Critical Strikes on Digital Literacy
The age of digital media has become synonymous with the age of information due to how it has increased the speed of as well as the amount of information the average person intakes every day. Living with the constant bombardment of information is something that adults are having to adapt to while students have known nothing other than this infinite stream of data. Being embroiled in this digital information stream from a young age, it is important for students to understand the ways they should critically view the information presented to them. David Buckingham describes the need for critical interpretations of digital media when he explains that information “is inevitably related to the question of who owns and controls information, and the means by which it is generated and distributed” (45). Teaching students to critically analyze digital media with this in mind will allow them select valid resources when crafting arguments, both formally and informally.
Possibly the most important skill a person, especially a student, can have when using digital media is the ability to spot “fake news”. The Cambridge Dictionary defines “fake news” as “false stories that appears to be news, spread on the internet or using other media, usually created to influence political views or as a joke”. Being able to identify fake news is of paramount importance because taking fake news as truth usually results in the spreading of false reports that could sway peoples’ personal opinions. Furthermore, fake news is often used in the political arena to sway the opinions of the masses. This can be dangerous as it can actually effect elections, with many voters being persuaded to vote for one candidate based off of false information. Below you can see the ways to avoid falling victim to fake news.
While a lack of critical literacy regarding digital media can effect serious, real life events, it can also make students seem foolish in their essays as well as in their daily social interactions. For example, if a student was asked to write an essay describing their favorite animal and one were to select the Loch Ness Monster, they would be able to find false evidence that it exists and may be able to craft an excellent essay based off the fake news they acquired.
However, it would be hard for the student to pass considering that none of what they wrote would be based in fact. Additionally, there are many times I have been unable to decipher whether a source was fake news or not and cited it in a discussion with a friend, only to find out later I was completely wrong. Sadly, below is the video detailing the fake news I foolishly believed.
Students should view all digital media with an extremely critical lens in order to ascertain the legitimacy of information and sources both presented and viewed by them. If students fail to be equipped with the tools that allow them to find and use valid texts, it will soon become impossible to separate real news from fake news. Arguments and discussions would devolve into ridiculous claims that may be supported by a random, untrustworthy source. In a time where “youth spend more time online than ever before”, it is our generations job to make sure the new generations do not fall prey to fake news (Warner 145).
Course Resources:
Buckingham, David. “Digital Media Literacies: Rethinking Media Education in the Age of the Internet.” Research in Comparative and International Education, vol. 2, no. 1, 2007, pp. 43–55., doi:10.2304/rcie.2007.2.1.43.
Warner, Julie. “Adolescents’ New Literacies with and through Mobile Phones.” 2017, doi:10.3726/b11221.
Outside Resources:
“Fake News.” Cambridge Dictionary. https://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/fake-news
Lenton, Josiah. “The Importance of Critical Literacy in the Digital Age.” 26 Dec. 2016. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HLORg09yknU
