Before the internet, media literacy may have been a thing, but it certainly wasn’t an issue that would be deemed important by very many people in society. The world of news and media was very different from what it is today, most articles published in newspapers were well-researched and most television news segments were thoroughly vetted before reaching the viewers at home.
In today’s world, media operates on a different level, stories are produced and aired much more quickly than in the past as journalists and newscasters try to fill the 24-hour void that we have created for news in today’s society. It’s all about who is the first to report, rather than accuracy.
Add to that the explosion of internet reporting where anyone can write and post an article, where the success of that article depends on how many people share it rather than whether or not it is published by a well-known news agency, and the world of fake news is born.
While I agree that the fake news phenomenon is a huge problem, I don’t believe that it is necessarily born of malice. I don’t think everyone publishing “fake news” does so with the intention of influencing people to make decisions by spreading falsehoods. Rather, I think it has to do with the rise in “opinion” pieces being published and consumed by people who agree with the stance of the author, and the increased speed with which our media operates under today, reducing the focus on fact-checking and promotion of a non-biased point of view in exchange for a need to produce a piece on a story while it is still relevant. Topics don’t trend for long in our world today, and there is intense pressure to produce commentary on a story before it flits away from the collective’s attention.
Realistically, the truth is usually somewhere in the middle, and it takes some digging to figure out what is really going on.
At this point, it is highly unlikely that the way in which we report and consume the news as a society is going to change anytime soon. We are addicted to fast, consumable news and media outlets are forced to adapt to this system or die. A better solution to the problem would be to start teaching and promoting media literacy skills in society.
What is media literacy?
According to the Media Literacy Project, “media literacy is the ability to access, analyze, evaluate, and create media. Media literate youth and adults are better able to understand the complex messages we receive from television, radio, Internet, newspapers, magazines, books, billboards, video games, music, and all other forms of media.” Basically, it is the ability to know how to determine the truthfulness behind what you are reading or hearing from the media.
For example, what do you do when you read an article in your news feed that disparages President Trump for not doing enough to help victims in Puerto Rico, and another friend shares a meme that outlines all the things he has done, including donating some of his own money to victims? Do you know how to determine the truth?
It is easy to share an article that you agree with, but ensuring that the article is factual, comprehensive, truthful, and fair to both sides of the argument is a lot more work.
Realistically, the truth is usually somewhere in the middle, and it takes some digging to figure out what is really going on. Rarely do sources publish outright lies, the manipulation of news is done more discreetly, by changing a few words in a sentence, or omitting a key fact that doesn’t agree with the version of the story that the author wants the readers to have.
It is easy to share an article that you agree with, but ensuring that the article is factual, comprehensive, truthful, and fair to both sides of the argument is a lot more work. Media literacy should become a required course in high school and college, and resources to teach media literacy to adults should be widely promoted and accessible to all.
That is how we will really fight the fake news problem, by teaching people how to determine the validity of what they are reading. Media literacy is becoming increasingly important in society today, in a world where news is shared quickly and spontaneously, based more on the emotion it elicits than the truthfulness behind it.
