Media Literacy | Global Issues Tours

What is media literacy, anyway?
Who is involved?
Where are the consequences felt?
Why is media literacy important?
Citations

What is media literacy, anyway?

Media literacy is the ability to monitor and analyze media coverage and understand media’s role in shaping global issues.¹ It can help people exercise their right to freedom of expression, a cornerstone of a democractic society.² From television to the internet to radio to newspapers, media is all around us. People are exposed to and use media every day, but often are unaware of the messaging behind it. By deconstructing media messages, we can begin to identify the values, lifestyles, and points of view that are represented in them, as well as the creative techniques used to draw our attention.³

An advertisement for Coca-Cola from the 1890’s. Who is this ad appealing to? Would it be similar to an advertisement today?

In countries around the world, media literacy is key to citizens being active participants in the political process. Four out of five adults consider the internet a fundamental right.⁴ UNESCO, the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization, prioritizes free and independent media and enhanced universal access to information and knowledge.⁵

Who is involved?

Media has both producers and consumers, those who make the messages and those who take them in.

A journalist setting up his camera.

More traditional forms of media like television, radio, and print tend to be produced by large companies or the government and consumed by individuals. Because of this, there is a risk that commercial interests will be prioritized over fair and factual information transmission. To learn more, take a look at a chart of the largest six media companies in the world.

Today popular internet-based technologies, like Twitter and YouTube, allow more people to take on both the role of producer and consumer, as they create videos or blogs while also watching others’ creations. These types of media are subject to bias as well. It is important to check the source of the media materials you are consuming to see whether facts are being manipulated or misrepresented.

Children using computers in San Ramon.

Where are the consequences felt?

The free flow of information tends to be the lowest in regions of high conflict and corruption. Journalists can be imprisoned, exiled, or killed because of their work to produce media that is critical of the government or other powerful people. Since 1992, 805 journalists have been killed over their work.⁶

The following countries have been shown to repress their citizens’ access to the internet to the greatest degree: Saudi Arabia, Burma, China, North Korea, Cuba, Egypt, Iran, Uzbekistan, Syria, Tunisia, Turkmenistan, and Vietnam.⁷

This map shows how corrupt the governments of different countries are in the eyes of their citizens. The darker the blue, the more corrupt the citizens believe their government is. Building a strong civil society to fight against corruption requires the use of media, so that citizens can be informed of what actions their government is taking.

Why is media literacy important?

There are some issues that hold more people back from being media literate: participation, transparency, and ethics.⁸ Participation involves access to media and the freedom of expression. Transparency is maintained when citizens question the validity of the source and message. Ethics include plagiarism and conflict of interest; by either copying other’s work without giving credit, or maintaining competing interests, reporters lose their credibility.

Knowledge and information are crucial to building a better global community. Media literate citizens can engage in governance, as well as making informed decisions and laws that best serve not just one group, but the greater good.