With much anticipation about the upcoming 2018 midterm elections, there will be a barrage of information about candidates on all kinds of media platforms.
Various social media sites, websites, television, radio, and print will all host a plethora of various accusations, accolades, and descriptions about candidates and events, which may or may not be based on actual facts.
These media reports may potentially be discussed in communities, at the dinner table, among friends, at social gatherings, at the workplace, and in various educational settings. How, then, can we better assure that what we are reading or hearing is based on actual events or facts?
Media literacy has become a critical aspect of civic engagement and the facilitation of a more informed citizenry.
The only way to better assure that citizens are informed with fact-based information and/or educated opinions is to enable all citizens to develop media literacy skills.
How can we help to equip the general citizenry with the media literacy skills needed to discern reputable, verifiable information from “fake” or false news? There are various ways in which the development of media literacy skills may be offered to the general public.
Schools – Public schools are a critically valuable way to teaching civics to the younger generations. Teaching fundamental democratic values, laws, and citizen rights, at each and every grade level, is crucial for the education of a democratic citizenry.
In this current information and technology age, part of an education in civics can include lessons on media literacy. Simple, but empowering classroom lessons on media literacy can be created for various grade levels. There are many available checklists for fake news detection that exist, and new ones may be created depending on the age of the audience. For example, the nonpartisan, nonprofit organization, “The News Literacy Project,” has devised a checklist of red-flags that students can use for fake news detection.
With a checklist such as this, students can practice examining articles on various social media, or news platforms, and check for specific red-flags related to articles or news sources.
Students may be provided with both “fake news” articles and more reliable information, so that they can practice using the red-flag checklist. Once detection skills have been examined and discussed in the classroom, students can engage in practicing their new detection skills throughout the school year, as they research information for different academic subjects.
This empowers students to be lifelong critical thinkers and engaged citizens
Higher Education — Colleges and universities can be encouraged to offer media literacy lessons to students as a part of their “core,” or required coursework, which may ordinarily be taken early on in the college experience as freshmen.
Core, or standard, courses such as introductory English, political science, or other liberal arts courses, may offer brief introductory lessons about media literacy.
Students may be encouraged, via class discussion and/or on a syllabus or rubric, to continually use detection checklists when conducting research for an assignment or project.
Public Libraries and Community Centers — With changing societal and technological circumstances, democratic citizens of all ages need access to the often evolving skill-set that is necessary for civic engagement.
Media literacy lessons similar to those taught on the secondary level and/or university level may be offered as workshops at public libraries and community centers.
Adult learners may be offered simple red-flag checklists, along with information on how to use fact-checking websites such as Snopes.com and PolitiFact.com.
A one-session workshop on media literacy, offered periodically, at a library or community center, would be a low-cost, yet effective way of disseminating these literacy skills. Inter-generational workshops at libraries, colleges, or community centers may also give citizens the opportunity to discuss and reinforce media literacy skills and ideas with one another.
In addition to workshops, printed checklists, along with recommendations for fact-checking websites, can be offered on an ongoing basis at public libraries and community centers.
Social Media Platforms – With the easy circulation of fake news, via sponsored ads, bots, and other tactics, social media platforms have become a harbinger of false information. While cooperation with these platforms is not guaranteed, it would be beneficial for the society as a whole, if these platforms offered all users a fake news detection checklist.
Just as Facebook intermittently reminds users about new features or options, reminders about media literacy checklists can be offered, especially at timely periods such as during campaign season.
It may be helpful if users may have the opportunity to access non-partisan fact-checking and red-flag detection lists at all times via their settings or other easy-access features.
Although the above recommendations are not a magic elixir for the problem of false information, we may start to empower citizens with the knowledge-base necessary for media literacy.
Citizens of all ages can learn to engage in the discernment between fake news, which is completely fabricated, personal or partisan preference, educated opinion, and factual information.
One of the most important skills we can empower a democratic citizen with, has always, and will always be, the ability to discern fact from fiction.
Diana Poulos-Lutz
Mineola
