The case for media literacy curriculum

When people think of health issues, they may think of heart disease or cancer.

The World Health Organization also warns the public of another health issue that we might have never thought of.

Misinformation.

According to the World Health Organization, misinformation and “infodemics” are a major threat to the health of people, as misinformation can lead to poor health decisions and even harm people’s mental health.

In 2022 the WHO found that misinformation was causing people to make poor health decisions, such as not get vaccinated or take medicines made for horses.

Misinformation also reflects in our media. When groups are misrepresented on television, stereotypes can be pushed that harm communities and raise violence against these communities, according to Nielson.

How does society combat this “infodemic?” The answer to this rests in our education curriculum.

Teaching media literacy is a key factor in combating the spread of misinformation.

Media literacy is defined as an educational approach that focuses on, “providing a framework access, analyze, evaluate, create and participate with messages in a variety of forms – from print to video to the internet,” according to the Center for Media Literacy.

These skills allow for citizens of a democracy to stay informed, and be able to not just critically analyze any media placed before them, but also be able to express oneself in an educated manner.

Media is all around us and can influence our everyday lives, Martina Baldwin, a professor of cinema and television arts at Cal State Fullerton, said.

Baldwin, who holds a doctorate of communication and media studies, is a strong advocate of media literacy playing a key part in modern democracy.

“Media literacy has a really big role to play in our democracy,” Baldwin said. “I think that there’s a danger in believing that media are dangerous, media are fake. That’s the beginning stages of fascism.”

Not only will media literacy help students be informed democratic citizens, but it can also help marginalized communities with representation in media, Baldwin said.

“Media literacy helps us to understand the need for [unstereotyped] representation,” Baldwin said.

On representation, it is important to note that misrepresentation of marginalized communities is another major threat to a civil society.

“Representation is important because everyone deserves to feel important,” Miya Williams Fayne, a professor of communications at Cal State Fullerton, said.

For some people in our country, especially those in isolated regions, what they see or hear on television or in media is sometimes their only exposure to certain communities, whether that be communities of color or the LGBT+ community, Fayne said.

Fayne, who holds a doctorate of media, technology and society, says that misrepresentation is a systemic issue, and has been an issue since our earliest civilizations.

“There is certainly a historical precedent for giving preferences to certain groups,” Fayne said. “That carries over into a lot of different industries.”

When media perpetuates these preferences to certain groups, whether it be in news, television, or other forms of media, people can get hurt.

According to the Washington Post, white supremacist rhetoric online can lead to increased violence in real life; and these online numbers are growing.

Hate speech rose by 20% over the pandemic, according to the BBC.

Media literacy is connected to major societal beliefs and movements, including hateful actions such as anti-trans laws being passed in the United States, Baldwin said. Media illiteracy can cause people to make uneducated choices at the voting booth, which is then connected to hateful policy being enacted in the country.

With this, it is important to note media literacy’s role in having an informed public. Currently, there is no federal mandate for media literacy education. New Jersey is currently the only state that requires media literacy to be taught in schools.

Tamara Rodriguez-Kam, a high school English teacher, said she believes media illiteracy is an issue in K-12 schools.

Misinformation is going to impact student bias and knowledge, which will be problematic when they get into college or wherever their next steps are, Rodriguez-Kam said. Students are frequently citing unverified articles, and treating the first page of Google as the absolute truth, she said.

Today’s students have grown up in a different world. They’re digital natives, and have not known life without a computer. This makes the teaching of media literacy to kids even more important, and even more urgent.

“Even at the kindergarten level, they are getting iPads, and they’re having access to different programs and technology,” Rodriguez-Kam said. “What a dangerous world if you don’t have a parent or a teacher or somebody who’s teaching you to navigate that at that age.”

Nowadays, children often have access to technology before they can even read. With this rise of misinformation, it is important that these children learn to navigate technology and media in a way that will make them informed citizens.

“Just like anything else, you don’t want [children] engaging with a skateboard before they learn how to ride it,” Baldwin said. “You don’t want them to just start driving a car, they need to learn how cars work, right?”

Educators like Rodriguez-Kam agree that media literacy should be taught in schools. Everybody is a consumer of media, and should know how to navigate the media around them; whether it be news, entertainment, or advertising.

The implementation of media literacy can be put in place by teaching students how to validate their sources, Rodriguez-Kam said. Analyzation of media and who produces media is another important factor in teaching media literacy.

The support for this is strong, and educators are driven by the desire to keep our democracy healthy.

So, should media literacy be taught in schools? Baldwin has an answer for that.

“Hell yeah.”