What Is Media Literacy and Why It’s Crucial in Today’s Digital Age?
In this technological era where technology has answers to almost all our questions, information plays a very big role. We have numerous mediums through which we constantly come to know something or the other. We listen to this information, speak the same, and spread it as well.
This is a time where there is no limit to what information can be. Everyone has the means to create and spread information, and in such a situation, many questions arise.
If people have something, how do they use it? How accurate is the information people are spreading? How wisely are they thinking about it? Is there a need to set some boundaries for it? Because today everyone has a phone in hand, and not everyone has studied journalism, yet more than half the people are doing this work without any formal education in journalism or media. So, is there a need for education in this as well? That’s where the topic of media literacy comes in. So let’s understand it a bit more deeply.
What is Media Literacy?
When we talk about media literacy, this subject is connected to our freedom of expression—the freedom to present ourselves, what we think, what we speak, and what we do, and how and in what manner we do all this.
How do we present any information to others in a civilized manner, without any bias? I believe this is the best definition of media literacy.
In reality, media literacy is the ‘sense to judge the information’, how accurately we are able to judge any information, and how accurately we can present it to others.
How to Judge the Information?
Today, many people working in journalism or the media industry who call themselves professionals—and I’m not talking about those doing mobile journalism, but those working in TV journalism—don’t even know how to judge information properly.
We should try to catch the intricacies of any information. We should listen to all the sides involved, focus on different resources, and try to avoid giving personal opinions. Instead, we should tell what different sides think about the issue.
Here are some important points to understand:
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We should avoid such subjects which are untouchable or mostly emotional—topics related to God or religion—and avoid taking sides. These issues never allow the main topic to surface.
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Avoid bias. Many times, we can be biased toward a person, object, or subject. So it is important to use our wisdom.
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As a journalist or media person, one should not fear apologizing. In fact, it makes you and your institution more responsible.
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Many times in journalism, you will feel that something other than the task is more important—that is, a moral responsibility. So do that. It’s not right to keep filming someone dying and ignore your duty as a human.
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Good judgment, flexibility, and common sense can make you a good media person.
Why Does Media Literacy Matter Today?
The simple answer is that it's not just about a particular institution where some people are working as journalists or media professionals. It is a person-to-person subject. Today, everyone is a walking box of information.
So whom to trust, what to believe, what is right and what is wrong—knowing and understanding all this requires media literacy.
Conclusion
For a clean, clear, and correct flow of information, media literacy is essential.
Just like when something increases excessively, like a flood, we adopt certain methods to control it—similarly, today information is like a flood.
Countless things are being spread which are of no use or which try to mislead society. Therefore, to know what is right and to identify it, media literacy is important.
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Written by Ritik Dwivedi, a mass communication student interested in journalism, media studies, politics, psychology, and social issues. Through The Peepal Tree, he explores case studies related to media, society, and human behavior.
