Abstract Media literacy is considered to be an integral skill for personal, professional, social, and political action in the 21st century. However, what constitutes media literacy itself and the manner by which media literacy education is taught, received, and measured continues to be ardently debated amongst scholars and practitioners. Moreover, the new educational … [Read more...] about At the Digital Frontiers: Extending Media Literacy through Media Ecology
Media Literacy
Media Literacy in the Ecosystem: After McLuhan
Abstract This essay makes the case for media literacy as an essential element in the health of the communication ecosystem and reappraises McLuhan's contribution for the post-digital media literacy field. In motivating a global media literacy mapping with a theory of change (McDougall, 2025), for this special issue, the essay shows how media literacy makes a difference … [Read more...] about Media Literacy in the Ecosystem: After McLuhan
“Making the familiar strange again”: media effects, knowledge construction, and media literacy in the age of artificial intelligence.
Abstract In an era where media technologies, from legacy broadcast to social networks and generative AI, pervade everyday life, the once-invisible media environment demands renewed scrutiny. This article re-examines media effects and knowledge construction through a critical lens that “makes the familiar strange again.” Drawing on media ecology, constructivist epistemology, … [Read more...] about “Making the familiar strange again”: media effects, knowledge construction, and media literacy in the age of artificial intelligence.
Talking with Fish: An Arts-based Retrospective of Media Literacy in Teacher Identity and Pedagogy
Abstract “We don't know who discovered water, but we know it wasn't a fish.” This adage, long attributed to media scholar Marshall McLuhan, invites us to consider worlds shaped by media as invisible environments. Fully immersed from dawn to dusk, we may struggle to identify or clarify the boundaries between the physical and the digital. In media literacy, we employ McLuhan's … [Read more...] about Talking with Fish: An Arts-based Retrospective of Media Literacy in Teacher Identity and Pedagogy
Media Literacy Education For Survival In An Algorithmic Age
Abstract Over the last decade, we have entered a new technological epoch characterised by social media platforms, algorithmic curation, and artificial intelligence. Media literacy has become a prerequisite for survival rather than an optional educational enrichment. Drawing on Marshall McLuhan’s foundational insights, this article argues that while McLuhan’s broadcast-era … [Read more...] about Media Literacy Education For Survival In An Algorithmic Age
Designing for Digital Wellbeing with Teens: Participatory Co-Design Workshops to Explore Youth-Centered Platform Concepts
Abstract Digital well-being is increasingly recognized not only as a matter of individual self-control but also as a structural condition shaped by the design of digital platforms. This paper presents findings from participatory co-design workshops with Hungarian high school students (n = 89), in which inquiry-based and design-thinking methodologies were mobilized to … [Read more...] about Designing for Digital Wellbeing with Teens: Participatory Co-Design Workshops to Explore Youth-Centered Platform Concepts
I Read It Online: Teen News Literacy and Institutional Distrust
Why it’s important to help teenagers navigate the online news landscape. Reposted with permission from the Ramos Research Institute Recently, I was scrolling through my social media feed and stumbled across something I could only describe as performance art. A user shared their outrage over the fact that the inventor of Sudoku, a woman named Susan Doku, was outed as a … [Read more...] about I Read It Online: Teen News Literacy and Institutional Distrust
Doctoral Summer School – Research on Digital, Media and Information Literacy
Context As our daily lives are increasingly shaped by digital, informational, and media environments, it has become common to understand these environments through the lens of the corresponding new literacies that people are expected to mobilize in order to navigate the social world. In this context, literacies are increasingly under pressure. The calls for … [Read more...] about Doctoral Summer School – Research on Digital, Media and Information Literacy
Media Moments in Media Memories
Day 444 has meaning to many of us who watched television news in 1980. In one of the biggest television news moments as well as historic moments, this was the last day of the Iran Hostage crisis. Reflecting on this moment coincides with the one-year anniversary of the death of the 39th President, Jimmy Carter. During this period in history, the United States had three … [Read more...] about Media Moments in Media Memories
Why I Keep McLuhan Alive in the Classroom
You know that feeling when your students casually drop, “Oh yeah, I ran that prompt through ChatGPT already” before class even begins? It’s like AI is no longer a guest in the classroom, it’s already part of the furniture. In moments like that, it’s tempting to throw up your hands and scramble for brand-new theories. But recently I’ve been turning back to Marshall McLuhan, and … [Read more...] about Why I Keep McLuhan Alive in the Classroom
Who’s Thinking for Us? Media Literacy in our Modern World
In an age where students spend hours immersed in social media, algorithm-driven content, and attention economies, the illusion of free access to information often masks a deeper reality: our perceptions are curated, not chosen. Drawing on Noam Chomsky’s Manufacturing Consent, this article examines how corporate and political forces shape digital environments in ways that … [Read more...] about Who’s Thinking for Us? Media Literacy in our Modern World
The Journal of Media Literacy Spring 2026 Issue: McLuhan Mosaic
The Journal of Media Literacy Spring 2026 Issue McLuhan Mosaic Co-edited by Neil Andersen, Carol Arcus, Antonio Lopez, Andrew McLuhan Call for Proposals As communications media multiply at a dizzying pace, the need for media literacy education has never been more urgent. The rise of generative artificial intelligence has captured the public imagination—and, in many … [Read more...] about The Journal of Media Literacy Spring 2026 Issue: McLuhan Mosaic
Teens to Teachers: “We Got This.”
How GenZ is using peer mentorship to help their own “digital wellness.” October 13th, 2023 was a day to celebrate progress for education. California had just passed Assembly Bill No. 873 which mandates “Media Literacy” into core curriculums throughout the state’s public K-12 schools. Eighteen other states were taking similar action. The momentum was … [Read more...] about Teens to Teachers: “We Got This.”
Knowledge: A Conversation with Steve Connolly (Part 2)
This is the second part of our interview with author Steve Connolly. Read part one here. HC: I think that the idea that media and Media Studies are ever-changing, responding to the contemporary moment, and flexible is really a central idea that you address in the book. In many ways, it challenges a lot of the ways we conceptualize knowledge within these studies. How are … [Read more...] about Knowledge: A Conversation with Steve Connolly (Part 2)
CALL FOR PROPOSALS/ABSTRACTS
International Media Literacy Research Symposium https://www.imlrs.net June 4-6, 2026 John Cabot University -- Rome, Italy (In-Person) WHO SHOULD SUBMIT: Scholars, Researchers, and Educators at all stages of their careers are welcome to submit!! ACCEPTING THE FOLLOWING FORMATS: Roundtables: Individuals present their work in a roundtable which seats … [Read more...] about CALL FOR PROPOSALS/ABSTRACTS
WHY CAN’T WE TURN OFF OUR CELL PHONES? PLEASE!
On January 10, 2009, the yell heard round the world took place in the St. James Theatre. The three-time Tony Award winner, two-time Grammy award winner, and two-time Olivier Award winner, Patti LuPone took matters into her own hands during the grand finale of the musical Gypsy, “Rose’s Turn,” where she played the iconic role of Mama Rose. Patti shouted, “STOP TAKING PICTURES … [Read more...] about WHY CAN’T WE TURN OFF OUR CELL PHONES? PLEASE!
Media Literacy Guide for Minorities
Media is a ubiquitous part of our daily lives, so integrated that we cannot live without being affected by it. What we watch shapes our perception on topics, it changes our behaviors, and it has become a major part of our culture. Research from the National Center for Health Statistics from July 2021 – December 2023 revealed that teenagers from the ages of 12-17 spend four or … [Read more...] about Media Literacy Guide for Minorities
Honoring the Life and Legacy of Tessa Jolls
It is with deep sorrow that the International Council for Media Literacy mourns the passing of Tessa Jolls, a distinguished leader in the field of media literacy, a dedicated member of our Advisory Council, past recipient of our Jessie McCanse Award, and a dear friend. Her passing on April 6th leaves an immense void in our community, but her legacy will continue to inspire … [Read more...] about Honoring the Life and Legacy of Tessa Jolls
Unplugging the Myth: Why Smartphones Aren’t the Only Cause of Modern Anxiety
The Internet and news articles are full of advice on the need to cut screen-time and go fully off-line for the sake of well-being. The ideas went to schools and now we have international debates about banning phones in the classrooms. I myself was a big advocate for removing phones from everyday life, or, at least, having a 45 minutes limit for using social media. However, … [Read more...] about Unplugging the Myth: Why Smartphones Aren’t the Only Cause of Modern Anxiety
Making the invisible visible: Emancipatory approaches to algorithmic literacy in Brazilian education
Abstract Systems powered by artificial intelligence are increasingly present in our daily lives. While the use of AI enhances convenience and accelerates innovation, it also raises critical concerns regarding privacy, information integrity and trust, and may deepen inequalities. “Making the invisible visible” is a presentation in ’zine format of EducaMídia’s efforts to bring … [Read more...] about Making the invisible visible: Emancipatory approaches to algorithmic literacy in Brazilian education
