In an age of fake news and photoshopped images, it is vital that 21st century learners development the skills they need to evaluate mass media and assess its validity. A great way to launch such a study is with a carefully crafted lesson...

Even Plato understood the importance of media! Part of an ongoing series of media literacy videos, the resource takes viewers to where it all began ... ancient Greece. The video covers the emergence of media and the written word, the...

Fake news. Alternative facts. Internet trolls. In an age of Newspeak, it's increasingly important to equip 21st century learners with the skills needed to determine the legitimacy of claims put forth on social media, in print, and in...

As part of their continued investigation of the reporting of the shooting of Michael Brown class members analyze photos of Michael Brown and the social media response to these images. The class then develops a guide they believe news...

One picture but a thousand stories. As a part of a case study of how the death of Michael Brown was reported by professional news sources and on social media class members examine the reactions of various groups to a photograph taken by...

What are the benefits of media use? What are the dangers for young people and for society as a whole? After examining a series of materials, individuals craft an essay in which they explain what is at stake, state their own position on...

From Nineteen Eighty-Four, Brave New World, and Fahrenheit 451 to Facebook, Twitter, and TXT. Here’s a must-see video for anyone interested in the transformation of the media landscape and message distribution. The narrator traces four...

The adage says that journalism is the first draft of history. How should people evaluate these sources of information? Taking into account various sources, including those from various perspectives and different creators, learners...

Ida B. Wells, Rosa Parks, and Fannie Lour Hammer are three African American activists who stood up for change. Though living in different time periods, all three women sought justice and equality. Class members examine primary source...

What's the story behind the headlines for scientifically researched products? Viewers of a short video identify the fallacies in headlines designed to lure the unwary.

Prior to the Mexican-American war, citizens had only heard updates about the battlefield from the United States government. But with the expansion of media publication in the nineteenth century, individual soldiers were able to reach out...

The media is supposed to report the news, but can the media affect the events occurring in the news? Explore the ways the media has influenced world events in the last few centuries with a study of the Mexican-American War, the...

The Mexican-American war marked a significant moment in United States history, as well as in the history of American media. The mid-nineteenth century saw the introduction of the Penny Press, which provided many American citizens with...

The Nazis used the power of propaganda to encourage confirmative views and the discrimination of Jews. A social studies resource illustrates these issues through discussion, image analysis, and a writing exercise.

Hot off the press: a mini-unit for class members to create their own newspaper. Complete with graphic organizers, extension activities, and helpful learning targets that teach parts of a newspaper, the resource contains everything needed...

What actually happens at a press conference? Make sense of the mayhem with a mock press conference activity designed to promote media literacy. Individuals participate as either members of the press or the governor's office to examine...

Words are powerful ... can your class choose them wisely? Scholars evaluate news articles to discover the concepts of tone, charge, and bias during a media literacy lesson. The resource focuses on recognizing implicit information and...

Many factors determine a person's ability to make good decisions. A video summary of Judgment under Uncertainty by Tversky and Kahneman discusses the idea that mental shortcuts can lead errors in judgment. The portion of a larger...

All sources are pretty much the same, right? If this is how your class views the sources they use for writing or research projects, present them with a media literacy instructional activity on smart source evaluation. Groups examine...

How do journalists balance bias and ethical reporting? The final activity in a series of five from iCivics examines the different types of bias and how they affect the news we read. Young reporters take to the Internet to find examples...