Engaging with Media Literacy PDF

https://aml.ca/resources/eight-key-concepts- media-literacy/  The media is literally everywhere and it’s almost impossible to ignore.  We also consume so much media that it has a profound impact on how we understand the world around us.  Media literacy is an ability to access, analyze, and...

https://aml.ca/resources/eight-key-concepts- media-literacy/  The media is literally everywhere and it’s almost impossible to ignore.  We also consume so much media that it has a profound impact on how we understand the world around us.  Media literacy is an ability to access, analyze, and evaluate the media. It is also designed to improve our critical thinking skills.  We’ll be learning a lot of terms this unit, but there are three that will always be important:  A Media Text is a product that is communicated through a medium;  An Audience is the group of people that a piece of media is designed for;  An Intended Message represents the ideas, morals, or values that a piece of media is communicating. Eight Key Concepts of Media Literacy | Association for Media Literacy As a class, we will be exploring a wide range of media texts through the lens of 7 key concepts. Each will give us opportunities to understand how the media operates and to learn about deconstruction.  The media does NOT reflect the real world. Instead, they are carefully constructed ideals that are made to feel natural. Every piece of media is also designed to steal your attention and keep you engaged. Media literacy helps us take media texts apart to see how they are made. Media is not: Rather, it is more of a filtered selfie:  Media texts also shape and interpret the world for us. Every news article, TV show, movie, or social media post is influenced by a creators perspectives, choices, and biases. We risk believing in a reality that doesn’t exist when we don’t think critically.  As an audience, we bring our own experiences to every piece of media we consume – including our age, gender, nationality, religion, etc. These experiences can inform our understanding, but they can also leave us vulnerable when we refuse to listen and learn from others.  A vast majority of media texts are produced by a profit-making industry [think Disney]. These companies are more concerned with money and ownership. Media literacy helps us become more aware of capitalism and its impact.  Media texts can also communicate certain values that extend into the lives of an audience. Viewers need to be able to recognize and assess these values - especially when they work to diminish other points of view.  Media texts exist within a political landscape where they are constantly shared, discussed, and sometimes emulated. Everything we know about national politics comes from the media, so it has the power to involve us in social change or deceive us into upholding a status quo.  The way a message is delivered [its form] is tightly linked to what the message actually says [its content]. Different media formats have unique styles and ways of conveying information that shape how the message is received and understood.