Media Literacy in an Age Where Everyone Thinks They Are a Reporter

Workshop Presentation
MyAun Boyd,  Allison LaBrot,  Emily Connelly,  Kali McCroskey,  Kahlan Foland-Hollinger  

This workshop examines how social media journalism, platform sensationalism and media biases affect digital natives’ media literacy and how professionals can contribute to the future of media accuracy from Generation Z’s perspective. Our objectives demonstrate the importance of media literacy in an age of social media reporting, examine the effects of poor media literacy on Generation Z, and provide practical tools to better interpret digital information. With social media growing more pervasive, media literacy is more important than ever to prevent the spread of misinformation which leads to division and disorder in society. This presentation will contribute to media literacy awareness, education, and application by researching the current state of media literacy among digital natives, detrimental societal and personal outcomes resulting from lack of attention to media literacy, and incentives to improve media literacy skills. Our findings have been gathered through focused readings discussing the relevance, outcomes, and methods of achieving media literacy in students and young professionals. Our research will show the value of media literacy training and its impact on Generation Z’s involvement in civic duties, the development of interpersonal social-emotional skills, and the future of a civil democratic society. Our workshop will have our audience engage in social media news practices common to digital natives. With social media as a primary information source for youth, the solution to managing misinformation is not to discourage younger generations from using these sources, but rather to teach them how to interpret social media content accurately.