out? Why?
Also consider: Are sources cited? Are there grammar and spelling errors?

Additionally, giving students the time and opportunity to think for themselves and coaching them on how to ask questions is instrumental for them to learn to analyze and evaluate media on their own.

While teachers must explicitly provide students opportunities to think critically, the critical thinking involved in analyzing and evaluating digital resources should be routinely modeled through teacher think alouds, where students hear, see, and experience this type of thought process.

Creating Media Content . We want to shift from students being solely consumers to being creators who can express themselves through media. When students create media, especially with the questions for analyzing and evaluating in mind, it helps them to consider the impact their creations will have on their audience. Some quality tools for students to use for creating include Seesaw , Google Tools , Canva , Book Creator , and Meme Generator .

Distributing Created Messages Responsibly . Besides thinking critically about media, this is probably one of the most important parts of media literacy. We want students to be life-long learners prepared to internalize what they’ve learned about media and transfer it beyond the classroom, including monitoring themselves on social media, being critical of media before sharing it, and empowering them to create and share media responsibly!

Media Literacy Resources to Try Tomorrow

While there are a plethora of resources for teaching media literacy, these tried-and-true resources should help you develop ideas to take back to your classroom and use immediately.

SCETV/PBS Education Resources SCETV/PBS Pre-K-12 content like Knowitall, Learning Why, and PBS LearningMedia provide quality media and multimedia resources and lessons for SC students and teachers. * Improve your media literacy knowledge and skills plus earn micro-credentials with FREE courses from PBS and KQED !

Common Sense Education Common Sense Education has free, comprehensive digital citizenship curriculums for K-12 students that include lessons on media literacy.

Google Resources

Be Internet Awesome , Google’s free digital safety curriculum, helps encourage students to be smart, alert, strong, kind, and brave when online, and has recently added some media literacy lessons.
Search Education is a series of lessons to help you guide your students to use Google searches meaningfully in their schoolwork and beyond. Choose from Search Literacy lessons and A Google A Day classroom challenges.
Reverse Image Search can help students determine if images have been altered.

Other Useful Resources Interactives like Factitious and Bad News help students to better discriminate “fake news” and develop resistance against disinformation.

Ashley Fort’s goal is to help ALL students become empowered life-long learners who are confident 21st-century citizens, and to help teachers effectively leverage technology to enrich learning and increase student engagement. She serves as a digital learning coach for Batesburg-Leesville schools in Lexington County School District 3. Ashley holds a Bachelor of Arts in Early Childhood Education from the University of South Carolina, Aiken and a Master of Education in Teaching and Learning with a concentration in educational technology and online instruction in 2015 from Liberty University.

In 2017, Ashley was named the PBS LearningMedia Digital Innovator for South Carolina for integrating STEAM into her daily instruction. In addition, she is a Google Certified Educator and Trainer, Common Sense Educator and Ambassador, Seesaw Ambassador, and Epic! Master Teacher.

You can follow her on Twitter at @MrsAshleyBFort and on her website at www.mytechknowledgeyclassroom.com . To keep up with Lexington County School District Three’s innovative 1:1 initiative, follow @LexCounty_SD3 and #Lex3Grows.

* Be our next Guest Blogger! Learn more .

Note: This guest blog does not necessarily reflect the views of ETV Education.

Media and Information Literacy, a critical approach to literacy in the digital world

What does it mean to be literate in the 21 st century? On the celebration of the International Literacy Day (8 September), people’s attention is drawn to the kind of literacy skills we need to navigate the increasingly digitally mediated societies.

Stakeholders around the world are gradually embracing an expanded definition for literacy, going beyond the ability to write, read and understand words. Media and Information Literacy (MIL) emphasizes a critical approach to literacy. MIL recognizes that people are learning in the classroom as well as outside of the classroom through information, media and technological platforms. It enables people to question critically what they have read, heard and learned.

As a composite concept proposed by UNESCO in 2007, MIL covers all competencies related to information literacy and media literacy that also include digital or technological literacy. Ms Irina Bokova, Director-General of UNESCO has reiterated significance of MIL in this media and information landscape: “Media and information literacy has never been so vital, to build trust in information and knowledge at a time when notions of ‘truth’ have been challenged.”

MIL focuses on different and intersecting competencies to transform people’s interaction with information and learning environments online and offline. MIL includes competencies to search, critically evaluate, use and contribute information and media content wisely; knowledge of how to manage one’s rights online; understanding how to combat online hate speech and cyberbullying; understanding of the ethical issues surrounding the access and use of information; and engagement with media and ICTs to promote equality, free expression and tolerance, intercultural/interreligious dialogue, peace, etc. MIL is a nexus of human rights of which literacy is a primary right.

Learning through social media

In today’s 21 st century societies, it is necessary that all peoples acquire MIL competencies (knowledge, skills and attitude). Media and Information Literacy is for all, it is an integral part of education for all. Yet we cannot neglect to recognize that children and youth are at the heart of this need. Data shows that 70% of young people around the world are online. This means that the Internet, and social media in particular, should be seen as an opportunity for learning and can be used as a tool for the new forms of literacy.

The Policy Brief by UNESCO Institute for Information Technologies in Education, “Social Media for Learning by Means of ICT” underlines this potential of social media to “engage students on immediate and contextual concerns, such as current events, social activities and prospective employment.

UNESCO MIL CLICKS - To think critically and click wisely

For this reason, UNESCO initiated a social media innovation on Media and Information Literacy, MIL CLICKS (Media and Information Literacy: Critical-thinking, Creativity, Literacy, Intercultural, Citizenship, Knowledge and Sustainability).

MIL CLICKS is a way for people to acquire MIL competencies in their normal, day-to-day use of the Internet and social media. To think critically and click wisely. This is an unstructured approach, non-formal way of learning, using organic methods in an online environment of play, connecting and socializing.

MIL as a tool for sustainable development

In the global, sustainable context, MIL competencies are indispensable to the critical understanding and engagement in development of democratic participation, sustainable societies, building trust in media, good governance and peacebuilding. A recent UNESCO publication described the high relevance of MIL for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

“Citizen's engagement in open development in connection with the SDGs are mediated by media and information providers including those on the Internet, as well as by their level of media and information literacy. It is on this basis that UNESCO, as part of its comprehensive MIL programme, has set up a MOOC on MIL,” says Alton Grizzle, UNESCO Programme Specialist.

UNESCO’s comprehensive MIL programme

UNESCO has been continuously developing MIL programme that has many aspects. MIL policies and strategies are needed and should be dovetailed with existing education, media, ICT, information, youth and culture policies.

The first step on this road from policy to action is to increase the number of MIL teachers and educators in formal and non-formal educational setting. This is why UNESCO has prepared a model Media and Information Literacy Curriculum for Teachers , which has been designed in an international context, through an all-inclusive, non-prescriptive approach and with adaptation in mind.

The mass media and information intermediaries can all assist in ensuring the permanence of MIL issues in the public. They can also highly contribute to all citizens in receiving information and media competencies. Guideline for Broadcasters on Promoting User-generated Content and Media and Information Literacy , prepared by UNESCO and the Commonwealth Broadcasting Association offers some insight in this direction.

UNESCO will be highlighting the need to build bridges between learning in the classroom and learning outside of the classroom through MIL at the Global MIL Week 2017 . Global MIL Week will be celebrated globally from 25 October to 5 November 2017 under the theme: “Media and Information Literacy in Critical Times: Re-imagining Ways of Learning and Information Environments”. The Global MIL Feature Conference will be held in Jamaica under the same theme from 24 to 27 October 2017, at the Jamaica Conference Centre in Kingston, hosted by The University of the West Indies (UWI).

Alton Grizzle , Programme Specialist – Media Development and Society Section

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Strengthen Media Literacy to Win the Fight Against Misinformation

If the world is going to stop deliberate or unintentional misinformation and its insidious effects, we need to radically expand and accelerate our counterattacks, particularly human-centered solutions focused on improving people's media and information literacy.

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By Kristin M. Lord & Katya Vogt Mar. 18, 2021

Illustration of tiny people and huge laptop computer with cracked planet Earth globe, journalist with mic on screen.

The deliberate or unintentional spread of misinformation, despite capturing widespread public attention, remains as rampant as ever, showing up recently in the form of false claims about COVID-19 vaccines , the Capitol riot , and many other topics . This “ infodemic ” is polarizing politics , endangering communities , weakening institutions , and leaving people unsure what to believe or whom to trust . It threatens the foundations of democratic governance , social cohesion , national security , and public health .

Misinformation is a long-term problem that demands long-term, sustainable solutions as well as short-term interventions. We've seen a number of quicker, technological fixes that improve the social media platforms that supply information. Companies like Facebook and Twitter, for example, have adjusted their algorithms or called out problematic content . We've also seen slower, human-centered approaches that make people smarter about the media they demand to access online. Evidence-driven educational programs, for instance, have made people better at discerning the reliability of information sources, distinguishing facts from opinions, resisting emotional manipulation, and being good digital citizens.

It hasn't been enough. If we're to stop misinformation and its insidious effects, we need to radically expand and accelerate our counterattacks. It will take all sectors of society: business, nonprofits, advocacy organizations, philanthropists, researchers, governments, and more. We also need to balance our efforts. For too long, too many resources and debates have focused on changing the technology, not educating people. This emphasis on the supply side of the problem without a similar investment in the demand side may be a less effective use of time and energy.

While technology-centered, self-policing solutions—filtering software, artificial intelligence, modified algorithms, and content labeling—do have the ability to make changes quickly and at scale, they face significant ethical, financial, logistical, and legal constraints.

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For one, social media business models thrive on engagement, which incentivizes emotionally charged and freely flowing content. Tech leaders like Facebook's founder, Mark Zuckerberg, hesitate taking action over concerns about free speech and have tried to avoid political debates until pressed . When they do take action, they face scrutiny for an inconsistent approach. Additionally, research shows that some of the most commonly employed methods for combatting misinformation on social media—such as banners that display fact-checks—have little impact on people’s likelihood to believe deliberately misleading news, and some even backfire. And because people often have a deeply held desire to share what they know with others—particularly information that seems threatening or exciting —tech companies can only go so far to regulate content. There is also the challenge of volume. Tech platforms struggle to keep pace with the many forms and producers of disinformation. Stopping them resembles a high-stakes, never-ending game of Whac-A-Mole.

Given these challenges, we need to invest more into human-centered solutions focused on improving people's media and information literacy. They not only demonstrate a much deeper and longer-lasting impact, but also may be easier and cheaper to implement than commonly believed.

Research from the RAND Corporation and others shows media and information literacy improves critical thinking , awareness of media bias , and the desire to consume quality news —all of which help beat back misinformation. Even brief exposure to some training can improve competencies in media literacy, including a better understanding of news credibility or a more robust ability to evaluate biases . Media literacy has a stronger impact than political knowledge on the ability to evaluate the accuracy of political messages, regardless of political opinion. Digital media literacy reduced the perceived accuracy of false news, and training remains effective when delivered in different ways and by different groups .

Media literacy training has lasting impact. A year and a half after adults went through a program from IREX (a nonprofit where the authors work), they continued to be 25 percent more likely to check multiple news sources and 13 percent more likely to discern between disinformation and a piece of objective reporting. In Jordan and Serbia, participants in IREX's training also improved their media literacy skills up to 97 percent .

Media literacy programs can also be affordably and extensively delivered through schools. Finland and Sweden incorporated media literacy into their education systems decades ago with positive results, and Ukraine is beginning to do the same . In Britain, youth who had training in schools showed an improvement in media literacy skills .

Critics may say that improving people's media literacy and other human-centered solutions are resource-intensive and will not address the problem quickly enough or at sufficient scale. These are real challenges, but the long-term efficacy of such programs is exactly what is needed in the never-ending battle with misinformation. We need to invest more in them while continuing to pursue technology solutions, or we may never create and sustain the accurately informed citizenry that healthy democracies demand.

The effort will require all sectors of societies across the globe collaborating to fully understand and solve the problem. We need nonprofits and advocacy organizations to raise the alarm with the people they serve. We need philanthropists to step up with funding to scale solutions. We need more researchers to provide evidence-based answers to the full scope of the problem and the efficacy of fixes. We need governments to integrate media literacy standards into schools and incentivize training. We need tech companies to do more than tweak their platforms—they need to invest in educating the people who use them, too.

The tools to blunt the power of misinformation are in our hands, but we have to work smarter and faster or risk losing an ever-intensifying fight. Much learning, coalition-building, scaling, and communication remains to be done to " emerge from information bankruptcy ." Solutions are complex but within our reach. And the consequences of inaction are dire: the increasingly severe and invasive destabilization of our societies and daily lives as lies trample the truth.

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The Current State of Media & Children

Our children live in a world of powerful 24/7 media. In addition to children’s exposure to traditional forms of media and advertisements like television, print (magazines, books), and billboards, new media has exploded in recent years. Over the last decade, there has been a drastic increase in the amount of time children and youth are engaging with media, particularly digital media. Children ages 2 to 8 spend an average of two hours per day, children between 8 and 12 spend four to six hours, and adolescents over 12 years old spend an average of seven to nine hours per day, according to recent research . Media is everywhere and technology is a part of life. However, with children spending such large amounts of time online and in front of screens, they are exposed to messages and information that can have a negative impact on their health and wellbeing and prevent them from becoming empowered and engaged citizens.

The messages, images, information, and experiences we engage with every day through media help shape our beliefs, attitudes, values, and identity. Used well, media can entertain, inform, and engage our children in positive ways. Media use helps young people become more competent in a digital age. Additionally, media allows for children and young people to express themselves and connect with others who are like them. Not to mention the ability to foster relationships with family members and friends that may not live locally. And in the wake of the COVID pandemic, we’ve learned so much about how children learn and how we can best harness technology in educational settings.

Online safety
Cyberbullying
Incorrect information
Low self-esteem
Depression and suicide
Substance abuse and other risky behaviors
Negative body image
Reinforcement of stereotypes

So what can we do about this? This is where media literacy comes in.

Our Definition of Media Literacy

We define media literacy as the ability to:

Decode media messages (including the systems in which they exist);
Assess the influence of those messages on thoughts, feelings, and behaviors; and
Create media thoughtfully and conscientiously.

Like reading or math, media literacy is learned. The ability to navigate within our complex and ever-changing media landscape depends on acquiring skills and tools to know how to consume and evaluate information, ask critical questions, avoid manipulation, and engage in digital spaces safely and confidently. Unfortunately, these skills are not widely taught to our young people – yet.

With our state advocacy leaders, we have developed expanded definitions of closely associated terms to help advocates and policy makers . Media and communication technologies are changing quickly, and the terms we use are sometimes not well defined. Our expanded definitions on this page stem from a desire to assist policymakers and advocates in driving policy changes that lead to media literacy education for all K-12 students.

The Need for Media Literacy Education

Media literacy education provides us with the tools and skills needed to be confident and competent media consumers.

Media literacy:

Expands the concept of literacy, as today’s messages come in many forms and literacy can no longer refer simply to the ability to read and write.
Offers a solution to public health issues, such as body image issues and substance use, exacerbated by toxic media messages.
Empowers all people to engage in a global media environment.

Media Literacy Now is leading the grassroots movement to create a public education system that ensures all students learn the 21st century literacy skills they need for health, well-being, economic participation, and citizenship. We invite you to join our movement:

Take Action!

Learn how you can push for media literacy education in your school, community, or state.

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The Use of Critical Thinking to Identify Fake News: A Systematic Literature Review

Paul machete.

Department of Informatics, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, 0001 South Africa

Marita Turpin

With the large amount of news currently being published online, the ability to evaluate the credibility of online news has become essential. While there are many studies involving fake news and tools on how to detect it, there is a limited amount of work that focuses on the use of information literacy to assist people to critically access online information and news. Critical thinking, as a form of information literacy, provides a means to critically engage with online content, for example by looking for evidence to support claims and by evaluating the plausibility of arguments. The purpose of this study is to investigate the current state of knowledge on the use of critical thinking to identify fake news. A systematic literature review (SLR) has been performed to identify previous studies on evaluating the credibility of news, and in particular to see what has been done in terms of the use of critical thinking to evaluate online news. During the SLR’s sifting process, 22 relevant studies were identified. Although some of these studies referred to information literacy, only three explicitly dealt with critical thinking as a means to identify fake news. The studies on critical thinking noted critical thinking as an essential skill for identifying fake news. The recommendation of these studies was that information literacy be included in academic institutions, specifically to encourage critical thinking.

Introduction

The information age has brought a significant increase in available sources of information; this is in line with the unparalleled increase in internet availability and connection, in addition to the accessibility of technological devices [ 1 ]. People no longer rely on television and print media alone for obtaining news, but increasingly make use of social media and news apps. The variety of information sources that we have today has contributed to the spread of alternative facts [ 1 ]. With over 1.8 billion active users per month in 2016 [ 2 ], Facebook accounted for 20% of total traffic to reliable websites and up to 50% of all the traffic to fake news sites [ 3 ]. Twitter comes second to Facebook, with over 400 million active users per month [ 2 ]. Posts on social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter spread rapidly due to how they attempt to grab the readers’ attention as quickly as possible, with little substantive information provided, and thus create a breeding ground for the dissemination of fake news [ 4 ].

While social media is a convenient way of accessing news and staying connected to friends and family, it is not easy to distinguish real news from fake news on social media [ 5 ]. Social media continues to contribute to the increasing distribution of user-generated information; this includes hoaxes, false claims, fabricated news and conspiracy theories, with primary sources being social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter [ 6 ]. This means that any person who is in possession of a device, which can connect to the internet, is potentially a consumer or distributor of fake news. While social media platforms and search engines do not encourage people to believe the information being circulated, they are complicit in people’s propensity to believe the information they come across on these platforms, without determining their validity [ 6 ]. The spread of fake news can cause a multitude of damages to the subject; varying from reputational damage of an individual, to having an effect on the perceived value of a company [ 7 ].

The purpose of this study is to investigate the use of critical thinking methods to detect news stories that are untrue or otherwise help to develop a critical attitude to online news. This work was performed by means of a systematic literature review (SLR). The paper is presented as follows. The next section provides background information on fake news, its importance in the day-to-day lives of social media users and how information literacy and critical thinking can be used to identify fake news. Thereafter, the SLR research approach is discussed. Following this, the findings of the review are reported, first in terms of descriptive statistics and the in terms of a thematic analysis of the identified studies. The paper ends with the Conclusion and recommendations.

Background: Fake News, Information Literacy and Critical Thinking

This section discusses the history of fake news, the fake news that we know today and the role of information literacy can be used to help with the identification of fake news. It also provides a brief definition of critical thinking.

The History of Fake News

Although fake news has received increased attention recently, the term has been used by scholars for many years [ 4 ]. Fake news emerged from the tradition of yellow journalism of the 1890s, which can be described as a reliance on the familiar aspects of sensationalism—crime news, scandal and gossip, divorces and sex, and stress upon the reporting of disasters, sports sensationalism as well as possibly satirical news [ 5 ]. The emergence of online news in the early 2000s raised concerns, among them being that people who share similar ideologies may form “echo chambers” where they can filter out alternative ideas [ 2 ]. This emergence came about as news media transformed from one that was dominated by newspapers printed by authentic and trusted journalists to one where online news from an untrusted source is believed by many [ 5 ]. The term later grew to describe “satirical news shows”, “parody news shows” or “fake-news comedy shows” where a television show, or segment on a television show was dedicated to political satire [ 4 ]. Some of these include popular television shows such as The Daily Show (now with Trevor Noah), Saturday Night Live ’s “The Weekend Update” segment, and other similar shows such as Last Week Tonight with John Oliver and The Colbert Report with Stephen Colbert [ 4 ]. News stories in these shows were labelled “fake” not because of their content, but for parodying network news for the use of sarcasm, and using comedy as a tool to engage real public issues [ 4 ]. The term “Fake News” further became prominent during the course of the 2016 US presidential elections, as members of the opposing parties would post incorrect news headlines in order to sway the decision of voters [ 6 ].

Fake News Today

The term fake news has a more literal meaning today [ 4 ]. The Macquarie Dictionary named fake news the word of the year for 2016 [ 8 ]. In this dictionary, fake news is described it as a word that captures a fascinating evolution in the creation of deceiving content, also allowing people to believe what they see fit. There are many definitions for the phrase, however, a concise description of the term can be found in Paskin [ 4 ] who states that certain news articles originating from either social media or mainstream (online or offline) platforms, that are not factual, but are presented as such and are not satirical, are considered fake news. In some instances, editorials, reports, and exposés may be knowingly disseminating information with intent to deceive for the purposes of monetary or political benefit [ 4 ].

A distinction amongst three types of fake news can be made on a conceptual level, namely: serious fabrications, hoaxes and satire [ 3 ]. Serious fabrications are explained as news items written on false information, including celebrity gossip. Hoaxes refer to false information provided via social media, aiming to be syndicated by traditional news platforms. Lastly, satire refers to the use of humour in the news to imitate real news, but through irony and absurdity. Some examples of famous satirical news platforms in circulation in the modern day are The Onion and The Beaverton , when contrasted with real news publishers such as The New York Times [ 3 ].

Although there are many studies involving fake news and tools on how to detect it, there is a limited amount of academic work that focuses on the need to encourage information literacy so that people are able to critically access the information they have been presented, in order to make better informed decisions [ 9 ].

Stein-Smith [ 5 ] urges that information/media literacy has become a more critical skill since the appearance of the notion of fake news has become public conversation. Information literacy is no longer a nice-to-have proficiency but a requirement for interpreting news headlines and participation in public discussions. It is essential for academic institutions of higher learning to present information literacy courses that will empower students and staff members with the prerequisite tools to identify, select, understand and use trustworthy information [ 1 ]. Outside of its academic uses, information literacy is also a lifelong skill with multiple applications in everyday life [ 5 ]. The choices people make in their lives, and opinions they form need to be informed by the appropriate interpretation of correct, opportune, and significant information [ 5 ].

Critical Thinking

Critical thinking covers a broad range of skills that includes the following: verbal reasoning skills; argument analysis; thinking as hypothesis testing; dealing with likelihood and uncertainties; and decision making and problem solving skills [ 10 ]. For the purpose of this study, where we are concerned with the evaluation of the credibility of online news, the following definition will be used: critical thinking is “the ability to analyse and evaluate arguments according to their soundness and credibility, respond to arguments and reach conclusions through deduction from given information” [ 11 ]. In this study, we want to investigate how the skills mentioned by [ 11 ] can be used as part of information literacy, to better identify fake news.

The next section presents the research approach that was followed to perform the SLR.

Research Method

This section addresses the research question, the search terms that were applied to a database in relation to the research question, as well as the search criteria used on the search results. The following research question was addressed in this SLR:

What is the role of critical thinking in identifying fake news, according to previous studies?

The research question was identified in accordance to the research topic. The intention of the research question is to determine if the identified studies in this review provide insights into the use of critical thinking to evaluate the credibility of online news and in particular to identify fake news.

Delimitations.

In the construction of this SLR, the following definitions of fake news and other related terms have been excluded, following the suggestion of [ 2 ]:

Unintentional reporting mistakes;
Rumours that do not originate from a particular news article;
Conspiracy theories;
Satire that is unlikely to be misconstrued as factual;
False statements by politicians; and
Reports that are slanted or misleading, but not outright false.

Search Terms.

The database tool used to extract sources to conduct the SLR was Google Scholar ( https://scholar.google.com ). The process for extracting the sources involved executing the search string on Google Scholar and the retrieval of the articles and their meta-data into a tool called Mendeley, which was used for reference management.

The search string used to retrieve the sources was defined below:

(“critical think*” OR “critically (NEAR/2) reason*” OR “critical (NEAR/2) thought*” OR “critical (NEAR/2) judge*” AND “fake news” AND (identify* OR analyse* OR find* OR describe* OR review).

To construct the search criteria, the following factors have been taken into consideration: the research topic guided the search string, as the key words were used to create the base search criteria. The second step was to construct the search string according to the search engine requirements on Google Scholar.

Selection Criteria.

The selection criteria outlined the rules applied in the SLR to identify sources, narrow down the search criteria and focus the study on a specific topic. The inclusion and exclusion criteria are outlined in Table 1 to show which filters were applied to remove irrelevant sources.

Table 1.

Inclusion and exclusion criteria for paper selection

Source Selection.

The search criteria were applied on the online database and 91 papers were retrieved. The criteria in Table 1 were used on the search results in order to narrow down the results to appropriate papers only.

PRISMA Flowchart.

The selection criteria included four stages of filtering and this is depicted in Fig. 1 . In then Identification stage, the 91 search results from Google Scholar were returned and 3 sources were derived from the sources already identified from the search results, making a total of 94 available sources. In the screening stage, no duplicates were identified. After a thorough screening of the search results, which included looking at the availability of the article (free to use), 39 in total records were available – to which 55 articles were excluded. Of the 39 articles, nine were excluded based on their titles and abstract being irrelevant to the topic in the eligibility stage. A final list of 22 articles was included as part of this SLR. As preparation for the data analysis, a data extraction table was made that classified each article according to the following: article author; article title; theme (a short summary of the article); year; country; and type of publication. The data extraction table assisted in the analysis of findings as presented in the next section.

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PRISMA flowchart

Analysis of Findings

Descriptive statistics.

Due to the limited number of relevant studies, the information search did not have a specified start date. Articles were included up to 31 August 2019. The majority of the papers found were published in 2017 (8 papers) and 2018 (9 papers). This is in line with the term “fake news” being announced the word of the year in the 2016 [ 8 ].

The selected papers were classified into themes. Figure 2 is a Venn diagram that represents the overlap of articles by themes across the review. Articles that fall under the “fake news” theme had the highest number of occurrences, with 11 in total. Three articles focused mainly on “Critical Thinking”, and “Information Literacy” was the main focus of four articles. Two articles combined all three topics of critical thinking, information literacy, and fake news.

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Venn diagram depicting the overlap of articles by main focus

An analysis of the number of articles published per country indicate that the US had a dominating amount of articles published on this topic, a total of 17 articles - this represents 74% of the selected articles in this review. The remaining countries where articles were published are Australia, Germany, Ireland, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, and Sweden - with each having one article published.

In terms of publication type, 15 of the articles were journal articles, four were reports, one was a thesis, one was a magazine article and one, a web page.

Discussion of Themes

The following emerged from a thematic analysis of the articles.

Fake News and Accountability.

With the influence that social media has on the drive of fake news [ 2 ], who then becomes responsible for the dissemination and intake of fake news by the general population? The immediate assumption is that in the digital age, social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter should be able to curate information, or do some form of fact-checking when posts are uploaded onto their platforms [ 12 ], but that leans closely to infringing on freedom of speech. While different authors agree that there need to be measures in place for the minimisation of fake news being spread [ 12 , 13 ], where that accountability lies differs between the authors. Metaxas and Mustafaraj [ 13 ] aimed to develop algorithms or plug-ins that can assist in trust and postulated that consumers should be able to identify misinformation, thus making an informed decision on whether to share that information or not. Lazer et al. [ 12 ] on the other hand, believe the onus should be on the platform owners to put restrictions on the kind of data distributed. Considering that the work by Metaxas and Mustafaraj [ 13 ] was done seven years ago, one can conclude that the use of fact-checking algorithms/plug-ins has not been successful in curbing the propulsion of fake news.

Fake News and Student Research.

There were a total of four articles that had a focus on student research in relation to fake news. Harris, Paskin and Stein-Smith [ 4 , 5 , 14 ] all agree that students do not have the ability to discern between real and fake news. A Stanford History Education Group study reveals that students are not geared up for distinguishing real from fake news [ 4 ]. Most students are able to perform a simple Google search for information; however, they are unable to identify the author of an online source, or if the information is misleading [ 14 ]. Furthermore, students are not aware of the benefits of learning information literacy in school in equipping them with the skills required to accurately identify fake news [ 5 ]. At the Metropolitan Campus of Fairleigh Dickson University, librarians have undertaken the role of providing training on information literacy skills for identifying fake news [ 5 ].

Fake News and Social Media.

A number of authors [ 6 , 15 ] are in agreement that social media, the leading source of news, is the biggest driving force for fake news. It provides substantial advantage to broadcast manipulated information. It is an open platform of unfiltered editors and open to contributions from all. According to Nielsen and Graves as well as Janetzko, [ 6 , 15 ], people are unable to identify fake news correctly. They are likely to associate fake news with low quality journalism than false information designed to mislead. Two articles, [ 15 ] and [ 6 ] discussed the role of critical thinking when interacting on social media. Social media presents information to us that has been filtered according to what we already consume, thereby making it a challenge for consumers to think critically. The study by Nielsen and Graves [ 6 ] confirm that students’ failure to verify incorrect online sources requires urgent attention as this could indicate that students are a simple target for presenting manipulated information.

Fake News That Drive Politics.

Two studies mention the effect of social and the spread of fake news, and how it may have propelled Donald Trump to win the US election in 2016 [ 2 , 16 ]. Also, [ 8 ] and [ 2 ] mention how a story on the Pope supporting Trump in his presidential campaign, was widely shared (more than a million times) on Facebook in 2016. These articles also point out how in the information age, fact-checking has become relatively easy, but people are more likely to trust their intuition on news stories they consume, rather than checking the reliability of a story. The use of paid trolls and Russian bots to populate social media feeds with misinformation in an effort to swing the US presidential election in Donald Trump’s favour, is highlighted [ 16 ]. The creation of fake news, with the use of alarmist headlines (“click bait”), generates huge traffic into the original websites, which drives up advertising revenue [ 2 ]. This means content creators are compelled to create fake news, to drive ad revenue on their websites - even though they may not be believe in the fake news themselves [ 2 ].

Information Literacy.

Information literacy is when a person has access to information, and thus can process the parts they need, and create ways in which to best use the information [ 1 ]. Teaching students the importance of information literacy skills is key, not only for identifying fake news but also for navigating life aspects that require managing and scrutinising information, as discussed by [ 1 , 17 ], and [ 9 ]. Courtney [ 17 ] highlights how journalism students, above students from other disciplines, may need to have some form of information literacy incorporated into their syllabi to increase their awareness of fake news stories, creating a narrative of being objective and reliable news creators. Courtney assessed different universities that teach journalism and media-related studies, and established that students generally lack awareness on how useful library services are in offering services related to information literacy. Courtney [ 17 ] and Rose-Wiles [ 9 ] discuss how the use of library resources should be normalised to students. With millennials and generation Z having social media as their first point of contact, Rose-Wiles [ 9 ] urges universities, colleges and other academic research institutes to promote the use of more library resources than those from the internet, to encourage students to lean on reliable sources. Overall, this may prove difficult, therefore Rose-Wiles [ 9 ] proposes that by teaching information literacy skills and critical thinking, students can use these skills to apply in any situation or information source.

Referred to as “truth decay”, people have reached a point where they no longer need to agree with facts [ 18 ]. Due to political polarisation, the general public hold the opinion of being part of an oppressed group of people, and therefore will believe a political leader who appeals to that narrative [ 18 ]. There needs to be tangible action put into driving civil engagement, to encourage people to think critically, analyse information and not believe everything they read.

Critical Thinking.

Only three of the articles had critical thinking as a main theme. Bronstein et al. [ 19 ] discuss how certain dogmatic and religious beliefs create a tendency in individuals to belief any information given, without them having a need to interrogate the information further and then deciding ion its veracity. The article further elaborates how these individuals are also more likely to engage in conspiracy theories, and tend to rationalise absurd events. Bronstein et al.’s [ 19 ] study conclude that dogmatism and religious fundamentalism highly correlate with a belief in fake news. Their study [ 19 ] suggests the use of interventions that aim to increase open-minded thinking, and also increase analytical thinking as a way to help religious, curb belief in fake news. Howlett [ 20 ] describes critical thinking as evidence-based practice, which is taking the theories of the skills and concepts of critical thinking and converting those for use in everyday applications. Jackson [ 21 ] explains how the internet purposely prides itself in being a platform for “unreviewed content”, due to the idea that people may not see said content again, therefore it needs to be attention-grabbing for this moment, and not necessarily accurate. Jackson [ 21 ] expands that social media affected critical thinking in how it changed the view on published information, what is now seen as old forms of information media. This then presents a challenge to critical thinking in that a large portion of information found on the internet is not only unreliable, it may also be false. Jackson [ 21 ] posits that one of the biggest dangers to critical thinking may be that people have a sense of perceived power for being able to find the others they seek with a simple web search. People are no longer interested in evaluation the credibility of the information they receive and share, and thus leading to the propagation of fake news [ 21 ].

Discussion of Findings

The aggregated data in this review has provided insight into how fake news is perceived, the level of attention it is receiving and the shortcomings of people when identifying fake news. Since the increase in awareness of fake news in 2016, there has been an increase in academic focus on the subject, with most of the articles published between 2017 and 2018. Fifty percent of the articles released focused on the subject of fake news, with 18% reflecting on information literacy, and only 13% on critical thinking.

The thematic discussion grouped and synthesised the articles in this review according to the main themes of fake news, information literacy and critical thinking. The Fake news and accountability discussion raised the question of who becomes accountable for the spreading of fake news between social media and the user. The articles presented a conclusion that fact-checking algorithms are not successful in reducing the dissemination of fake news. The discussion also included a focus on fake news and student research , whereby a Stanford History Education Group study revealed that students are not well educated in thinking critically and identifying real from fake news [ 4 ]. The Fake news and social media discussion provided insight on social media is the leading source of news as well as a contributor to fake news. It provides a challenge for consumers who are not able to think critically about online news, or have basic information literacy skills that can aid in identifying fake news. Fake news that drive politics highlighted fake news’ role in politics, particularly the 2016 US presidential elections and the influence it had on the voters [ 22 ].

Information literacy related publications highlighted the need for educating the public on being able to identify fake news, as well as the benefits of having information literacy as a life skill [ 1 , 9 , 17 ]. It was shown that students are often misinformed about the potential benefits of library services. The authors suggested that university libraries should become more recognised and involved as role-players in providing and assisting with information literacy skills.

The articles that focused on critical thinking pointed out two areas where a lack of critical thinking prevented readers from discerning between accurate and false information. In the one case, it was shown that people’s confidence in their ability to find information online gave made them overly confident about the accuracy of that information [ 21 ]. In the other case, it was shown that dogmatism and religious fundamentalism, which led people to believe certain fake news, were associated with a lack of critical thinking and a questioning mind-set [ 21 ].

The articles that focused on information literacy and critical thinking were in agreement on the value of promoting and teaching these skills, in particular to the university students who were often the subjects of the studies performed.

This review identified 22 articles that were synthesised and used as evidence to determine the role of critical thinking in identifying fake news. The articles were classified according to year of publication, country of publication, type of publication and theme. Based on the descriptive statistics, fake news has been a growing trend in recent years, predominantly in the US since the presidential election in 2016. The research presented in most of the articles was aimed at the assessment of students’ ability to identify fake news. The various studies were consistent in their findings of research subjects’ lack of ability to distinguish between true and fake news.

Information literacy emerged as a new theme from the studies, with Rose-Wiles [ 9 ] advising academic institutions to teach information literacy and encourage students to think critically when accessing online news. The potential role of university libraries to assist in not only teaching information literacy, but also assisting student to evaluate the credibility of online information, was highlighted. The three articles that explicitly dealt with critical thinking, all found critical thinking to be lacking among their research subjects. They further indicated how this lack of critical thinking could be linked to people’s inability to identify fake news.

This review has pointed out people’s general inability to identify fake news. It highlighted the importance of information literacy as well as critical thinking, as essential skills to evaluate the credibility of online information.

The limitations in this review include the use of students as the main participants in most of the research - this would indicate a need to shift the academic focus towards having the general public as participants. This is imperative because anyone who possesses a mobile device is potentially a contributor or distributor of fake news.

For future research, it is suggested that the value of the formal teaching of information literacy at universities be further investigated, as a means to assist students in assessing the credibility of online news. Given the very limited number of studies on the role of critical thinking to identify fake news, this is also an important area for further research.

Contributor Information

Marié Hattingh, Email: [email protected] .

Machdel Matthee, Email: [email protected] .

Hanlie Smuts, Email: [email protected] .

Ilias Pappas, Email: [email protected] .

Yogesh K. Dwivedi, Email: moc.liamg@ideviwdky .

Matti Mäntymäki, Email: [email protected] .

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What is media literacy, and why is it important?

The word "literacy" usually describes the ability to read and write. Reading literacy and media literacy have a lot in common. Reading starts with recognizing letters. Pretty soon, readers can identify words -- and, most importantly, understand what those words mean. Readers then become writers. With more experience, readers and writers develop strong literacy skills. ( Learn specifically about news literacy .)

Media literacy is the ability to identify different types of media and understand the messages they're sending. Kids take in a huge amount of information from a wide array of sources, far beyond the traditional media (TV, radio, newspapers, and magazines) of most parents' youth. There are text messages, memes, viral videos, social media, video games, advertising, and more. But all media shares one thing: Someone created it. And it was created for a reason. Understanding that reason is the basis of media literacy. ( Learn how to use movies and TV to teach media literacy. )

The digital age has made it easy for anyone to create media . We don't always know who created something, why they made it, and whether it's credible. This makes media literacy tricky to learn and teach. Nonetheless, media literacy is an essential skill in the digital age.

Specifically, it helps kids:

Learn to think critically. As kids evaluate media, they decide whether the messages make sense, why certain information was included, what wasn't included, and what the key ideas are. They learn to use examples to support their opinions. Then they can make up their own minds about the information based on knowledge they already have.

Become a smart consumer of products and information. Media literacy helps kids learn how to determine whether something is credible. It also helps them determine the "persuasive intent" of advertising and resist the techniques marketers use to sell products.

Recognize point of view. Every creator has a perspective. Identifying an author's point of view helps kids appreciate different perspectives. It also helps put information in the context of what they already know -- or think they know.

Create media responsibly. Recognizing your own point of view, saying what you want to say how you want to say it, and understanding that your messages have an impact is key to effective communication.

Identify the role of media in our culture. From celebrity gossip to magazine covers to memes, media is telling us something, shaping our understanding of the world, and even compelling us to act or think in certain ways.

Understand the author's goal. What does the author want you to take away from a piece of media? Is it purely informative, is it trying to change your mind, or is it introducing you to new ideas you've never heard of? When kids understand what type of influence something has, they can make informed choices.

When teaching your kids media literacy , it's not so important for parents to tell kids whether something is "right." In fact, the process is more of an exchange of ideas. You'll probably end up learning as much from your kids as they learn from you.

Media literacy includes asking specific questions and backing up your opinions with examples. Following media-literacy steps allows you to learn for yourself what a given piece of media is, why it was made, and what you want to think about it.

Teaching kids media literacy as a sit-down lesson is not very effective; it's better incorporated into everyday activities . For example:

With little kids, you can discuss things they're familiar with but may not pay much attention to. Examples include cereal commercials, food wrappers, and toy packages.
With older kids, you can talk through media they enjoy and interact with. These include such things as YouTube videos , viral memes from the internet, and ads for video games.

Here are the key questions to ask when teaching kids media literacy :

Who created this? Was it a company? Was it an individual? (If so, who?) Was it a comedian? Was it an artist? Was it an anonymous source? Why do you think that?
Why did they make it? Was it to inform you of something that happened in the world (for example, a news story)? Was it to change your mind or behavior (an opinion essay or a how-to)? Was it to make you laugh (a funny meme)? Was it to get you to buy something (an ad)? Why do you think that?
Who is the message for? Is it for kids? Grown-ups? Girls? Boys? People who share a particular interest? Why do you think that?
What techniques are being used to make this message credible or believable? Does it have statistics from a reputable source? Does it contain quotes from a subject expert? Does it have an authoritative-sounding voice-over? Is there direct evidence of the assertions its making? Why do you think that?
What details were left out, and why? Is the information balanced with different views -- or does it present only one side? Do you need more information to fully understand the message? Why do you think that?
How did the message make you feel? Do you think others might feel the same way? Would everyone feel the same, or would certain people disagree with you? Why do you think that?
As kids become more aware of and exposed to news and current events , you can apply media-literacy steps to radio, TV, and online information.

Common Sense Media offers the largest, most trusted library of independent age-based ratings and reviews. Our timely parenting advice supports families as they navigate the challenges and possibilities of raising kids in the digital age.

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Media literacy: what it is and why it's essential.

Media literacy is a term that is becoming increasingly important in today's society. With the rise of digital media and the internet, the ability to critically analyze and understand the messages conveyed through various forms of media, including digital media, has become essential. In this blog, we will explore the basics of media literacy, its impact on society, and why media literacy education is crucial.

Media literacy encompasses a range of skills and knowledge, including media and information literacy, which involves the ability to access, evaluate, and analyze information from various forms of media. Understanding the different types of media literacy, such as social media literacy and digital citizenship, plays a pivotal role in navigating the complex landscape of digital media. By honing these skills, individuals can strengthen their ability to differentiate between reliable and misleading information and become more discerning consumers of media.

Digital media, encompassing various platforms and technologies, has revolutionized the way information is disseminated and consumed. However, it has also brought forth new challenges, such as cyberbullying, which highlights the importance of media literacy education. By equipping individuals with the skills to recognize and respond to instances of cyberbullying, media literacy education promotes digital citizenship and fosters a safer online environment.

In essence, media literacy education is indispensable in today's society. As the influence and power of media continue to grow, individuals must possess the necessary tools and knowledge to critically evaluate and interpret the messages they encounter. By promoting media literacy education, we empower individuals to navigate the ever-evolving media landscape, safeguard themselves from misinformation, and actively participate in shaping the narrative.

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What is media.

Oughts, Experiences, and Expertise: The Power of Written Articles

In today's media landscape, individuals have found a unique and authentic voice through written articles. Whether it's a fashion blog, a travel blog, or a food blog, these platforms provide a space for people to express themselves and connect with like-minded individuals.

The Rise of Podcasts: A Convenient Way to Consume Audio Content

Podcasts have gained immense popularity in recent years, offering a convenient and portable way to consume audio content. From true crime stories to self-help advice, podcasts cover a wide range of topics and cater to diverse interests. They provide a platform for experts and enthusiasts to share their knowledge and insights, allowing listeners to learn and be entertained on the go.

The Revolution of Online Streaming Services

Online streaming services have revolutionized the way we consume entertainment. Platforms like Netflix , Hulu , and Amazon Prime Video offer a vast library of movies, TV shows, and documentaries, allowing us to binge-watch our favorite content at our convenience. These services have not only changed the way we watch television but have also given rise to original content, with streaming platforms producing their own series and movies.

The Importance of Critical Analysis and Media Literacy

As digital media continues to evolve and expand, it is crucial to critically analyze the information we consume. With the rise of fake news and misinformation, it is essential to be discerning and verify the credibility of sources. Additionally, media literacy has become an essential skill in today's digital age, enabling individuals to navigate the vast landscape of media and make informed decisions.

The Ever-Expanding World of Media

In conclusion, media has come a long way from traditional forms of communication. From social media platforms to websites, blogs to podcasts, and online streaming services, media offers a wide range of information and entertainment. It has become an integral part of our daily lives, shaping the way we connect, learn, and consume content. As technology continues to advance, the world of media will undoubtedly continue to expand and evolve, offering new and exciting possibilities.

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What is Media Literacy?

Developing Media Literacy Skills

Media literacy skills are essential in today's media-saturated world. By developing these skills, individuals can critically examine the messages they encounter, identify bias and manipulation, and separate fact from fiction.

Analyzing Media Messages

One aspect of media literacy is the ability to analyze media messages. This involves understanding the techniques used to convey information, such as visual and auditory elements, language, and persuasive strategies. By analyzing these elements, individuals can uncover hidden agendas, stereotypes, and manipulative tactics employed by media producers. This critical analysis empowers individuals to question and challenge the messages they encounter, rather than passively accepting them.

Evaluating Credibility and Reliability

Another important aspect of media literacy is the ability to evaluate the credibility and reliability of sources. With the rise of fake news and misinformation, it is crucial to discern trustworthy sources from those that are unreliable or biased. Media literacy equips individuals with the skills to assess the credibility of information, fact-check claims, and verify sources. This helps individuals make informed decisions and avoid spreading false or misleading information.

Understanding the Influence of Media

Furthermore, media literacy involves understanding the role of media in shaping our beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors. Media has a powerful influence on society, and being media literate allows individuals to critically examine the impact of media messages on themselves and others. By understanding how media can shape our perceptions and values, individuals can become more conscious consumers and creators of media.

Media literacy is a vital skill in today's media-saturated world. It enables individuals to navigate the complex landscape of media, analyze messages critically, evaluate sources, and understand the influence of media on society. By developing media literacy skills, individuals can become active and responsible participants in the digital age, making informed decisions and contributing to a more media-literate society.

Media Literacy and Its Impact on Society

Media literacy plays a significant role in shaping society. The media exposes us to a diverse array of ideas, beliefs, and opinions, which in turn shape our worldview and understanding of the world. By developing media literacy skills, individuals can navigate this landscape more critically. They are empowered to question and analyze the information presented to them, comprehend the intentions behind the media, and ultimately make informed decisions.

Reasons to Promote Media Literacy Education

The Importance of Media Literacy Education

Media literacy education plays a crucial role in equipping individuals with the necessary tools to navigate the complex media landscape. By promoting media literacy in schools, colleges, and communities, we empower individuals to develop critical thinking skills and media analysis abilities. This, in turn, enables them to become active and responsible participants in the digital age.

Fostering Informed Citizens

A comprehensive media literacy education program is essential for fostering informed citizens who can engage in civil discourse and make informed choices. By teaching media literacy, we can create a society that questions the media's agenda, demands transparency, and values diverse perspectives.

The Benefits of Media Literacy

Media literacy goes beyond the ability to discern accurate information. It also enhances individual communication skills, helping people express themselves effectively and understand others' perspectives. Moreover, it promotes empathy, critical thinking, and an appreciation for the role and power of media in society.

Empowering Media Creators

In today's digital landscape, anyone can be a content creator, whether through blogging, podcasting, or social media platforms. Media literacy education equips individuals with the knowledge and skills necessary to create media responsibly, ethically, and effectively.

The Importance of Media Literacy in the Formation of Attitudes and Opinions

Media literacy, which includes understanding and analyzing both traditional and digital media, plays a crucial role in the formation of attitudes, opinions, and citizenship. Media messages, whether spread through traditional channels or the vast realm of digital media, have the power to shape public perception and influence decision-making. By being media literate, individuals can recognize the strategies employed to manipulate emotions, understand the role of advertising in promoting risky behaviors, and critically evaluate the information they encounter online, ensuring their own online safety. This empowers individuals to form their own opinions based on reliable information and personal values, contributing to a society where advocacy and responsible digital citizenship prevail.

Why is Media Literacy Important for a 21st Century Audience

As technology evolves and media consumption habits change, digital media literacy skills must adapt to suit the needs of a 21st-century audience. This includes being aware of the challenges posed by deep fake videos, understanding the impact of social media algorithms, and navigating the ethical implications of data privacy. Information and media literacy education needs to equip individuals with the skills necessary to thrive in a digitally connected world while also addressing the potential consequences of risky behaviors. By fostering an understanding of intellectual property rights, individuals can engage critically with the vast amount of digital media available, ensuring they are responsible consumers and creators. Media literacy education plays a pivotal role in empowering individuals to make informed decisions and navigate the complex landscape of digital media.

Media Literacy Challenges

While media literacy is undoubtedly crucial, it is not without its challenges. The constant influx of information, the fast-paced nature of media, and the ever-evolving digital landscape make it difficult for individuals to maintain their media literacy skills. Therefore, it is important to adapt media literacy education to effectively address these challenges. By doing so, individuals can be equipped with the necessary tools and strategies to navigate the complexities of the modern media landscape.

Media literacy is an essential skill in today's society. It provides individuals with the ability to analyze and evaluate media messages critically. This skill enables them to make informed decisions and engage responsibly with the media landscape. By promoting media literacy education, we empower individuals with the necessary tools to navigate the vast sea of information, recognize biases, and actively participate in shaping our media-driven world.

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Media literacy is indispensable in today's digital age, enabling individuals to critically analyze and navigate the complex media landscape. From analyzing messages and evaluating credibility to understanding the influence of media, these skills empower informed decision-making. Media literacy education fosters responsible citizens, enhances communication skills, and equips individuals to create media ethically. In a constantly evolving digital world, media literacy is vital for a 21st-century audience, addressing challenges like deep fake videos and data privacy. Despite challenges, promoting media literacy education is crucial for shaping a more discerning and empowered society.

Insightful exploration of media literacy's importance in our digital age. The blog effectively highlights the skills needed to navigate complex media landscapes. A must-read for anyone seeking to be an informed consumer and responsible creator in today's media-driven society.

After reading the blog, I've learned that media literacy is crucial in today's digital age. It involves critical analysis of media messages, evaluating credibility, and understanding the influence of media on society. Media literacy education is essential for fostering informed citizens, promoting responsible media creation, and addressing the challenges of the ever-evolving digital landscape.

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Media Studies

Communication

Linguistics

Media Theory

Enhancing Critical Thinking & Media Literacy

Welcome to Media Theory! This website is dedicated to exploring the intricate and ever-changing world of media studies, communication, linguistics, culture and sociology. Our aim is to provide a platform where students, educators, and teachers can come together to share ideas, learn from each other, and stay updated on the latest developments in these fields.

Critical Thinking

We aim to help you critically think by analysing media messages and then their potential effects on individuals and society. Hence, wanting you to identify biases and propaganda, and developing informed perspectives and solutions.

Media Literacy

We want you to be media literate by in fact showing you how media messages are created, distributed, and consumed. As a result, providing the skills necessary to evaluate media content critically and make your own educated decisions.

Understanding Media

We wish to also educate you to understand media by examining the role and impact it has on society. By looking at media theories, technologies, and cultural practices in an interdisciplinary approach, we are likewise able to explore a variety of media content.

Why Is Studying Media Important?

Studying media is crucial in today’s society because it allows individuals to understand how information is produced, consumed, and disseminated. Media is a powerful tool that influences public opinion, shapes cultural norms, and impacts political decisions. As such, media literacy is essential in today’s world, where we are constantly bombarded with a vast amount of information from various sources.

Studying media helps individuals develop critical thinking skills, enabling them to evaluate the credibility and biases of different sources. It also helps individuals understand the historical, social, and cultural contexts in which media is produced, consumed, and circulated. Ultimately, media literacy is essential for individuals to become active and informed citizens in a democratic society.

Media Theory | Importance of Studying Media

Media studies is a field that examines media’s role in society, culture, and politics while involving the critical analysis of various media content.

Communication | The Exchanging of Information Between People

Communications

Communication is the process of exchanging information between individuals or groups through various means such as speaking, writing, or nonverbal gestures.

Culture | Beliefs, Values & Behaviors Shared Within Groups

Culture can be defined as shared beliefs, values, customs, and behaviours that characterise groups and also a way of life for that particular group.

Linguistics | The Study of Language & Its Structure

Linguistics is the scientific study of language and its structure, such as its sounds, grammar, and meanings and examines how humans communicate.

Society | Groups of People Who Share Values & Interact

Society refers to a group of people who live together and interact, sharing common norms, values, and beliefs thus forming a complex community structure.

Theorists | Expert Opinions Relating to Media & Communication

The history of media, society, linguistics, culture and communication has had many theorists thus contributing unique perspectives and insights.

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Latest Articles

Media musings.

"The uniformity and obedience of the media, which any dictator would admire..."

Noam Chomsky

Why is Media Literacy Important

1 Recognizing Non-Transparency of Media Representations
2 Motivation and Engagement
3 Changes in the Quality of Parent-child Interactions
4 Student Teacher Relationships
5 Social and Interpersonal Relationship Skills
6 Reading Positions
7 Civic Involvement
8 Competitive Power
9 Critical Thinking Skills
10 New Ways of Learning
11 The Place of Traditional Teaching in Media Education
12 Balancing Responsibility: Teaching for Success in the Cultural of Power and Teaching for Change
13 Cultural Theory and Popular Culture
14 Media Literacy, Cultural Theory, Feminisms, and Gender Studies
15 Teaching Students to Filter Information
16 Online Resources for Learning More
17 References

Recognizing Non-Transparency of Media Representations [ edit | edit source ]

Media literacy is a significant way to challenge students to understand the constructed nature of media representations and how that might influence their own beliefs about themselves and others. Renee: But it is not the only way. General semantics offers another approach to helping students reflect on the constructed nature of symbol systems. Poststructuralism is another. Gaining awareness of the ways that symbol systems shape our perception and interpretation is one of the powerful "aha" moments in media literacy. I wonder if that "aha" is particularly strong or resonant when the medium is perceived as "natural." Could the "aha" offered by post-structuralism or general semantics be more powerful because its focus is on language as a symbol system, which does not appear to us as constructed, biased or limiting?

A representation is a constructed message about reality that can influence viewers’ attitudes and beliefs about the real world. Examining issues of representation in the media teaches students to be critical when encountering representations that often include stereotypes about gender, race, class, sexuality, and disability. Students become more aware about the complexity of representations they encounter in the media and gain a multifaceted understanding of their fabrication.

Media literacy enables students to look upon the world and its representation by the media with a critical eye by providing them with specific skills, tools and techniques. Media literacy empowers students to understand and actively participate in discussions about government and politics, including using the media to make their voices heard. At the same time, from their point of view of citizens, media literate students learn to be skeptical about the role of politicians and to critically examine politicians’ work as representatives of the public’s needs and interests. (Hobbs, 2006)

Media literacy allows for people to question motivations of any form of media communication, such as websites, social media messages and even memes. Today, the "author" is not just the byline, but also the entity, the advertisers and supporters and affiliates. Media literate individuals connect the dots about what or whom is behind the curtain and check for credibility.

Motivation and Engagement [ edit | edit source ]

Media literacy allows students to draw on their experience of media forms and connect it to classroom activities. Research shows that when students are engaged in their topic, and can actively connect it to the real world, they are more excited and engaged in learning (Hobbs, 2006). Little research has been conducted on whether or not media literacy may have an impact on school attendance and quality of class participation.

Media literacy can be especially powerful for youth who do not perform well in the school system. Kist (2005) found that "at risk" and marginalized youth became excited and engaged with reading and writing after their experience with media literacy in the classroom (p. 103).

Media literate teenagers are more likely to recognize what Goodman (2003) calls “the cultural triangle of fashion, sports and music” (p. 27) created and promoted by the entertainment industry. By learning to analyze and critique commercial media representations of their own experiences of marginalization and rebellion, poor and minority youth become capable of adopting roles other than those of consumers or criminals (Goodman, 2003). Instead, as media producers, they are empowered to join mainstream society’s discourse by speaking with a voice of their own.

In addition to joining the public discourse, the voices of inner city youth challenge it. According to Goodman, (2003), "Their observations and insights can serve to challenge adult perceptions of teens as hostile and threatening, and also bring diversity to the voices informing public policy" (Cahill, 1997, as sited in Goodman, 2003, p. 30).

Changes in the Quality of Parent-child Interactions [ edit | edit source ]

Scholars have proposed the possibility of improving the quality of parent-child interactions through media education in school. Students at Concord High School are required to take the Media/ Communication course in 11th grade. Their parents have shared that the quality of family communication has been improved since their kids took the course. Students were more engaged with what they had learned about the media, and enjoyed talking about the course at home. They discussed topics or ideas about media, technology, and society with their parents. Such a change of family communication happened not only to top students but also to ordinary students who have not often shared their school works with their parents.

Student Teacher Relationships [ edit | edit source ]

Along the same line, media education can help teachers to build better relationship with students. Students connect themselves more with the topics covered in Media/Communication class than what they learn in other traditional academic courses. Teachers also get to learn more about their students, as students give unpredictable and original responses regarding various topics.

Social and Interpersonal Relationship Skills [ edit | edit source ]

It has been hypothesized that media literacy builds social skills through extensive opportunities for sharing ideas, listening, teamwork, and collaboration. For example, in the Snow Lake School in Manitoba, eighth grade students were assigned an advertising project. Students were to complete a print ad, a radio ad and an Internet ad. Once they performed research on current advertising, they were able to construct their own campaign, which in turn were constructing meaning. Interestingly enough, when the students were asked about their assignment, they were unable to articulate the core meaning behind the assignment. More comments were given about the social interaction and the ability to work together, which students saw as a primary learning experience. They felt that this assignment better prepared them for the professional world (Kist, 2005).

Through media production, a core element of media literacy, students have the rare opportunity to challenge established rules of social interaction and power relations by asking instead of answering questions (Goodman, 2003). This is valid for the interaction dynamics between adults and teenagers, as well as between marginalized and privileged communities.

Reading Positions [ edit | edit source ]

Through media literacy educators can demonstrate how different people interpret a text depending on the reader’s historical and social background. It is important in today’s curriculum because the proliferation of media in today’s youth creates the need for students to be able to “read” the abundance of messages they are exposed to (Hobbs, 2006).

Civic Involvement [ edit | edit source ]

Media literacy is crucial for the development of citizenship skills needed to promote a thriving democracy. Political campaigns and issues are primarily conveyed through 30-second television ads or, at best, half-hour news interviews on Sunday mornings. With so little attention paid to issues from our primary forms of media consumption, it is imperative for people to learn how to read the messages they are bombarded with and recognize the reasons and decisions behind what is being presented to them (Thoman & Jolls, 2005).

Competitive Power [ edit | edit source ]

In this media-saturated society, information comes not only through the written words but also through the images and sounds. Media literacy can allow students to fluently read and write audio/visual language would have more competitive power to better thrive in our multimedia culture (Thoman & Jolls, 2005).

Critical Thinking Skills [ edit | edit source ]

Media analysis, which is a crucial part of media literacy education, can develop critical thinking skills, by strengthening observation and interpretation. For example, students can examine and challenge the stereotypes, biases, and hidden motivation of the producers. (Thoman & Jolls, 2005).

New Ways of Learning [ edit | edit source ]

Formal education is facing a formidable challenge in adapting to a media-saturated environment, in which traditional schooling methods are obsolete or irrelevant. Instead of assisting students in memorizing facts about the world or information storage, modern education should impart higher-order thinking skills such as analyzing and evaluating an overwhelming amount of information that is usually just a few clicks away. (Thoman and Jolls, 2005)

“And now yet children--particularly younger children—are increasingly participating in cultural and social worlds that are inaccessible, even incomprehensible to their parents.” (Buckingham, 2003, p. 32). The new world that children inhabit is largely the world of the media. Buckingham documents that the media plays a significant part in the lives of children, and how they construct meaning. The significance of the media in the lives of children is largely ignored by the school system, which results in a gap between children’s ‘in school’ and ‘out of school’ experience. Children should feel that their education has personal relevance. It is more important to build skills that children will use in their daily lives, than to do things because of traditions set 200 years ago. The school system needs to change as students change, it needs to evolve and progress. This will make the process of education more enriching and meaningful for the children involved. A strong connection to school and the outside world may powerfully affect the lives of teenagers, who may feel profound disconnect between their life experience and their school experience. Using media text (text students already know) may decrease drop out rates and increase student interest. Perhaps media education can educate teachers about students as well. When teachers know their student’s media preferences, they can use media to open up dialogue about a multitude of topics.

“Yet, if media education is to help bridge the widening gap between the school and the world of children’s out-of-school experience, it must surely begin with the knowledge children already possess” (Buckingham, 2003, p. 34). Buckingham places value on the experience that children gain as participants in their surrounding culture. This ideology positions the student as knowledgeable not just as a vessel that needs to be filled with information. This idea alone could revolutionize the field of education. Giving value to children’s knowledge may help them to own their experiences and opinions. Teaching should extend beyond “right” and “wrong” answers. Critical thinking will prepare children for the real world, where issues are much more complex than black and white. Children should learn how to sort through life’s complexities, and this involves having their opinions, experiences, and voices validated. Treating each child as a knowledgeable human being with important beliefs and experiences may help to draw children out of their protective shell. In addition, it may help incorporate children of different learning abilities and/or background beliefs into the classroom. Valuing the child's unique input may help those who are “at risk” of failing out of the school system. Many of these children may not believe they are intelligent, and may associate school with personal failure. What remains untouched here is the actual state of schools in the United States. Conditions may vary significantly school by school, or teacher by teacher. Buckingham’s area of expertise lies predominantly within the British school system. More research is needed to understand the perspectives of students, teachers, and school administrators.

Buckingham (2003) provides very explicit goals for media education, which seem at odds with traditionally established notions of education and learning: “Media education is seen here not as a form of protection, but as a form of preparation… In broad terms, it aims to develop young people’s understanding of, and participation in, the media culture that surrounds them (Balazgette, 1989)… Broadly speaking, therefore, this new approach seeks to begin with what students already know, and with their existing tastes and pleasures in the media, rather than assuming that these are merely invalid or ‘ideological’. This approach does not seek to replace ‘subjective’ responses with ‘objective’ ones, or to neutralize the pleasures of the media through rational analysis. On the contrary, it aims to develop a more reflexive style of teaching and learning, in which students can reflect on their own activity both as ‘readers’ and as ‘writers’ of media texts, and understand the broader social and economic factors that are in play. Critical analysis is seen here as a process of dialogue, rather than a matter of arriving at an agreed or predetermined position” (Buckingham, 2003, p. 13-14).

In other words, according to Buckingham, media education does not provide the right answers, but prefers to state the right questions instead. Also, it creates a new kind of learning environment, where students are not armed with insights, skills or tools for withstanding the temptations or threats of the media. On the contrary, the departing point of media education are existing media-related practices and pleasures. Such premise is fair and justified if teachers are to approach learners not as traditional authority figures who judge and sermonize about the perils of media use and its implications. We should not consider this a simplistic trick aimed at engaging students’ interest and taking advantage of their out-of-school experiences. Instead, media education aims at broadening established media-based learning practices by stimulating reflection on media use and, from there, on understanding the cultural, social, economic and political aspects of media producers, products and audiences. Positioning teachers as partners in a dialogue rather than guardians of longstanding truth and wisdom is a challenging precept for teachers and students alike, not to mention parents and the public. Century-long pedagogic norms may seem undermined by media education’s innovative approach to the positioning of teachers, learners and media in the learning process. However, Buckingham rightfully points to the decreasing authority of schools as a socializing actor in modern society; thus media education is not making groundbreaking discoveries, but merely reflects ongoing processes that ought to find their place in the formal education system.

The Place of Traditional Teaching in Media Education [ edit | edit source ]

One product of progressivist pedagogical ideology may be the demonization of certain traditional teaching methods. While he admits that learner centered reforms have made education more humane, Alvarado (1981) makes powerful claims for more traditional methods, including direct teaching (lecturing, teachers delivering facts from a position of authority), competitive learning structures, and teaching to the test. For Alvarado,“it is necessary to construct a pedagogy that precisely does not depend upon personal experience and, in certain ways, critiques it.” Direct teaching allows educators to present information efficiently and to confront and inform challenges from students who may make comments from perspectives that endanger other students (e.g. racist, sexist, heteronormative, etc). Teaching in competitive structures and teaching to the test both prepare students for economic realities beyond the classroom. Alvarado argues that an exclusively critical and learner centered focus in media education may lead teachers to fail in their responsibility to offer students training to compete in the current dominant culture. By including political economy of media as content and explicitly discussing the ideological and economic rationale for teaching choices, Alvarado suggests that these dualities may be balanced.

Balancing Responsibility: Teaching for Success in the Cultural of Power and Teaching for Change [ edit | edit source ]

Alvarado (1981) makes a sweeping, universal claim for “two strands [that should be] running through every classroom situation: 1) recognition of the power and importance of the structures of the present social formation and a recognition of the need for all people to work within those structures successfully, and 2) a recognition of the importance and potential power of all forms of oppositional knowledge and groupings.” (p. 205)

The first claim recognizes the responsibility of teachers to offer students training in skills valued by the culture of power so that they may compete within that culture for economic advantage. However, this axiom is problematic in that it privileges the teacher’s reading or understanding of “the present social formation.” In the second claim, Alvarado stops well short of seeing the possible agency of students as cultural producers realized by critical or creative practice, student choice and teacher facilitation. This strand denies altogether the possibility of agency outside established, known norms in favor of “recognition of...potential”--a chimera of agency. Some teachers may find this approach a bit timid. Still, the balance of critical training and training within the culture of power is an important issue with which all teachers should consciously struggle.

Cultural Theory and Popular Culture [ edit | edit source ]

John Storey’s Cultural Theory and Popular Culture is his approach to ‘map out the general conceptual landscape of popular culture’. This is an important exploration for teachers of Media Education for it lends assistance to the struggle of cultivating critical thinking skills in students rather than imposing one’s own view about good/bad culture. This is accomplished through summations of various schools of thought found in the works of key theorists.

Continuing his mapping in Chapter 3, Culturalism, Storey compares the works of Richard Hoggart, Raymond Williams, E. P. Thompson, Stuart Hall, and Paddy Whannel in the late 1950s and early 1960s.

Each Theorist introduces a perspective on how culture is made and should be studied in order to understand the progression of popular culture. While Hoggart believes popular culture was once pure, created by and for the people of the working-class, and then corrrupted by an industry spawned mass culture, Williams points out that full access to understanding a culture comes from those who lived it. However, once the lived historical moment has passed the ‘structure of feeling’ fragments leaving the cultural analysis a documentary record that is selective in nature; thus analysis itself can never be made with absolute certainties. As teachers of Media Education facilitate media analysis with students it is worth self-searching for patterns of cultural traditions of selectivity in one’s own teaching methods.

Storey then briefly shares E.P. Thompson’s intent to share that the working-class was made through a process that manifested over a period of time. Furthermore, to study it is to be actively listening all the time. This is significant to remember in this fast changing modern media culture. Hall and Whannel set out to refute the notion that ‘all high culture is good and that all popular culture is bad.’ They contend that there is a hierarchy that lies within popular culture and the goal is to point out the good from the bad. Regardless of what truth may lie in this argument from a teacher’s point of view, it is again, an opportunity for self-reflection about one’s own interest when teaching students how to study media.

Media Literacy, Cultural Theory, Feminisms, and Gender Studies [ edit | edit source ]

Media literacy can also be associated with feminisms and gender studies, which have long looked at the media to provide texts for cultural analysis. John Storey discusses gender and sexuality in Chapter 7 of Cultural Theory and Popular Culture (2006). Within this chapter, Storey discusses three feminisms, and several critical feminist studies, as well as men’s studies and queer theory.

Regarding feminisms, Storey points out that three feminists exist. First, marxist feminism posits that capitalism is the source of women’s oppression. Second, liberal feminism points to male prejudice against women as the source of the oppression of women. Finally, the dual-system theory of feminism combines marxist and liberal feminism to claim that both patriarchy and capitalism result in the oppression of women. These theories have played out in a significant body of research, including several notable studies. [ citation needed ]

Jackie Stacey’s (1994) Star Gazing: Hollywood and Female Spectatorship rejected older, patriarchal cine-psychoanalysis and used a new feminist perspective to look at women at the cinema. Stacey found that there were three primary reasons that women go to the cinema. First, escapism is a factor as women use the cinema both to escape into the movie theater and away from the hardships of everyday life. Second, identification is a factor because women identify with movie stars and gain a sense of empowerment, self-confidence, and control. Thirdly, consumption is a factor as women learn from the alternative femininity presented by movie stars and learn how to push accepted social boundaries themselves.

Tania Modleski’s (1982) Loving with a Vengeance looked at women who read romance novels and found that, while feminine narratives in these books seem to contradict with the goals of feminism, in fact these novels demonstrate an important point, namely, that women are dissatisfied with their lives. As such, reading the novels are a form of protest. Janice Radway’s (1984) Remale Desire reached similar conclusions, namely, that women read romance novels, not in approval of patriarchy, but rather in the act of a “utopian protest” and longing for a better world.

Ien Ang’s (1985) Watching Dallas considered the views of women regarding the television show Dallas. Ang divided the participants in her study into three categories. First, there are individuals who view Dallas negatively because they view it as an example of mass culture. The second group enjoyed watching Dallas, but viewed it as an example of mass culture, and as such laughed at it. Finally, a group enjoyed watching Dallas and rationalized their opinion in one of several ways. Some in the third group felt that they could acknowledge the ‘dangers’ of Dallas and deal with them, others felt the show had substance, and still others resorted to watching the show with a sense of irony. As such, Ang explained the way in which viewers attempted to reconcile their own enjoyment of the television show Dallas.

In Inside Women’s Magazines, Janice Winship (1987) considered women who read women’s magazines. Winship argued that women who read women’s magazines are not “cultural dupes of the media institutions” but rather producers of meaning themselves. Conducting 80 interviews of men and women, Winship found that individuals categorize magazines differently, and notably concluded that the way an audience categorizes the magazine and reads the text will have a key role in determining the meaning they will take away from it.

Regarding men’s studies, Storey refers to Anthony Easthope’s (1986) article What a Man’s Gotta Do, which notes that masculinity is a cultural construct, and that the dominant masculinity is only a norm which measures itself against other lived masculinities.

Finally, queer theory is discussed by Storey. Not a discipline “about” lesbian women or gay men, queer theory seeks to breakdown the assumption that gender is natural. Queer theory argues against the assumption that there are only two biological sexes which generate two genders. Further, the theory focuses on the construction of gender in culture.

Each of these theoretical perspectives can be incorporated into a broader understanding of the messages contained in the media, and are a part of media literacy.

Teaching Students to Filter Information [ edit | edit source ]

In his essay Technology as a Dazzling Distraction (1994), Neil Postman argued that the modern emphasis towards including technology as an integral part of the education system in America is actually overlooking the real issues which education ought to address. Postman argues that technologies tend to limit peoples’ options more than they increase them: society creates needs to match available and new technologies, instead of creating technology to match existing needs. In this argument, Postman appears to be agreeing with McLuhan’s famed claim that “the medium is the message,” and that the form of media employed by a society is, in itself, a far more powerful force of cultural change than any particular statement conveyed by means of that media.

However, Postman’s argument goes beyond a claim that technology can shape society, and the educational system, in unintended or unnecessary ways. Postman argues that schools no longer serve the purpose of information-giving. Since the advent of mass media, people have had access to far more information outside of a school setting than can be accessed within the school itself. This point becomes even more clear when considering the growth of the internet and the easy, near-instantaneous access to a plethora of information. Thus, since information, in itself, is no longer particularly difficult to gain, schools need to focus on two other goals: teaching students how to behave as part of a community and, how to ignore and disregard useless information. Thus, the problem of education today is no longer obtaining information; it is now filtering information. This point is, in many ways, addresses a central goal of media literacy education.

Online Resources for Learning More [ edit | edit source ]

PODCASTS: Learn about Reel Vision [1] , the Boston filmmaking group that works with young people (Episode 15)
ORGANIZATIONS: European Centre for Media Literacy [2] Alliance for a Media Literate America [3]

References [ edit | edit source ]

Alliance for a Media Literate America. (2005). Operational policy: Corporate funding. Retrieved October 1, 2006, from http://www.amlainfo.org/home/about-amla/policies/operational-policy/operational-policy#8
Alvarado, M. (1981). Television Studies and Pedagogy. Screen Education , 38 , 191-206.
Buckingham, D. (2003). Media education: Literacy, learning and contemporary culture. Cambridge: Polity Press.
Christ, W. G., & Potter, J. W. (1998). Media literacy, media education, and the academy. Journal of Communication , 48 , 5-15.
Goodman, S. (2003). Teaching youth media: A critical guide to literacy, video production, and social change . New York: Teachers College Press.
Heins, M., & Cho, C. (2003). Media literacy: An alternative to censorship . (2nd ed.). Free Expression Policy Project. Retrieved October 1, 2006, from http://www.fepproject.org/policyreports/medialiteracy.pdf
Hobbs, R. (2007). Reading the media: Media literacy in high school English . New York: Teachers College Press.
Hobbs, R., & Frost, R. (1999). Instructional practices in media literacy education and their impact on students' learning. New Jersey Journal of Communication, 6(2), 123-148.
Kist, W. (2005). New literacy’s in action: Teaching and learning in multiple media . New York: Teachers College Press.
Masterman, L. (1980). Teaching about Television . London: Macmillon.
Postman, N. (1994). Technology as dazzling distraction. Education Digest, 59 (8), 25-29.
Storey, J. (2006). Cultural Theory and Popular Culture: An Introduction . (4th ed.). The University of Georgia Press, Athens.
Thoman, E., & Jolls, T. (2005). Media literacy education: Lessons from the center for media literacy. In G. Schwartz & P. U. Brown (Eds.), Media literacy: Transforming curriculum and teaching (Vol. 104, 2005, pp. 180 -205). Malden, MA: National Society for the Study of Education

Resources needing facts checked
Media literacy
Media studies

Importance of Media Literacy: Navigating the Digital Information Landscape

Media literacy has become an essential skill in the digital age , where the internet and various forms of media play a pivotal role in the daily lives of individuals. As an ability to critically understand and evaluate content across diverse media platforms, it ensures that individuals are not passive consumers but rather equipped to navigate the complex landscape of modern information. The abundance of sources and the speed at which information spreads online demand that one possesses the skills to distinguish between credible news and misleading or biased content.

With the evolving nature of media, media literacy is not just about understanding content but also involves a critical approach to assessing the purpose, message, and impact of what is consumed. It incorporates the capacity to recognise and evaluate the techniques used by media producers to convey their messages. Developing media literacy skills is crucial for individuals to interpret the reliability of different information sources, which fosters informed decision-making and encourages participation in democratic processes.

The future of media literacy lies in integrating these skills into educational curricula and everyday practices, enabling younger generations to adapt to the challenges posed by emerging technologies . As the media landscape continues to broaden, the importance of fostering media literacy will only grow, ensuring individuals are prepared to confront the complexities of the media they interact with daily.

Defining Media Literacy

Media literacy encompasses an individual’s ability to engage with media in all its forms critically. This critical engagement implies an understanding of the nature of media content and the ability to analyse and respond to media messages effectively.

Key Components

Media literacy consists of several key components:

Access : The ability to obtain and use media in various formats.
Analysis : Deciphering and understanding the meanings behind media messages.
Evaluation : Critically assessing media content for quality and credibility.
Creation : The capability to produce media content responsibly.
Action : Engaging with media in a productive and socially responsible manner.

These components empower individuals to navigate the complex landscape of modern communication with knowledge and confidence.

Historical Context

The concept of media literacy has evolved significantly over time. Initially concerned with the content produced by traditional mediums such as television, radio, newspapers, and magazines, the term has expanded to encompass digital media and the internet.

Historically, scholars have debated the scope and application of media literacy. The British Film Institute and Oxford University Press have contributed to this subject’s academic discourse. Throughout history, the rise of new media technologies has consistently prompted a reassessment of what constitutes literacy in a media context.

The Role of Media Literacy in Society

Media literacy is essential for fostering critical thinking and informed engagement with the content that shapes public opinion. It enables individuals to navigate the complexities of the modern information environment, discern truth from misinformation, and participate actively in democratic processes.

Critical Thinking and Democracy

Critical thinking, a cornerstone of democracy, is greatly enhanced by media literacy. It equips individuals to analyse and evaluate the credibility and intent of media messages. The National Association for Media Literacy Education underscores the importance of these competencies as they relate to active and informed citizenship within a democracy.

Human Rights and Access to Information

Media literacy also intersects with human rights, particularly the right to access information. UNESCO highlights the role of Media and Information Literacy (MIL) in promoting critical approaches to literacy, affirming that access to diverse and reliable information is crucial for the realisation of human rights globally.

Influence of Media on Public Opinion

The media exerts a significant influence on public opinion. Understanding media literacy empowers individuals to recognise and resist this influence when necessary. It helps identify biases and perspectives, ensuring that opinions are formed based on truthful information, not misrepresented or sensationalised. Misinformation, which can spread rapidly in the digital age, is one of the major challenges that media literacy actively combats.

Media Literacy in Education

Media literacy education equips students with the critical skills to engage with the ever-evolving media landscape. It highlights the role of educators in integrating these competencies within the curriculum while utilising technology to enhance learning experiences in the digital age.

Integration into Curriculum

Media literacy is an additional subject and an integral part of the holistic learning experience. Within the curriculum, media literacy is woven through various subjects, where students learn to analyse and evaluate information from different media sources. Lessons are designed to address various aspects of media, from understanding how mass media works to recognising bias and misinformation. This infusion across disciplines ensures that media literacy is a cornerstone of literacy education from early childhood.

Educators and Literacy Skills

Educators play a pivotal role in media literacy by modelling and teaching the necessary skills. They are tasked with not only possessing a robust set of media literacy skills themselves but also with continuous professional development to stay abreast of the latest media trends and technologies. The competencies include creating and analysing media content and fostering a critical approach towards media consumption among pupils. Therefore, training and resources for educators become fundamental to effective media literacy education .

Digital Media in the Classroom

Incorporating digital media in the classroom transforms learning by providing real-world contexts for students to apply their media literacy skills. Technology-based tasks, such as creating digital presentations or analysing online content, prepare students for active participation in today’s media-rich society. By using technology thoughtfully, students practise these skills in an environment that closely mirrors their experiences outside of school. It’s not only about consumption; students also learn to become responsible digital content creators.

Analytical Tools and Techniques

In media literacy, individuals benefit from a robust toolkit for dissecting and understanding media content. The following section navigates through essential practices such as evaluating sources and identifying bias, which is critical to ascertaining the truth in news consumption and ensuring news literacy.

Evaluating Sources

When reading news, one must first consider the source’s credibility. Key questions to discern the trustworthiness of a source include examining the author’s qualifications, the publication’s reputation, and any potential affiliations that may impact the objectivity of the reporting. The reader should also:

Look for cited evidence to support claims, such as statistics or expert opinions.
Notice the date of the information to ensure relevance.

Identifying Bias and Fact-Checking

Recognising bias in news and media is paramount to clearly understand how facts are presented. The reader should:

Analyse the language used for signs of emotive phrasing or unbalanced viewpoints.
Cross-reference information with multiple sources to see if the reporting is consistent.

A systematic approach towards social media and other digital communications involves:

Utilising third-party fact-checking tools to verify claims.
Check the intentions behind social media posts—whether to inform or influence.

Through these methods, media literacy extends beyond basic reading and encourages a thorough evaluation of all media forms.

Developing Literacy Skills

Developing media literacy skills involves transitioning from merely consuming media to understanding and participating in media production. This process is essential for creating responsible content and engaging with various perspectives in today’s media-saturated environment.

From Consumption to Production

Through media literacy education, individuals learn to critically analyse media messages and the underlying purposes of different media platforms . They move beyond passive consumption to active production, crafting messages with deliberate consideration of language , images , and the cognitive and emotional impact on their audience.

Creating Responsible Content

Responsible content creation on mass media and social media platforms requires a clear understanding of the ethical implications of one’s writing and imagery. Content creators must take accountability for the accuracy of their information and the potential impact of their point of view .

Check Accuracy: Confirm all facts before publication.
Consider Impact: Reflect on how the content can affect others emotionally and cognitively.
Respect Privacy: Protect the personal information of individuals featured or discussed in content.

Engaging with Diverse Perspectives

Media literacy empowers individuals to seek out and engage with a wide range of perspectives , which fosters a more inclusive understanding of society. This engagement enhances critical thinking and allows a more comprehensive understanding of global issues and cultural contexts.

Exposure to Variety: Encourage reading and viewing content from various sources.
Challenging Assumptions: Question underlying assumptions and biases in media messages.
Respectful Discourse: Promote respectful exchange of ideas and viewpoints.

The Digital Landscape

The expansion of the Internet has catalysed a transformative digital age where effective navigation through vast amounts of online information is crucial.

Navigating Online Information

In the current digital landscape, the Internet is a vast and varied information repository where individuals encounter a spectrum of content. Media and information literacy (MIL) is vital for discerning the reliability and relevance of online resources. The skill to differentiate between fact and fiction is not just a personal asset but a critical societal function, encouraging informed citizenship and sustainable development.

New Forms of Communication

Social and digital media platforms have revolutionised communication, fostering new forms and forums where public discourse is instant and global. Policymakers, educators, and citizens must understand these tools to utilise digital literacy strategically, ensuring responsible participation in digital communities and effectively utilising these resources for personal and societal gains.

The Impact of Technology on Literacy

Technology has both broadened and complicated traditional concepts of literacy. The aptitude to process information from multifaceted digital media formats and evaluate the credibility of various digital content sources is integral to MIL competency. Utilising tools like MIL CLICKS, which promotes critical thinking and informed decision-making regarding media consumption, has become fundamental in the digital age for fostering resilient and informed societies.

Protecting Against Misinformation

Media literacy is a crucial defence mechanism in an era where misinformation and disinformation can spread rapidly via mass media, including television and radio. By harnessing critical thinking skills, individuals shield themselves from harm and enhance their satisfaction in confidently navigating media.

Combating Fake News

Fake news, defined as deliberate misinformation or hoaxes spread via traditional or digital media, poses risks that necessitate a strategic approach to media consumption. To combat this, critical thinking skills serve as a primary tool. Individuals must:

Evaluate sources critically , questioning the credibility and intentions behind the information.
Cross-check facts with multiple trusted sources before accepting information as true.
Reflect on biases that might influence one’s perception and acceptance of news.

Integrating these practices into daily media interaction protects them and contributes to an informed society.

Media Literacy as a Shield against Extremism

Media literacy equips individuals to discern and question extremist content that often preys on vulnerabilities and misinformation. It serves as a protective barrier by:

Promoting understanding of how media messages shape societal views and media’s potential in radicalisation.
Encouraging engagement in civil discourse, thus providing an alternative path to those at risk of radicalisation.
Instilling resilience , enabling consumers to resist extremist narratives and reducing the potential harm caused by radical ideologies.

Media literacy empowers individuals to navigate the media landscape safely and fortifies society against the divisive impacts of extremism.

Media Literacy for Empowerment

Media literacy empowers individuals by furnishing them with essential competencies to navigate and influence the media-saturated world around them with purpose and control.

Promoting Civic Engagement

Civic engagement is strengthened through proficiency in media literacy. Individuals who are media literate can discern the relevance and veracity of information, which is crucial for informed participation in democratic processes. Organisations like the National Association for Media Literacy Education outline that such competencies enable people to engage with current events critically, fostering active and responsible citizenship.

Knowledge : Understanding the structures of media influence and its impact on society.
Tools : Leveraging social media and other platforms to promote civic dialogue and social change.
Respect : Acknowledging diverse perspectives and engaging with respect in public discourse.

Encouraging Healthy Media Habits

Healthy media habits are essential for mental and physical health , and media literacy directly contributes to this. Being media literate means having the capacity to:

Analyse various genres of media, including video games and social media, recognising potential issues such as violence and cyberbullying.
Control Consumption : Setting limits on media consumption to maintain a healthy balance in life, thus enhancing personal satisfaction.

Resources for Lifelong Media Literacy

The journey towards media literacy is ongoing, and numerous resources are available to support this educational pathway. Massive Open Online Courses ( MOOCs ) offer accessible learning in Media and Information Literacy ( MIL ), while organisations provide age-appropriate tools and knowledge bases for various aspects of media education.

Social Media : Guides on navigating platforms with critical thought and care.
Educational Tools : Strategies for parents and teachers to facilitate the development of MIL competencies in children.
Engagement : Platforms encouraging the application of media literacy skills in real-world scenarios.

Frequently Asked Questions

This section addresses common inquiries regarding media literacy, ensuring a comprehensive understanding of its significance in contemporary society.

What constitutes media literacy, and why is it vital in today’s digital landscape?

Media literacy encompasses accessing, analysing, evaluating, and creating content across various platforms. In the digital era, it’s vital as it equips people with skills to navigate the vast swathes of information, separating fact from misinformation.

How does media literacy empower individuals to interpret news and information critically?

It empowers individuals by providing tools to question the authenticity and biases in news and media content. This is critical for informed decision-making and civic engagement.

In what ways can media literacy contribute to discerning the credibility of online content?

Media literacy aids in identifying credible sources by teaching how to look for signs of reliability, such as citations and cross-referencing with reputable outlets. This reduces the risk of consuming and sharing false information.

How does media literacy enhance responsible participation on social media platforms?

Responsibility on social media stems from understanding the impact of sharing and creating content. Media literacy helps individuals recognise the significance of their online actions and encourages ethical participation.

Can media literacy impact one’s understanding of advertising and its influence on consumer behaviour?

Yes, individuals with media literacy can deconstruct advertisements, understanding the strategies used to influence consumers and potentially counteract undesired persuasive effects.

How does media literacy education equip students to navigate the complexities of the modern information environment?

Through media literacy education, students learn to critically assess media messages and the diverse channels through which information is distributed, enabling them to function as informed citizens in a complex information landscape.

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IE 11 Not Supported

Missouri proposes ‘media literacy and critical thinking act’, to prepare students for a world of misinformation, legislation expected to pass in early 2025 would establish guidelines to teach digital media literacy in k-12 based on pilot programs at a handful of schools..

A person using a laptop showing news on the screen.

The news and critical thinking: Why is it important?

Every day, we’re bombarded with a huge amount of news and information from all around the world. Whether it’s through websites, social media or TV, it’s never been easier to access the news.

Think about how many bits of news you’ve seen on your social feeds today. Do you know how much of it you can really trust?

illustration of two people being overwhelmed by many news tiles

What is media literacy and why is it important?

Media literacy is the ability to spot different types of media and to understand the messages they are communicating. It involves questioning what you’re watching, listening to or reading, so that you can make better judgements about the messages you’re being presented with.

Media includes all the different ways a message is communicated – from the news we read online to the ads we see on TV. The media we consume can inform, educate, entertain or convince us. It influences the way we see and think about ourselves and the world around us.

If we have good media literacy, it can stop us from getting stressed out by the confusing or negative things we see in the media. It can also help us focus on all the useful media that helps us to learn, connect and relax.

How can I improve my media literacy?

Question the credibility of the news source.

Illustration of young guy standing next to a genie-like figure that is wearing a suit and has a TV for a head. The TV reads '85NEWS'. The two are pointing at each other and the TV figure has his arm around the young person.

Whether you read the news from social media or a website, it’s important to know who is publishing the content. A credible or trustworthy news provider will make sure their reporting is impartial and free of errors.

Also consider who owns the media company, and if that is impacting the stories being produced. In Australia many publications share a parent company, meaning they may look and feel different, but they’re bound to similar publishing guidelines and rules. Check out a high level overview of Australian media organisations here .

Find news from a variety of sources

Illustration of young person lying on top of the world and looking at different news sources on their phone. Screens surround them in the sky showing different world flags and news iconography like a headline that reads 'JUST IN' and a YouTube play button icon.

Get a balanced picture of news stories by consuming different news sources. This will give you a range of different perspectives on an issue. Media sites are often funded by advertisers, which means their reporting is driven by clicks (how people engage with the content). This causes them to report their stories in certain ways. If a news site is funded by an organisation with a particular political view, it can lead to reporting that promotes their way of thinking.

Read a mix of local publications and international news providers such as Reuters . This will help you to develop a well-informed opinion on a story.

Think about the purpose of the article

Illustration of three coloured figures, representing different news formats, sitting together at a table. The purple figure on the left is smiling. The text on their shirt reads 'DID YOU KNOW?'. The blue figure in the middle is holding up their hand and raising on eyebrow. The text on their shirt reads 'OPINION! 1+1=11'. The red figure on the right has one hand outstretched on the table and is holding a flyer in their other hand. The flyer has a picture of a handbag with a dollar sign above it. The text on their shirt reads '15 MUST HAVE AUTUMN BAGS'.

Why was the story produced? Was it to:

inform you about something that happened (news report)?

change your mind or behaviour (opinion piece)?

sell you something and promote a brand (branded content)?

A news provider might produce many different types of articles and videos, and should label them to make their purpose clear to the reader.

When it comes to the news, start with reports that contain facts, statistics from a trustworthy source (like from the government or an academic institution) and quotes from experts. Once you have the background details on a story, you’ll be able to make your own conclusions about an opinion piece written in response to it. This is especially important because prejudice against a person or group is common in mainstream media coverage.

Spot misinformation or fake news

Illustration of young woman reading a news story on her phone with the headline: 'CATS ARE LEADING A SECRET SOCIETY?!'. A thought bubble extends out from the young woman and morphs into two large cats wearing business suits hovering above her in the sky.

Although social media has helped us become better connected, it has also driven the viral spread of fake news, or ‘misinformation’. Fake news is created using false or inaccurate information, with the intention of deceiving the reader. It works by grabbing a reader’s attention with a sensational or wild claim in the hope they’ll then click through and share it.

Social media feeds are based on an algorithm or system of rules that sorts posts based on the type of content you normally interact with and how popular the content is. The more people who interact with the content, the quicker the fake news spreads and the more money the site makes from advertisers who pay to put up their ads on the site. Here are a few signs the story you’re reading could be fake news:

No evidence: It contains no evidence for its claims and is often based on one person’s side of the story.

Sensational headline and images: It uses an outrageous headline and images to lure you in (e.g. ‘Celebrity kills off dad in latest prank’). The stories may also include many bizarre claims.

Not reported anywhere else: If you can’t find the story through any other news source, it’s reasonable to question its credibility.

Contains errors: The article contains spelling and grammatical mistakes or incorrect dates.

Unusual URL: For example, the site URL ends in “.com.co” or “.lo”.

Talk to your family and friends about the news you’re reading

illustration of three young people chatting at a table.

Discussing news stories with other people will challenge and broaden your own perspective. Be open to talking with and listening to people whose views differ from yours.

If the conversation starts to become difficult or makes you feel uncomfortable, ask someone neutral to join the discussion. Or you can always stop the conversation and simply agree to disagree. There’s no point arguing with someone who doesn’t want to listen to anyone else’s perspective. Get some tips on discussing politics with family and friends .

Switch off and take a break

Illustration of three young people practising self-care. A young woman runs through a park with her dog while a young man sits on a hill behind her in the park, playing a guitar. In the corner is an illustration of a young person sitting on a lounge with headphones on and reading a book. Their cat is curled up next to them on the lounge.

News has a 24-hour cycle – its output is never-ending. It can therefore be overwhelming and exhausting, especially as some media outlets tend to report mostly negative stories (because they get an emotional reaction). Get some tips on coping with disturbing videos and images here .

Turn off the news and do something you enjoy to clear your mind . Challenge yourself to a tech-free hour and spend it going for a walk or reading a book. You could do something that will refresh your mind and body, like shooting some hoops or dancing to your favourite music.

Whatever you decide to do, remember that it’s important to take a break from the news every once in a while. Taking time out helps you to think critically about and not be overwhelmed by the news. It’ll also help you with all the other tips in this article!

What can I do now?

Learn how to spot fake news by playing Bad News Game , a quick online game where you try to build a fake news empire.

Watch the CrashCourse series on media literacy for a deeper dive into the topic.

Get some tips on dealing with bad world news.

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Lesson 7

COMMENTS

The Importance of Critical Thinking for News Media Literacy
Critical thinking is a key component of news media literacy, as it allows individuals to assess the accuracy and credibility of news sources, identify biases and misinformation, and make informed decisions. Critical thinking involves questioning assumptions, evaluating evidence, and considering multiple perspectives, which are all crucial ...
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Teaching Teachers Critical Media Literacy. Transforming education to critically use media, technology, and popular culture for social and environmental justice is the overarching goal of a critical media literacy (CML) course in the teacher education program at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).
PDF It's Critical: The Role of Critical Thinking in Media and Information
arguments. In other words, a critical thinking that asks people to doubt what they see. This notion is problematized in relation to writings on media literacy and critical thinking, focusing on the importance of acknowledging reflexivity and identity in the definition of critical thinking. Keywords: critical thinking, education, media education ...
Media Literacy in the Modern Age
Media literacy is the ability to apply critical thinking skills to the messages, signs, and symbols transmitted through mass media . We live in a world that is saturated with media of all kinds, from newspapers to radio to television to the internet. Media literacy enables us to understand and evaluate all of the media messages we encounter on ...
Skills for Life: Media Literacy and Critical Thinking
Media literacy education is a tool for combating mis/disinformation in a time where there is so much uncertainty. The lack of credible news means that we are left with news stories driven by propaganda, misinformation, or manipulated content and even fiction or just fallacy. This impacts every person in every situation and influences the conversations, policy, and beliefs whether we are ...
Why all 21st-century educators must teach media literacy & how
Besides thinking critically about media, this is probably one of the most important parts of media literacy. We want students to be life-long learners prepared to internalize what they've learned about media and transfer it beyond the classroom, including monitoring themselves on social media, being critical of media before sharing it, and ...
Media and Information Literacy, a critical approach to ...
Media and Information Literacy (MIL) emphasizes a critical approach to literacy. MIL recognizes that people are learning in the classroom as well as outside of the classroom through information, media and technological platforms. It enables people to question critically what they have read, heard and learned. As a composite concept proposed by ...
Media Literacy and Critical Thinking
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The fourth major approach is the one they develop, "critical media literacy," which includes aspects of each of the other models, but "focuses on ideology critique and analyzing the politics of representation of crucial dimensions of gender, race, class, and sexuality; incorporating alternative media production; and expanding the textual ...
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Media Literacy Skills Scale, developed by Erişti and Erdem (2017), and UF/EMI Critical Thinking Disposition Scale, adapted to Turkish by Ertaş Kılıç and Şen (2014), were used to identify ...
Media Literacy: Concept, Theoretical Explanation, and its Importance in
It is important to note that media literacy is a complex concept that is closely related to media education, critical thinking, and audience activities in processing information (Fitri et al ...
Why media literacy matters
The media we consume can inform, educate, entertain or convince us. It influences the way we see and think about ourselves and the world around us. If we have good media literacy, it can stop us from getting stressed out by the confusing or negative things we see in the media. It can also help us focus on all the useful media that helps us to ...
What is Media Literacy?
We define media literacy as the ability to: Decode media messages (including the systems in which they exist); Assess the influence of those messages on thoughts, feelings, and behaviors; and. Create media thoughtfully and conscientiously. Like reading or math, media literacy is learned. The ability to navigate within our complex and ever ...
The Use of Critical Thinking to Identify Fake News: A Systematic
It highlighted the importance of information literacy as well as critical thinking, as essential skills to evaluate the credibility of online information. The limitations in this review include the use of students as the main participants in most of the research - this would indicate a need to shift the academic focus towards having the general ...
What is media literacy, and why is it important?
Media literacy is the ability to identify different types of media and understand the messages they're sending. Kids take in a huge amount of information from a wide array of sources, far beyond the traditional media (TV, radio, newspapers, and magazines) of most parents' youth. There are text messages, memes, viral videos, social media, video ...
Media Literacy: What It Is and Why It's Essential
The Importance of Media Literacy Education. Media literacy education plays a crucial role in equipping individuals with the necessary tools to navigate the complex media landscape. By promoting media literacy in schools, colleges, and communities, we empower individuals to develop critical thinking skills and media analysis abilities.
Media Theory
Media is a powerful tool that influences public opinion, shapes cultural norms, and impacts political decisions. As such, media literacy is essential in today's world, where we are constantly bombarded with a vast amount of information from various sources. Studying media helps individuals develop critical thinking skills, enabling them to ...
Media Literacy and Critical Thinking: Is There a Connection?
A media literate person is expected to have the ability to "decode, evaluate, analyze and produce both print and electronic media" (Aufderheide, 2001, p. 79). Feuerstein (1999) writes "One purpose of (media literacy) M.L. programs is to promote the (critical thinking) C.T. of students towards media texts" (p. 45).
Why is Media Literacy Important
Media analysis, which is a crucial part of media literacy education, can develop critical thinking skills, by strengthening observation and interpretation. For example, students can examine and challenge the stereotypes, biases, and hidden motivation of the producers.
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Engaging with Diverse Perspectives. Media literacy empowers individuals to seek out and engage with a wide range of perspectives, which fosters a more inclusive understanding of society. This engagement enhances critical thinking and allows a more comprehensive understanding of global issues and cultural contexts.
A Fresh Take on Digital Media Literacy and Online Critical Thinking
The Concept. Promoting digital literacy as a central focus for incoming college students is not a recent development. Digital literacy as a concept was first introduced in 1997 as "the skill to exploit the technology for reading, writing, and living in the digital age" (Bawden, 2008). While this standard definition of digital literacy holds ...
Missouri Proposes 'Media Literacy and Critical Thinking Act'
May 08, 2024 •. Aaron Gifford. The Show Me State is poised to let a handful of public schools figure out the dos and don'ts of teaching digital media literacy. Missouri state Legislature House ...
#YesSheCan
23 likes, 0 comments - yesshecanuk on May 8, 2024: "This is a brilliant initiative and a great example of why recognising bias, critical thinking and learning media literacy is so important...". #YesSheCan | This is a brilliant initiative and a great example of why recognising bias, critical thinking and learning media literacy is so important ...
The news and critical thinking: Why is it important?
The media we consume can inform, educate, entertain or convince us. It influences the way we see and think about ourselves and the world around us. If we have good media literacy, it can stop us from getting stressed out by the confusing or negative things we see in the media. It can also help us focus on all the useful media that helps us to ...

The Importance of Critical Thinking for News Media Literacy

News Media Literacy

Critical Thinking Skills for News Literacy

Evaluating Sources and Evidence

Analyzing Information

Identifying and Evaluating Biases

How Practicing News Literacy Develops Critical Thinking

How THINKING PRO Helps Students Build News Literacy

Article contents

Updated in this version

Introduction

Teacher Education

Teaching Teachers Critical Media Literacy

Table 1. Critical Media Literacy Framework

Voices From the Field

Teaching With Media

Teaching About Media

Evaluating Information and Advertising

Creating Different Types of Media

Increasing Engagement

Critical Media Literacy

Creating Counter Narratives and Supporting Students’ Voices

Politics of Representation

Making Critical Connections

Intent and Importance of Incorporating Critical Media Literacy

Acknowledgments

Further Reading

Media Literacy in the Modern Age

How to Practice Media Literacy

History of Media Literacy

Impact of Media Literacy

South Carolina ETV

Why all 21st-century educators must teach media literacy & how

With technology being an integral part of classrooms and students’ lives in general, I realize that my job as a teacher involves helping students successfully navigate the online world.

But HOW Can Educators Include Media Literacy as an Integral Part of Daily Instruction?!

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Media and Information Literacy, a critical approach to literacy in the digital world

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The Current State of Media & Children

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The Need for Media Literacy Education

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The Use of Critical Thinking to Identify Fake News: A Systematic Literature Review

Marita Turpin

Introduction

Background: Fake News, Information Literacy and Critical Thinking

The History of Fake News

Fake News Today

Critical Thinking

Research Method

Delimitations.

Search Terms.

Selection Criteria.

Table 1.

Source Selection.

PRISMA Flowchart.

Analysis of Findings

Discussion of Themes

Fake News and Accountability.

Fake News and Student Research.

Fake News and Social Media.

Fake News That Drive Politics.

Information Literacy.

Critical Thinking.

Discussion of Findings

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