Media Literacy: Lost In The Modern World

 Olivia Zhou

What designates the greatness of human existence? Creativity. For millennia the works born from brilliant minds have been celebrated, studied, and interpreted. Renowned plays of Shakespeare dissected, films painstakingly analyzed, and Van-Gogh's artwork studied. The ability to analyze and evaluate presented information has been vital to the formation of perception. It is the basis of learning and creates a means of correct decision-making. Media literacy is a critical skill, an aspect of humanity that truly defines the species. However, in the present tense, the skill has been growing obsolete as resistance to learning rises, and the influences of social media plague young minds. Therefore, reinforcement of education regarding critical analysis is essential to the preservation of human intelligence. 

There are a multitude of causes that may have fueled the decline of media literacy in current-day Western society. Yet, the two most influential have been found to be a void in education and the escalating influence of social media. A 2022 study published by Media Literacy ‘Now’, found that a mere 42% of adult respondents had claimed to have been educated on how to analyze news stories. In the same publication, only 38% of respondents claimed that they were taught the ability to discern the motivations of media messaging. There is a clear void in the school system in regard to the topic of media literacy. Similarly, a 2016 study by the Stanford Graduate School of Education found that 82% of middle school students were unable to distinguish between sponsored articles and news stories, showing the continuity of this issue. The rise of social media and the consequence of shortened attention spans further amplifies declining levels of media literacy. The consumption of news through social media incentivizes viewers to take the information as it is, cutting out the desire of doing further research on the topic (Bisera 2024).

The dying art of media literacy gravely affects the field of entertainment as well. Shows, which once exuberated great amounts of nuance and complexity, have been largely replaced by uninspired, easily consumable tropes. Characters widdled down to caricatures, and the induction of the “tell don’t show,” method of storytelling are all signs of this generation’s declining desire and ability to analyze. 

The consequences of oversimplification in media reflect directly on the “real” world. Yet, the writing of morally grey characters resembles the nature of humanity, and the consumption of such characters grows the innate ability of empathy (Rose 2022).  Furthermore, stories based on real-life scenarios teach viewers the complexities of society and allow them to not only see themselves in the tales but to learn how to navigate their own lives through them. The glazing over of TV shows and movies will only continue to perpetuate a loss of learning.

Correcting the issue of the decline of media literacy is certainly a difficult task. With the current conditions of many learning environments seeing great struggle, an emphasis on this topic may be overshadowed by other needs. However, passionate individuals are able to use their platforms as a means to urge the importance of critical thinking and encourage extended use of media literacy when viewing any presented information. Social media can be taken to teach methods of media literacy. Viewers of visual entertainment can continue supporting content with meaningful stories and complex characters. The dark ages of intelligence remain far from reality, yet it is important to enforce means of education in order to push this narrative further and further from fruition.

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Works Cited

“National Survey Finds Most U.S. Adults Have Not Had Media Literacy Education in High School.” Media Literacy Now | Advocating for Media Literacy Education, 31 May 2023, medialiteracynow.org/nationalsurvey2022/. 

Spilsbury, Laura. “Studies Show Lack of Media Literacy in Students Has Negative Impact.” BYU Daily Universe, BYU Daily Universe, 28 Feb. 2024, universe.byu.edu/2018/02/09/studies-show-lack-media-literacy-students-negative-impact/. 

Maxine Bisera. “Beyond the Blue Curtains: The Decline of Media Literacy.” The Bull & Bear, 6 Feb. 2024, bullandbearmcgill.com/beyond-the-blue-curtains-the-decline-of-media-literacy/. 

Sharon, Rose. “As Entertainment Becomes Morally Ambiguous, Media Literacy Is Dying.” Medium, Medium, 16 Apr. 2022, medium.com/@bwcutler1000/as-entertainment-becomes-morally-ambiguous-media-literacy-is-dying-835b4612e268.