Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to mourn the death of media literacy, a friend who will be dearly missed. The cause of death is believed to be homicide. According to insider intel, the prime suspect is social media.
Everything we say and do has meaning. However, the meaning behind what has been communicated is not always complex; for example, the colour red is often associated with blood, love, anger, etc. According to Very Well Mind, media literacy is defined as “the ability to apply critical thinking skills to the messages, signs, and symbols transmitted through mass media”.
The 21st century has brought an explosion in technology and, with it, an increase in the accessibility of information. The advent of social media hinted at media literacy’s impending doom. Most people spend several hours on different media platforms each day, but how many of us actually dissect or question the things we see? Social media platforms use algorithms that, for the most part, give us the content we are most likely to engage with. How does this affect the way we engage with this content, since we usually have no cause to argue against what we consume or think about it in a meaningful way?
Consider the satirical Amazon Prime series The Boys, which provides a realistic perspective of what life would be like living with superheroes. It satirises conservatism, far-right politics, police brutality and corporate corruption. Furthermore, the show explores and creates analogies based on topics such as white supremacy and systemic racism, and it has likened one of its villains, Homelander, to former US president Donald Trump. However, there is a large community on the internet that views Homelander as a misunderstood anti-hero even though his character can be interpreted as an evil version of Superman.
The existence of social media platforms makes it possible for different people with different opinions who watch The Boys to make their opinions widely known. Because of the way in which social media works, other people who are likely to agree with that interpretation will see it, and engage with it in the form of views, likes and comments. This will then put it on the screen of someone who does not know anything about the show. Since these individuals do not know the show, they accept that opinion and watch the show through that biased lens. These biases cause the individual to twist the narrative to better fit what they believe in, and suddenly Homelander is no longer an analogy for white supremacy or a representation of a larger evil, but instead he is perceived as a victimised, misunderstood anti-hero.
Gen Z consumes the most media as compared to any of the previous generations. According to Common Sense Media, being media literate in this current age will help you communicate effectively, think critically, and recognise other perspectives.
Tips to improve media literacy:
- Check the sources, who created what you are watching or reading and why? Ask yourself, what was the intention in creating this work? Who was this made for and how is that shown? Is this biased? What is being included and what is being left out and why? Be aware of any internal biases you might hold and be aware of the media’s agenda.
- Check in with yourself. Ask yourself how this piece of media makes you feel and why it makes you feel that way. Algorithms are largely built on your interests, preferences and viewing history and understanding that can change the way we interact with media, both online and in real life.
- Learn to search for misinformation by fact-checking information and keep educating yourself to differentiate facts from misinformation.. Understand that your existence on social media is most likely curated to you so the things you see are not necessarily right nor are they the only opinion. They are what the algorithm believes you will like.
Amanda Wicks of the University of North Carolina wrote, “Sophisticated algorithms have changed the landscape of the internet, making media literacy a skill that needs to be constantly sharpened.” If we work hard enough to improve our skills, we may resurrect Media Literacy.
