Quote: "By applying cross-disciplinary literacy skills and systematically using the “Seven Powers,” we can help students see their own power as future voters in our democratic society (Abilock)."
Response: People today are deluged with information from a variety of media sources. Thirty years ago it was easier to sort out the amateurs from the professionals; the media also held itself to a higher ethical standard of reporting. However, the news today is based more about subjectivity rather than objectivity. Operating under the premise, "He or she who spins news the fastest gets it out to the mostest" improves the odds that news heard first is accepted as truth. What is frightening about this is that voters make decisions at the polls based on information that they have. If voters do not discern well between truth, spin and fabrication, then the wrong lawmakers may be put in office. Therefore, it is critical that we teach students the ability to analyze outputs from the media so they can make the best decision based on good information. One of the goals of media literacy should be to foster citizenship by developing future saavy voters.
Abilock, D. (2003, November). A Seven-Power Lens on 21st-Century Literacy. MultiMedia Schools, 10(5), 30-35. Retrieved September 29, 2011
Abilock, D. (2003, November). A Seven-Power Lens on 21st-Century Literacy. MultiMedia Schools, 10(5), 30-35. Retrieved September 29, 2011
Related Article: Twitter Isn't Journalism
De Monte, Michael. Bloomberg Businessweek. Bloomberg.com, Feb. 2011. Web. 2 Oct. 2011. <http://www.businessweek.com/debateroom/archives/2011/02/twitter_isnt_journalism.html>.
I totally agree with you. I took it the same way you did. Its going to be tough to make our youth see the true meaning behind how the media spins news. Great post.
ReplyDeleteYou make a good point. We can't even always trust the news, that is supposed to "inform" us of what's going on. We read one thing in the newspaper on one day, and hear the exact opposite on the news that same afternoon.
ReplyDeleteIts true you can't always trust the news and some people do. Some people will believe anything that people will tell them if they give the slightest bit of evidence to prove a point whether the evidence is true or false. Politics is one of the areas you need to look at closely before just believing what the media tells you to believe. Great post!
ReplyDeleteGreat comment in reference to fostering citizenship and creating saavy voters.
ReplyDelete