Module 1
Introduction to Media and Information Literacy
Embedded Files
Table of Contents
Introduction
Introduction
Source: unbox.ph
We live in today’s digital world where:
“Feed” is not only for chickens, but also social media lingo.
Publishing content is no longer constrained to printing companies alone but to internet and social media users as well.
Emotions are expressed through emojis.
Knowing how to basically do everything is just one click away.
Sharing a life milestone and photos to everyone you know is just one click away.
The latest news and trends travel faster than the cars in the metro.
Chances are, if you managed to enroll in this course on your own, you’re a technology-literate individual. You know how the basics of navigating the web and social media, and you probably spend a few to several hours on your digital device, be it your phone, tablet, PC/laptop, making you one of the 5.16 billion active internet users and 4.17 billion social media users around the globe as of today (Meltwater & We Are Social, 2023).
This scenario implies that you’re heavily exposed to media and information – by binge-watching your favorite movies or series online, by clicking on news articles from Google and social media, and by mindlessly scrolling through your feed. However, does having access and exposure to digital media and information guarantee that you are a media and information literate individual? You might even ask, what does Media and Information Literacy (MIL) mean in the first place?
To give you a detailed overview of what MIL is, this module introduces you to the topic of MIL by decomposing the sub-concepts under its umbrella and by getting you acquainted with the definitions essential to its understanding.
Module Objectives
Module Objectives
By the end of this module, you should be able to:
Define
MIL and its related concepts in your own words.
Explain
the relationship of information to data, knowledge, and wisdom.
Reflect
on the contemporary Philippine media landscape and current issues it faces.
Examine
how media literacy, information literacy, and technology literacy both differ and relate to one another.
Motivational Activity
Motivational Activity
(Required)
DF 1: Introduction & Media Use Log
Time Allotment: 30 mins
To get the ball started, introduce yourself in forum DF 1. Share with us your nickname, age, location, occupation, reasons for enrolling in the course, and what you’re expecting to learn.
In the same DF, provide us with your media use log. This may be drawn and scanned or designed using any digital software/app.
Think of the past week. What are the top media and information providers that you can remember interacting with? How about the number of hours that you spent on each one? It does not have to be exact but only a rough estimation.
Here's a sample Media use log for your reference:
Source: CHED & PNU (2016)
Now, answer the following questions briefly:
1. Which media provider did you spend the most time with and why?
2. What roles does the media play in your lives? (leisure, learning, communication, etc.)
3. Which media provider is your first go-to when you want to know something?
Discussion
Discussion
A. Media, Information, & Technology Literacies
A. Media, Information, & Technology Literacies
Click this to study the infographic below which defines and demarcates the following terms crucial to the understanding of MIL:
What is Media and Information Literacy?
What is Media and Information Literacy?
A complex concept proposed by UNESCO in 2007, Media and Information Literacy (MIL) is a set of skills that allows people to critically access, retrieve, understand, evaluate, and use information and media in all formats using various digital and technological tools, as well as to create and share that content, in order to engage in personal, professional, and societal activities online and offline [emphasis added] (CHED & PNU, 2016). “It is an integral part of so-called ’21st century skills’ or ‘transversal competencies’” (UNESCO Institute for Information Technologies in Education, 2022).
MIL is one of the solutions to the problems faced in the modern digital world, particularly the spread of the so-called “disinfodemic.” In today’s information age, we’re surrounded by barrage of disinformation disseminated by fake news peddlers to gain a high social media engagement and to deliberately warp the truth to reflect their beliefs and biases.
This is why international organizations like UNESCO take this issue seriously by encouraging the cultivation of media and information literacy for all in order to enable people to think critically and make informed decisions when using the internet.
In fact, in the Philippines, the transition to the K-12 curriculum includes Media and Information Literacy as one of the core subjects in Senior High School.
UNESCO believes that in order to achieve a media and information literate society, MIL in formal education is necessary but should not be the end game. Thus, Massive Open Online Courses such as what is offered by University of the Philippines Open University is one of the ways that citizens like you and I can help to achieve more peaceful, productive, and safer media and digital spaces!
Thus, being a media and information literate enables you to take full advantage of the right information from both the traditional and new media, together with other digital and communication landscapes, safely and critically. MIL is particularly important but not limited to today's information and media-rich spaces. It also means you have the fundamental abilities and skills that allow you to interact with media and information sources, such as the internet, fruitfully with critical thinking, and you can utilize these sources of information for your lifelong learning, social interaction, volunteerism, and citizenship. With a sufficient level of media and information literacy, you are also less prone to fall for the risk and dangers associated with internet and social media use.
Media and Information Literate Citizens: Think Critically, Click Wisely! (video)
This video by UNESCO (2021) discusses the importance of media and information literacy in today's digital age. It highlights the dangers of misinformation and disinformation and how they can negatively impact individuals and society as a whole. The video also provides tips and strategies for developing media and information literacy skills, such as evaluating sources, fact-checking, and being critical of information. It emphasizes the need for a collective effort to promote media and information literacy to ensure that individuals can make informed decisions and contribute to a healthy and democratic society. The video concludes by calling for a collaborative approach between different sectors to address the challenges of media and information literacy in the digital age.
Five Laws of MIL
Five Laws of MIL
Since the “containers of knowledge,” such as the books and internet are becoming universal more than ever, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) contends that MIL should be treated as a set of human rights.
As a result, UNESCO drafted the Five Laws of Media and Information Literacy (click here):
Source: UNESCO (2018)
Optional Activity
Optional Activity
Five Laws of MIL
Time Allotment: 30 mins - 1 hr
Read the Five Laws of MIL by UNESCO (2018)
Read at least three articles from the Media and Information Literacy page of UNESCO. You may also click on the related links on the right side of the page, scroll through the photo gallery, and watch videos pertinent to MIL.
B. Information Literacy
B. Information Literacy
What is Information?
What is Information?
According to Asean Digital Literacy Program (ADLP, 2022), information refers to:
Facts that we learn and obtain about a place, person, or thing
Descriptions and answers to the unknown
Aids our decision-making process
Knowledge that empowers us
We now live in the information age where information is power. With globalization, information has become a commodity that is imported and exported globally. Those who are in the know have a greater advantage than those who are out of the loop. For instance, if you are not informed that today is the submission date for a term paper, then you risk having a zero in that specific requirement thereby affecting your final grade (just pray to heavens that your teacher is considerate enough!). Being properly informed goes beyond making you seem smart to others; it will guide your future actions, help you make more sense of the world, and thus make more intelligent decisions. However, receiving information does not necessarily mean that said information is accurate, factual, and worth sharing. Module 2 will expound on these types of information.
Discussion Forum 2
Discussion Forum 2
(Required)
DIKW Pyramid
Time Allotment: 30 mins
Have you ever asked what’s the difference between data, information, knowledge, and wisdom?
Watch this video about the DIKW pyramid.
After watching the video, search for examples of the DIKW pyramid on the web.
Create your own DIKW pyramid with your own example (you may use any graphic design software/application or draw on paper and take a photo) then share it in the appropriate forum on our course site.
Stages/Elements of Information Literacy
Stages/Elements of Information Literacy
Before we get started with the topic, do the activity below:
Optional Activity 2
Optional Activity 2
Stages/Elements of Information Literacy
Time Allotment: 30 mins- 1 hr
Answer the following questions:
Why do you need information?
Sample answers: to be updated with the news, for learning/education purposes, for communication, to acquire knowledge needed for decision-making.
Where do you search for information?
Sample answers: internet, television, library, radio, newspapers, etc.
How do you acquire and store information?
Sample answers: write, print, photocopy, photograph, download, cloud storage, record, external memory drives, memory cards
How will you determine the quality and accuracy of the information that you have?
Sample answers: It should come from a reputable source, such as an institution
How do you use the information that you have?
Sample answers: share, apply, announce, post, archive, reminder, answer a query, clarify confusion
How will you communicate information?
Sample answers: announcement, text, post to social media, face to face session, note, chat, email, save file
Note: you are not required to submit your output in this activity.
Your answers to the activity above make up the Stages/Elements of Information Literacy. These questions can be viewed in this sense as the "stages" that one goes through to become information literate, as well as the "elements" that make up an individual's information literacy. Click here to know more!
C. Media
C. Media
What is Media?
What is Media?
As mentioned by the infographic in the first section, media refers to the physical objects we used to communicate, or the mass communication through physical objects such as radio, television, computers, film, etc.
We can also say that the media is a bearer of pop culture and subliminal messages communicated to a wider audience from the source – be it the government, media corporation, advertising, or entertainment company.
Although media is usually equated to entertainment as a platform to live our fantasies, get lost in fictional worlds and characters, a source of creative inspiration, and a means of escape from the real world, media is not superficially constrained to entertainment alone. It is vital that we study the inner workings of media and know its significant roles in shaping our society and culture to realize its power.
Roles of Media in Our Society (infographic)
Kindly check the Module 1 - Downloadables folder in our course to view the HD version of this infographic.
Evolution of Media (infographic)
Kindly check the Module 1 - Downloadables folder in our course to view the HD version of this infographic.
Philippine Media Landscape (video)
What's the status of Philippine media today as of 2023? Watch this video specially made for this course.
You may jump on specific segments by clicking on the timestamps in the description.
D. Media Literacy
D. Media Literacy
Media Literacy - what does that mean?
Media Literacy - what does that mean?
Imagine you're a detective investigating a crime scene, and the culprit has carefully manipulated the evidence to mislead you. In the world of media, manipulative techniques can be used to shape narratives, influence opinions, and distort facts.
Media literacy is like being an investigative detective. It equips you with the critical thinking skills to spot signs of manipulation, such as biased language, selective editing, or cherry-picked statistics. By analyzing different pieces of evidence and cross-referencing information, you can uncover the truth and make informed judgments, just as a skilled detective unravels the mystery behind the crime.
Nowadays, with the prevalence of multiple media channels and the affordability of modern physical mediums (e.g., Smart TV, VR glasses, wireless and virtual assistant speakers, etc), media becomes more enmeshed in our lives than ever. But does exposure to these media means we are literate enough to see through media sources and messages?
As a result from a 2016 study at Stanford revealed that even students who are media- and tech-savvy fail to critically think and fall short of sagacity in judging the credibility of the media material they saw, especially online (Wineburg et al., 2016).
For instance, 82% of middle school students couldn't tell the difference between sponsored content and real news pieces.
Most high school pupils simply believed what was stated in the captions and didn't bother to look further into the sources of the images they found online.
It is alarming how the media can easily manipulate people.
Thus, Media literacy is more of set of conceptual understandings that teach students how to interpret the barrage of media messages that they are exposed to every day than it is a specific body of knowledge or set of abilities (Buckingham, 2003 in Foundation for Media Alternatives, 2022).
Core Concepts of Media Literacy
Core Concepts of Media Literacy
developed by Center for Media Literacy
1) All media messages are constructed.
Media texts are built just as surely as buildings and highways are built. So, what’s the takeaway from this concept? In decoding messages from the media, you have to ask who constructed the message, what is their possible intention, and what materials they use to produce a certain effect?
Most of the time you need to go beyond the surface level and have a critical mind to answer these questions.
For instance, after seeing a beauty advertisement commercial that claims to give your skin a glass-skin effect in 7 days, you need to ask yourself the following questions:
Q: Who is behind this commercial?
A: The beauty company.
Q: What is their intention?
A: Although it appears that their intention is to help you build confidence and perhaps attract the man/woman of your dreams, their ulterior motive is to sell a new product with impossible claims to rake profits for their company.
Q: Which materials did they use to achieve a certain effect?
A: It might seem that it is the advertised product that gave the commercial model the glass-skin effect. However, it is highly likely that the commercial model has won the genetic lottery or has undergone several beauty treatments and procedures before shooting the advertisement. Also, it is also worth considering that the model’s skin is enhanced by cosmetics, taken under the best studio lighting and angle, and carefully edited in post-production to achieve the desired effect.
2) Media messages are constructed using creative language with its own rules.
Every type of communication has its own creative language. The use of ominous music amplifies the fear factor in scary movies. Camera close-ups and ambient lighting help to portray intimacy in romantic scenes on screen. There are several visual cues and tactics utilized by filmmakers, cinematographers, sound engineers, animators, and directors to convey a specific message and elicit a particular response from the audience. Your awareness of the grammar, syntax, and metaphor used in media language and their difference from real-life languages makes you less prone to manipulation.
3) Different people experience the same media message differently.
Since each audience member brings a unique set of life experiences to the message, audiences have a role in how media messages are interpreted. Age, gender, educational attainment, and cultural upbringing will all provide contrasting views of the same media material. There might be even a case when watching the same movie, series, or TV show ten years apart will make the first or second time one hit differently depending on your maturity and life experiences.
Source: Freepik
Source: HBO Max
4) Media has embedded values and points of view.
Media statements convey a subtext about who and what are important because of how they are formed, at least to the person or individuals who are constructing the message. Values can be "embedded" in a television show, movie, or advertisement through the choosing of a place, a character's age, gender, or race, as well as through the plot's actions. In other words, the media is biased although it appears to be neutral. Modules 3 and 4 will tackle this issue further.
5) Most media messages are organized to gain profit and/or power.
The majority of global media outlets are founded as for-profit businesses. Newspapers and magazines arrange their pages such that the adverts are seen first. Similarly, commercials are always interspersed in the airtime of all TV shows. The Internet has now developed into a global platform where organizations or even non-celebrity people, such as influencers, can advertise a brand. Nowadays, advertisements are getting wittier and smartly incorporated into social media content by creators and influencers (e.g., Tiktok skits of Esnyr and Jomar Yee).
Source: Jolibee Studios
Types of Media
Types of Media
If you took a communications class in the past, it is impossible not to hear about Marshall McLuhan, a Canadian media theorist who gained prominence in his iconic statement that “Medium is the message.”
It simply means that each medium transmits information in a unique manner and that the content is fundamentally shaped by the medium of transmission. For instance, even if television news has the benefit of providing video and live coverage which brings a subject to life more vividly, the way it covers news and conveys information is more fast-paced than other media.
Thus, there is a shallower coverage compared to other mediums. Since a story featured on television is probably going to be flashier, less in-depth, and with less context than a story presented in a monthly magazine, those who watch the news from television may have a different perspective on the subject as compared to the people who heard it from the radio and read it from the newspaper or social media site.
Print Media
media consisting of paper and ink, reproduced in a printing process that is traditionally mechanical.
Example: Books, Magazines, Pamphlets,
Brochures, and Newspaper
Broadcast Media
media that reach target audiences using airwaves as the transmission medium.
Example: Radio, television, films
New Media
content organized and distributed on digital platforms
Example: social media, blogs, websites, online newsletters, and multimedia
Media Convergence (Infographic)
Media Convergence (Infographic)
These forms of media are not mutually exclusive but co-exist, hence the term, media convergence. Modern technologies ushered us into the media convergence age. Ever noticed that what has gone viral on social media gets featured on broadcast media, and vice versa? Moreover, social media influencers collaborate on online content with celebrities and TV personalities.
Here are the definitions of media convergence:
The co-existence of traditional and new media.
The co-existence of print media, broadcast media (radio and television), the Internet, mobile phones, as well as others, allowing media content to flow across various platforms.
The ability to transform different kinds of media into digital code, which is then accessible by a range of devices (e.g., from the personal computer to the mobile phone), thus creating a digital communication environment.
Click here to know more!
Module Summary (Slides)
Module Summary (Slides)
Click the button below to access the interactive slides.
To proceed in the next module
References
References
ASEAN Digital Literacy Program (2022). #Digitalino [Google slides].
Barreiro Jr., V. (2023, January 31). Number 1 in world: Filipinos outrank rest in watching vlogs, playing video games. RAPPLER. https://www.rappler.com/technology/internet-culture/philippines-ranking-time-spent-social-media-digital-2023/
Commission on Higher Education, & Philippine Normal University. (2016). MEDIA AND INFORMATION LITERACY: Teaching Guide for Senior High School. EC-TEC Commercial.
DILG. (2020). Fake News Alert [Tweet]. In Twitter. https://twitter.com/dilgphilippines/status/1291657395215556608
Dollarhide, M. (2021, August 31). Social Media: Definition, Effects, and List of Top Apps. Investopedia. https://www.investopedia.com/terms/s/social-media.asp
Frater, P. (2020, May 5). Philippines Orders Closure of ABS-CBN Country’s Largest Broadcaster. Variety. https://variety.com/2020/biz/asia/philippines-orders-closure-of-abs-cbn-countrys-largest-broadcaster-1234598102/
Grizzle, A., & Singh, J. (2018). Five Laws of Media and Information Literacy [Website Image]. In UNESCO. https://webarchive.unesco.org/20181207154048/http:/www.unesco.org/new/en/communication-and-information/media-development/media-literacy/five-laws-of-mil/
Meltwater, & We Are Social. (2023). 2023 Global Digital Report (p. 63). https://datareportal.com/reports/digital-2023-global-overview-report#:~:text=Digital%202023%3A%20essential%20headlines&text=A%20total%20of%205.44%20billion,over%20the%20past%2012%20months.
Philippine News Agency. (2020). FAKE NEWS ALERT! [Facebook Post]. In Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/pnagovph/photos/a.734179973331112/2907395426009545/?type=3&locale2=de_DE&paipv=0&eav=AfY20vqyOtlP3YpW3RBZxDC0qiKRG7pAPoATwpywTj1KJ1pEHZgyHTRSvhByW1saLsw&_rdr
Robredo, L. (2020). Fake News Alert [Facebook Post]. In Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/283945495056459/posts/a-fake-news-alerthindi-totoong-pinadadagdagan-ni-vp-leni-robredo-ang-mga-taon-sa/2700809830036668/
Social Weather Stations. (2022, February 25). Fourth Quarter 2021 Social Weather Survey: 69% of adult Filipinos say the problem of fake news in media is serious. Social Weather Stations. https://www.sws.org.ph/swsmain/artcldisppage/?artcsyscode=ART-20220225130129&mc_cid=368bdea2b7&mc_eid=1eeee26a57
Statista Research Department. (2022, April). Market share of most popular streaming services in the Philippines as of 1st quarter 2022. Statista.
https://www.statista.com/statistics/1257753/philippines-leading-streaming-services-market-share/
UNESCO. (2022). Media and Information Literate Citizens: Think Critically, Click Wisely! [Explainer Video]. In YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bjYhmTC3lrc
UNESCO Institute for Information Technologies in Educatio. (2022). Media and Information Literacy. UNESCO IITE. https://iite.unesco.org/mil/
University of Minnesota. (2016, March 22). 1.3 The Evolution of Media. Umn.edu; University of Minnesota Libraries Publishing edition, 2016. This edition adapted from a work originally produced in 2010 by a publisher who has requested that it not receive attribution. https://open.lib.umn.edu/mediaandculture/chapter/1-3-the-evolution-of-media/
Wineburg, S., McGrew, S., Breakstone, J., & Ortega, T. (2016). Evaluating Information: The Cornerstone of Civic Online Reasoning [PDF]. In Stanford.edu. https://purl.stanford.edu/fv751yt5934
Page updated
Google Sites
Report abuse