Article by LABC
The expression “Media literacy” refers to the set of technical, cognitive, social, civic, cultural and creative skills that enable users to access media, and to understand and critically evaluate their content. This definition dates back to the European Commission’s “Media Literacy Expert Group” (MLEG), which in June 2018, based on a survey of EU citizens, stressed the “need to intensify efforts to increase media literacy at all levels” and the consequent importance of a focussed training aimed at supporting an informed ability to use messages distributed by the media among adults.
If this importance has already been recognised back then, today, taking into account the social, cultural and economic changes brought by the Covid-19 Pandemic and the increasing consciousness of the serious consequences that misinformation can bring to the transmission of health-related news, it is even more fundamental.
Considering the current overabundance of available sources, information and media literacy skills are definitely essential: they help users to analyse and filter information from multiple perspectives, to develop critical thinking, and consequently to participate in economic and social life, playing an active and conscious role in democratic processes.
By developing these skills we would be able to recognise fake news at an early stage and to limit the risks associated with phenomena such as misinformation, manipulation and information disorder. We may also be able to understand the reasons why certain news are more frequently featured on specific social media or internet pages, and to evaluate more critically the content of advertisements circulating on the web and in traditional media.
Media literacy and related skills are the main topic of IMEDIAL project: one of its main objectives is to develop the media literacy skills and competences of adult learners and educators (especially those working with disadvantaged students), in order to fight phenomena such as misinformation, fake news and cyberbullying.