Media Literacy for Political Engagement

Critical Thinking and Media in COM 110

Media Literacy Skills

• Access: Know how to use technology and sear for and find relevant information.

• Understand: Know how to make sense of media information.

• Analyze: Examine the content to ascertain purpose, point of view, accuracy, and timeliness.

• Evaluate: Determine the value of media content for yourself and others.

• Create: Produce your own media messages—video, photographs, web page, podcast, documentary, etc.

Applying Media Literacy Concepts

Focus on News

News Messages are Constructed

• Who decides what is newsworthy?

• Who writes, edits, designs and produces the news?

• What is the purpose of the message?

• How do deadlines of time and space affect news coverage?

• Who are the readers, viewers, and listeners?

News Media and Language

• How is the news story reported? Does it meet the ethical standards of fairness, objectivity, and balance?

• What elements or techniques are used to gain the audience’s attention?

• How are visuals used (photographs, editorial cartoons, etc.)?

News Audiences and Perception

• How does news coverage affect perceptions of people, places, and ideas?

• What meaning does a news story have for people with differing values, beliefs, and attitudes?

• How do people of different ages, incomes, genders, sexual orientations, racial and ethnic backgrounds interpret the news?

News as Business

• Who owns, profits from, and pays for news?

• How is content affected by organizational forces, resources, constraints, and geographical focus?

• Does the profit motive undermine the social responsibility of news organizations?

Media Literacy Assignment

• Define a problem/issue within the community that needs to be addressed.

• Conduct a search for information to determine the scope of the problem—local, state, national, or global.

• Identify current or pending policies (local, state, national, or international) that affect how the problem might be solved.

• Develop three strategies (solutions to the problem) to actively address the problem.

• Design a way to communicate your analysis of the problem and proposed solution to others (e.g., public service announcement, advertising campaign, documentary, letter to the editor, etc.).

• Reflect on your experience. What does this project tell you about the importance of media literacy both as a consumer and producer of media information?