In theory, news reports should be fair and unbiased. Young journalists test this theory by selecting a current news story covered by various media outlets about the President of the United States. They then locate and analyze five...

Print or block? That is the question young journalists debate as part of their study of the freedom of the press. Half the class represents the journalists' legal team, and the other half represents the government's legal team. Teams...

Advertising is everywhere! Does your class know that their attention span is for sale, even when they're watching a simple news story? The second installment in a five-part series from iCivics examines the relationship between news...

Uncle Sam wants you! During World War II, the US government and military created a propaganda campaign to gain public support. The activity uses primary documents such as photos to explain how and why the propaganda campaign was...

Scholars use the E.S.C.A.P.E. (Evidence Source, Context, Audience, Purpose, Execution) strategy to analyze a historical source to determine why mistakes happen in news stories. They then apply the same strategies to contemporary flawed...

Frontpage photographs are the focus of four activities that ask young journalists to consider what the images reveal about a newspaper and its community. To begin, groups compare what images different papers from across the country use...

Reliable news stories are based on facts from reliable sources. Young journalists learn how to evaluate the reliability of news sources by watching a short explainer video. Teams apply their new source-digging skills to a current news...

A 25-slide presentation teaches viewers how to identify the source of stories in newspapers and online news sites. The slides show how to locate the byline where either the reporter's name or the wire service that provided the story can...

A 23-slide presentation teaches young media analysts how to identify a scoop or exclusive first report of a breaking story, how these reports become verified, and how subsequent reports in other news sources add information or refocus...

To quote or paraphrase? That is the question examined by a 29-slide presentation on the importance of including direct quotes in news reporting.

Learn how to talk like a journalist. Throw around jargon like "lede" and "nut graf." A 20-slide presentation introduces viewers to words and phrases heard in the fast-paced newsroom.

Ever seen the labels "sponsored content," "native advertising," "advertorial," "paid post," "#ad," or "#sponsored?" If so, then you are looking at advertisements that are designed to appear as news stories. Learn how to tell the...

Young journalists use a "Is This Story Share-Worthy?" flowchart graphic to decide whether a story is worth sharing online. Instructors provide groups with fake news, poor quality stories, opinion pieces, biased news, and high-quality...

Young journalists have an opportunity to experience the challenges of covering a catastrophe by staging a mock press conference. Half the class acts as reporters while the others act as officials from the mayor's office.

Breaking news reports can be short of facts. Young journalists select a pair of news articles about a disaster; one published within hours of the event and the second published the following day. They examine whether facts in the report...

Young journalists search for two examples of news stories, either published or online, that use anonymous or unnamed sources. They then consider the possible motives for why the sources remain unidentified, the types of stories that use...

Young journalists learn how to prepare for an interview, conduct an interview, and craft good interview questions with follow-up questions. After they watch and analyze several interviews, class members select a senior to interview,...

Research, role-playing, and reflection are the three “R’s” that form the basis of an examination of Cyberbullying. Although based on the Criminal Code of Canada, the included scenarios and case studies provide valuable resources for a...

Show what you know about social media! The 16th and final lesson in The Social Media Toolbox gives pupils the opportunity to share their social media experiences with their school communities. Groups identify the most important messages,...

How can people learn to spot viral deception? Players do just that with the NewsFeed Defenders media literacy game. Scholars choose avatars and the focus of their news feeds: student life, health and wellness, or sports and...

Unfortunately, fake news, fuzzy facts, and bogus news stories are not new phenomena. Class members use a "Fake News Through History" worksheet to analyze historical examples of false, invented, made-up news. Researchers share their...

Not all southern newspapers covered the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s. Young journalists investigate how The Lexington (Ky. Herald-Leader and The Jackson (Tenn.) Sun re-examined their coverage of the movement. After...

The debate over the integrity of stories in media is not new. Young journalists analyze historical sources that reveal freedom of the press controversies and draw parallels to challenges freedom of the press faces today. 

One of the most important skills news consumers and social media users must develop is the ability to determine the veracity of stories they read or view. Here's an interactive lesson plan that teaches high schoolers how to verify news...