and subjected himself to this sensory overload in an experiment to verify whether we are truly better informed than previous generations. He concluded that without the “why” of news (also known as putting the story in context), he was less well‐informed than if he hadn’t watched TV at all.
Since then, it seems that the issues outlined by McKibben have worsened. News literacy gives us the tools to make sure that if information is hidden, we can know how to find it and why it may have been hidden in the first place.
From the late nineteenth century through 2008, the City News Bureau was an essential part of Chicago's local news landscape. It was the legendary basis for all the news that found its way into Chicago newspapers, radio, and television newscasts. It even had its own motto: “If your mother says she loves you, check it out!”
A motto for all journalists and news consumers, especially these days…
The Promises and Dangers of the Internet
That's because of this relatively new invention, called the Internet – the global network of networks that is accessed via the World Wide Web.
It is hard to imagine a time when we were not as closely‐linked to all things online as we are now. The rapid changes in the digital world are constant, and we need to develop a good grasp of what is bombarding us on a moment‐by‐moment basis. Essential in this process is a more nimble (and more water‐proof) craft to help us navigate these informational rapids!
In fact, it wasn't until US President George W. Bush left office in 2008 and President Barack Obama took office that the informational landscape was shaken up and changed forever by the arrival of mobile applications – known as “apps” – like Facebook, Twitter, and Snapchat. Apps are downloadable programs designed originally for use on mobile phones.
Email once seemed like the ultimate and essential communication platform when it burst onto the scene in the mid‐1990s. But it is now, for many people, completely outmoded. Younger media consumers prefer to text using completely different platforms and apps, thus avoiding email entirely.
As a result of this digital transfusion, we are now in an era where we may try our best to stay tuned into, keep on top of, and make sense of the world. But this often eludes many of us. Our feeble attempts to know what's going on at all times has been compared to trying to take a sip of water from a fire hose! There is even an acronym for this state of “information anxiety”: FOMO – fear of missing out!
Complicating this is the insertion of an inevitable commercial presence into the Internet. Opportunities for monetizing the Internet abound. Digital giants such as the “Big Five” – Facebook, Apple, Amazon, Microsoft, and Google – are now able to keep tabs on what we view, download, and share. Any time we download another app or computer game or order something online, the server on whose site we are doing this knows what we have done. That information is harvested and sold to others who want to know what interests us. We will look more closely at the influence of the “Big Five” in Chapter 8.
We are complicit in this, in part because we have little choice. We want access to the information. But in clicking “I agree” on a site, we surrender and tacitly agree to give to these giants knowledge about ourselves, along with our buying and viewing habits, in exchange for access to the Web. This information is known as metadata.
This metadata is efficiently gathered and analyzed by tech companies. It allows the companies to track our patterns so that our digital lives become known, even transparent. This information can be sold or shared with other commercial and governmental interests – so our presence on the Web now has monetary value. It is another nail in the coffin of the concept of a private life. Every time we go online, send a message, or purchase something on the Internet, there is a media organization that knows all about us, our needs, and our presence in the marketplace. For most people, this seems like a reasonable exchange. So far. But increasingly, doubts are emerging, and the role of these giant Internet companies is being questioned, especially by European regulators.
This is becoming a more complicated bargain for many people: is it worth allowing Google to know what we do online in exchange for having a Gmail account? Most people would still say “yes.” Others are increasingly questioning whether we have traded away too much. But the Internet cannot be “un‐invented,” and we need to learn to use our access to information wisely.
That is another aspect of news literacy.
Why News Literacy Now?
News literacy is about regaining some of the advantages we have as citizens and as news consumers. To use a sports metaphor, it is about playing “offense” and “defense” at the same time in what is an increasingly rough sport. News literacy is about simply being aware of the pressures and prospects that the digital environment delivers.
As such, we need to apply our best critical thinking to everything we see, read, and hear in the media. In the digital age, it's no longer enough to let the tsunami of information wash over us. In effect, we will drown in what's called “TMI” – too much information. We need to have access to the media to know what is happening in order to make informed choices about the events – small and great – that affect our lives. And we need to be aware of the tradeoffs that access implies. So we need a better set of filters to handle it all.
News literacy gives us the tools to handle digital information more effectively.
To begin with, we also need to ask some tough questions about the information we are consuming, such as: What can I conclude from this news report? Is there anything in it worth keeping in mind, or can I just move on? Am I getting the truth or getting close to what might be considered the truth? Or am I being “spun” and manipulated? In the digital age, we need to be more careful without becoming unduly paranoid!
One important advantage (among many) of the digital era is that it gives us the tools to do a proper analysis … to dig deeper into what we are being told. These tools allow YOU, as the consumer of all this information, to really be in charge of the information flow.
This book will help you navigate these tools so you can determine what information is reliable and what is not – and why it is not.
News literacy is also about us, personally; it is about our reputations as citizens, as journalists, and as citizen‐journalists. None of us wants to be known as someone who has passed along faulty or misleading information. We want (and expect) to be considered among the fully engaged, intelligent, and informed citizenry, pushing our leaders to do what's right and what's smart.
News literacy is having the critical thinking skills to judge reliability and credibility in news reports, no matter where they originate in print, broadcast, online, or social media. It is about taking back control in a complex environment.
What Is “Reliable” Information?
At a time when public opinion polls say the public has less trust in media in general and in the news in particular, who are we to trust and what are we to believe?
The proliferation of social media has had the effect of giving a voice to the voiceless. But that's not how it began.
The proliferation of available information provided by traditional media, digital platforms, and their availability on “apps” has transformed our media landscape. Apps have changed the way we live, in many ways for the better. But there are, as with all new technologies,
