Top Com 250 Ideas Listicle
1. Why media literacy matters
Before the course I had never heard of media literacy. During the first days of the course I was introduced to five critical questions about media literacy. The one I have found the most useful is who is the author and what is the purpose? Knowing the point of view and background of the offer provides valuable insight. During this time we also learned about information overload and other problems with technology from Neil Postman.
2. Children and social media
Media plays a large role in every day life. Many children access and learn from social media regularly. Some use may be beneficial but addiction and constant use can have harmful results. We tracked our own use to see what impact it had on our lives. The results were illuminating and highlighted that mindful use of technology is necessary for all social media users not only children.
3. The role of algorithms
Algorithms are designed for a desired outcome. Social media and search engines use algorithms to engage users in order to sell advertisements. In a time when information equals dollars companies are very interested in knowing everything about their users. This can help them to nudge users to purchase products they may be interested in. Understanding how algorithms work can help us from being influenced by them without knowing.
4. Propaganda is everywhere
Propaganda is used in politics, advertising, and many other places. Understanding when something is propaganda is important. We learned about how things like authority and scarcity are used to persuade and how children are impacted by advertising. This was one of my favorite paths we worked on.
5. When you are the product
When I first started using social media I never considered why I was able to use them for free. I never thought about how they made money. Before COM 250 I understood that media companies make money through advertising to their user base. Breaking it down further and exploring Section 230 and media monopolies was interesting and illuminating. This section changed my outlook on media and its role in society.
6. Characters are powerful
We learned about how characters attract us and hold our attention. Stories can be deeply influencing and help shape the way we view things. We looked at Wall-E and how values and systems are portrayed in the film. This section made me think about characters from shows and movies I have seen and how I related to them and was influenced by them. This is not something I had considered before.
7. Understanding stereotypes
Stereotypes exist and are often pushed through media. Representation is an extremely important aspect of stereotypes. If something is said enough it will eventually become accepted and not questioned. Media and others looking to exercise influence use this and other tactics to promote stereotypes based on race, cultural, gender, and other characteristics.
8. Addiction
During this week we dove deep on addiction and how powerful and prevalent is can be. From fantasy sports to fantasy sex and porn addiction comes in many forms. Limiting social media and screen time is one way to help curb addiction. Children can become addicted and hooked on screens from an early age which can be hard to grow out of.
9. Everyone has their own preferences
Different people like different things. This is true about media which influences our preferences and tastes. We may think we are naturally drawn to certain things but really it was learned behavior through repetition. We learned that “the medium is the message” and about new forms of media. Preferences are important but how we arrive at them may be more important.
10. Collaboration is key
This course taught me collaboration is key for a powerful learning experience. Having group projects and weekly discussions on the message boards made the class more engaging and informative. We formed a hive of sharing and learning that build each week. Going back over some of the paths made me realize how impactful sharing and working together had been.
