WEEK 10 – Why Media Literacy matters in your PLN

Media literacy is “the ability or skills to critically analyze for accuracy, credibility, or evidence of bias the content created and consumed in various media, including radio and television, the internet, and social media” (Dictionary.com, n.d.).
As digital natives in a ‘knowledge economy’ that is increasingly dependent on technology, it is more important than ever in school, that students “acquire the skills to appropriately access, evaluate, use, manage, and add to the wealth of information and media [at their] fingertips” (Fadel & Trilling, 2009) from very early on. Having media literacy skills can facilitate processes of inquiry and learning, networking and communication, and self-expression.

Too often, however, “we tend to be more interested in what we believe than in what is true” (Smith, 2021). “We rarely hear messages we disagree with by choice and by design” (Smith, 2021). And with much of our news being delivered using a ‘pull’ style of communication (Smith, 2021), it is easy to only view, listen to, and read sources that affirm our point of view, when we are in control of which news sources we subscribe to.

A lack of media literacy is a lack of critical thinking in the context of one’s media consumption. Such a lack of critical thinking is what can often propagate misinformation in the media. In recent times, we have been seeing the effects of this in the misinformation that has been spread about COVID-19. 96% of Canadians who use the internet to learn about COVID-19 found information online they suspected was misleading, false, or inaccurate (Garneau & Zossou, 2021). 53% of Canadians have shared COVID-19 information without knowing if it was accurate (Garneau & Zossou, 2021), and just 36% of Canadians bothered to verify this information ‘sometimes’ or ‘rarely’ (Garneau & Zossou, 2021). One thing that likely contributes to this problem is that a lot of the time articles can be reposted without individuals necessarily having read the entire article. Individuals may also be more likely to trust information that has been ‘reposted’ by friends and family. In addition, sources that are written using language that is more accessible to the public are more likely to grab attention and be reposted, rather than sources such as ‘Nature’, for example. Many do not see misinformation as having the potential to be dangerous, however especially in the context of a public health crisis such as this one, misinformation certainly can be. For example, with the advent of news correlating rare blood clots to the AstraZeneca vaccine, confidence in the AstraZeneca vaccine has plummeted (Kelland, 2021). Due to this news, many now have concerns relating to the safety of COVID-19 vaccines in general. Public perception of vaccines being damaged is very troubling when we consider how large a proportion of the world’s population must be vaccinated in order for the world to return to ‘normal. One important consideration that has not been as sensationalized is how much more dangerous COVID-19 can be for those with pre-existing health conditions. A high-risk individual with a condition such as diabetes or hypertension, therefore, if they were to fall victim to the news that has been circulating about the ‘dangers of vaccines, may not opt to receive the vaccine and would remain susceptible to contracting COVID-19, which would, in fact, be more dangerous to them than an individual without any pre-existing health conditions.

It is still important however to have a variety of viewpoints but overall the factual consensus in one’s PLN. For example, due to the widespread concern around the AstraZeneca vaccine’s safety, scientists were able to do their due diligence by investigating the possible causal connection between rare blood clots and the vaccine. Although it was found that the vaccine played no causal role (CBC, 2021), it still would have been good information to be aware of, had blood clots indeed have been an extremely rare side effect of the vaccine. Having contrasting viewpoints as well as having debates and discourse around these ideas serves an important role in our pursuit of the truth. There is an inherent bias in the immediate dismissal of ideas from others that we may not necessarily buy into.

Having a PLN that values media literacy is a good way of ensuring that the information and sources that you choose to read from are diverse, well-curated, and properly vetted. When this is not the case, as, with the misinformation about COVID-19 that has been widely disseminated, it can cause widespread and unjustified anxiety, fear, and an unconstructive lack of trust in institutions that are designed to have our best interests at heart (e.g. the Ministry of Health, or the Canadian Government), as well as in each other.

References
CBC. AstraZeneca says U.S. trial data shows 79% efficacy against symptomatic COVID-19. 22 March 2021. Web. 22 March 2021.

Dictionary.com. Media Literacy. n.d. Web. 20 March 2021.
EDCI 338 (2020, Nov 1). A01 Smith, Julie [Video file]. Retrieved from YouTube, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z_T9RghwJlI&feature=youtu.be

Garneau, Karine and Clémence Zossou. Misinformation during the COVID-19 pandemic. 2 February 2021. Web. 21 March 2021.

Fadel, C. & Trilling, B. (2012). Digital Literacy Skills. In 21st century skills: Learning for life in our times. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.