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What Is Media Literacy

Media literacy is defined as the ability to access, analyze, evaluate, and create media in various forms. It provides a framework for understanding the role of media in society and developing critical thinking skills. Media literacy is important for citizenship in the 21st century, as media permeates culture. It teaches people to thoughtfully analyze messages rather than passively accept their interpretation. By learning to ask the right questions about media, individuals can gain critical autonomy over what they see and hear.

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401 views3 pages

What Is Media Literacy

Media literacy is defined as the ability to access, analyze, evaluate, and create media in various forms. It provides a framework for understanding the role of media in society and developing critical thinking skills. Media literacy is important for citizenship in the 21st century, as media permeates culture. It teaches people to thoughtfully analyze messages rather than passively accept their interpretation. By learning to ask the right questions about media, individuals can gain critical autonomy over what they see and hear.

Uploaded by

Velle Selleen
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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What is Media Literacy? A Definition...and More.

CML's definition focuses media literacy


as education for 21st century.

The definition most often cited in the US is a succinct sentence


hammered out by participants at the 1992 Aspen Media Literacy
Leadership Institute:
…
the ability to access, analyze, evaluate and create media in a
variety of forms.
Definitions, however, evolve over time and a more robust
definition is now needed to situate media literacy in the context of
its importance for the education of students in a 21st century
media culture. CML uses this expanded definition:

• Media Literacy is a 21st century approach to education.

• It provides a framework to access, analyze, evaluate and


create messages in a variety of forms - from print to video to
the Internet.

• Media literacy builds an understanding of the role of media


in society as well as essential skills of inquiry and self-
expression necessary for citizens of a democracy.

What is important to understand is that media literacy is not about


"protecting" kids from unwanted messages. Although some
groups urge families to just turn the TV off, the fact is, media are
so ingrained in our cultural milieu that even if you turn off the set,
you still cannot escape today's media culture. Media no longer
just influence our culture. They ARE our culture.
Media literacy, therefore, is about helping students become
competent, critical and literate in all media forms so that they
control the interpretation of what they see or hear rather than
letting the interpretation control them.

To become media literate is not to memorize facts or statistics


about the media, but rather to learn to raise the right questions
about what you are watching, reading or listening to. Len
Masterman, the acclaimed author of Teaching the Media, calls it
"critical autonomy" or the ability to think for oneself.
Without this fundamental ability, an individual cannot have full
dignity as a human person or exercise citizenship in a democratic
society where to be a citizen is to both understand and contribute
to the debates of the time.

from Literacy in a Media Age: An Overview and Orientation


Guide to Media LIteracy Education

Now that we know what media literacy is and how it is ingrained


into our lives, let's talk about how we, as the consumers, can
decipher all the messages being sent our way. There are five key
questions to ask of any media:

1. Who created the message that is being sent?


2. What techniques were used to attract my attention?
3. How might other people understand or interpret this message
differently from me?
4. Are there any lifestyles, values or points of view that are not
represented or are omitted from this message?
5. Why was this message sent?

By asking these 5 simple questions, you have empowered yourself


with media literacy! If you have the necessary awareness of the
media, you can analyze the media, reflect on it, and then take action
if you decide.
Let's put this to practice and decipher a message. Consider the
following advertisement:

In many cases it only takes asking the right questions to get to the
heart of the matter.
Let's begin:

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