Media Literacy

Objectives

● Define media literacy and why it is important

● Define and identify misinformation,
disinformation, and malinformation
● Understand why misinformation and
disinformation are harmful
What is Media Literacy?
Types of (Mass) Media
1. Broadcast (TV, film, radio…)
2. Print (books, newspapers, magazines…)
3. Outdoor (billboards, signs…)
4. Digital (Internet/websites, social media, apps…)
What is Media Literacy?

“...the ability to identify

different types of media
and understand the
messages they are
sending.”
https://www.commonsensemedia.org
Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash
What is Media Literacy?
What is Media Literacy?

Someone who is media literate can distinguish between

facts, opinions, and assertions in news, entertainment,
and social media.

Someone who is media literate is aware of potential

disinformation and misinformation.
Why Media Literacy?

● Learn to think critically

● Become a smart
consumer of products
and information.
● Understand the role of
media in society
Photo by Mike McAlister on Unsplash
Media
Landscape
Media Landscape
Activity
Poll 1: My Personal Media Landscape
The Power of Social Media -- Good and Bad
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Photo by Sara Kurfeß on Unsplash

Media Use and
Misuse
Critical Thinking

Jorge Franganillo, CC BY 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

Critical Thinking
Critical Thinking

“FAKE NEWS”
Why do disinformation & misinformation
exist?
● Poor journalism (mistakes)
● Parody – to imitate, make fun of
● Provoke – to incite or annoy
● Passion – based on strong feelings/emotions
● Partisanship – support a group, party, cause
● Profit – make money
● Political influence
● Propaganda – to help or harm a group or cause
Identifying Disinformation & Misinformation
Identifying Disinformation & Misinformation

Step 1: Identify the source

Step 2: Look beyond the headline
Step 3: Recognize humor
Step 4: Look for facts and support
Step 5: Recognize your bias
Infodemic / Infodemiology (A COVID example)

https://www.who.int/news-room/spotlight/let-s-flatten-the-infodemic-curve
How to identify “real or not”

https://www.who.int/news-room/spotlight/let-s-flatten-the-infodemic-curve
Why is accurate, unbiased information so
important?
● Democracy:
○ Citizens can’t be informed voters if they don’t have accurate, timely
information
● Health and Safety:
○ Decisions about health
○ Misinformation and disinformation can cause panic.
● General Behavior:
○ How we treat other people and how we spend money
ရပ် ကည့် သွား
Activity
Poll
Poll
Poll
TEST your understanding
Misinformation is false or inaccurate
information that is spread intentionally.
_____ True
_____ False
TEST your understanding
TEST your understanding
TEST your understanding
 References and Selected Resources
CommonSenseMedia.org
https://www.commonsensemedia.org/news-and-media-literacy/what-is-media-literacy-and-why-is-it-important

Fact Checking http://bit.ly/MdLtFctChk

Developed by educational organization IREX, this kit provides lesson plans for two workshops around
personal media landscapes and fact checking with handouts and extra resources.

Newseum -- https://newseumed.org
Collection of online materials, including self-paced courses on disinformation and media literacy. You need to
create a free account to access materials.

Voice of America (VOA) --

https://learningenglish.voanews.com/a/news-litaracy-introduction-news-through-time/4387984.html
These news literacy lessons are intended for English language learners. Each lesson includes a four-minute
video, a transcript, and key vocabulary used in the story.

We are Social (Hootsuite) https://datareportal.com/reports/digital-2020-myanmar

Questions?
Survey Link:
https://forms.gle/RkTzUKqM98HvcuB49

Thank you!