chapter 2 - media literacy in the digital age
TRANSCRIPT
5th edition
John V Pavlik & Shawn McIntosh
Chapter 2:Media Literacy in the Digital Age
EDUCATION AND MEDIA
We learn much from our daily and extensive interactions with media content
If media are so pervasive in our lives, why aren’t we studying them in the same way that we study geography or biology?
Educators have recognized a growing need to teach media literacy skills to school-age children, starting as young as kindergarten or elementary school and continuing to high school graduation
WHAT IS MEDIA LITERACY?The process of critically
analyzing media content by considering its particular presentation, its underlying political or social messages, and how media ownership or regulation may affect the type of media content we receive
WHAT MAKES MEDIATED COMMUNICATION DIFFERENT
What we see and hear through mediated communication—the signs, symbols, and words we receive through such things as books, the Web, television and radio—affect us in ways that nonmediated communication does not
Semiotics: The study of signs and symbols Framing: Classify, organize, and interpret things
into certain schema, or frameworks
EARLY CONCERNS OF MEDIA EFFECTS
Public concern about the possible effects of each new medium of mass communication as it has emerged
MEDIA GRAMMAR
Each medium of mass communication presents its
messages uniquely
MEDIA GRAMMAR Print media
Books: Physical dimensions, pictures, size and style of typeface, hardcover or paperback, artwork, spacing between words, page numbering, table of contents, indexes, and chapter headings
Newspapers: Subject sections
Magazines: Sophisticated graphic and design techniques, long-form writing
MEDIA GRAMMARRadio & Recorded
Music Radio: Audio
techniques, including volume changes, multiple audio tracks, actualities, sound effects, and voice-overs
Recorded music: Particular stylistic conventions, including length of song and music format
MEDIA GRAMMAR
Film & TelevisionSophisticated media grammar that
is based on editing, camera angles, lighting, movement, and
sound
MEDIA GRAMMAR
Digital media Media grammar
evolves as our communication devices evolve
Adopted from traditional media forms and created new ways for us to interact with the media
IMPLICATIONS OF COMMERCIAL MEDIA
Economic factors and corporate decisions often influence what is and is not covered in the news and what kind of entertainment is created and shown
IMPLICATIONS OF COMMERCIAL MEDIA
Commercial media debate• Critics of corporate media: Media
companies are not like other companies and play a much greater role in influencing our thinking and behavior; media should be publicly funded
• Proponents of commercial media: Profit motive as a key incentive for media companies to produce quality content that people will want to watch or read
CONCENTRATION OF MEDIA OWNERSHIP
Successful media enterprises have acquired, through purchase or merger, other media enterprises and have become larger in size and scope
Greater concentration of ownership results in less diversity of media voices, and a poorly served public; minority voices and non-mainstream views may be silenced
MEDIA BIAS Media bias: Favoring one
side or another with greater and/or more favorable coverage
Bias occurs across media: News: More/less time on
particular stories, language used in coverage; strive for fair and balanced
Entertainment: Propagating stereotypes and normalizing or demonizing certain types of behaviors
DEVELOPING CRITICAL MEDIA LITERACY SKILLS
Assumption that the public is largely passive; media literacy skills help us become better media consumers and producers as we learn to think critically about various media.
DEVELOPING CRITICAL MEDIA LITERACY SKILLS
Guide to think critically about the media: What is the purpose of the media content? Consider the source of the media Examine framing of media content What stereotypes are presented? Question the media ecosystem Make the media