Executive Vice President, Area Resources for Community and Human Services (ARCHS), and former founding board member, Gateway Media Literacy Partners, Inc.
By Steven L. Brawley,
When President Abraham Lincoln was assassinated in 1865, it took days and weeks for the news to reach the farthest corners of the nation. In 2011, it took just seconds for news of Cassie Anthony’s not guilty verdict to reach millions. The talking heads were on airwaves immediately discussing the verdict, no time for thoughtful processing or reflection – just raw emotion and anger.
As we celebrate and advocate the importance of media literacy, it’s vital that we step back for a moment and ponder ways we can best teach our children to live and prosper in a 24-7 media world. How can we give our children the tools they need to process and reflect on the news of the day?
Each generation creates its own generation gap. The gap related to media literacy has a dramatic impact on our future. Just as our grandparents lived to see automobiles, airplanes and movies, children today will live to see things we cannot imagine.
Studies continue to show we need to be working with our children, at the early childhood education level on a variety of fronts. Children are now given so much information, so quickly, that media literacy education at the youngest age is paramount.
The media literacy field has started this journey, creating curriculum and discussion guides that reach children from Pre-K through K-12.
If we truly learn everything we really need to know about life in kindergarten (sharing, being polite and respectful, having manners, etc.) then it isn’t a stretch to imagine us instilling in our children a better ability to process and reflect upon our world of instant news. How do we learn to think before we act?
Parental oversight is vital. Monitoring what our children see on television, on the Internet, etc., goes a long way in helping learn to better “frame” the story. New fangled media should never be used as a babysitter. As well, parents need to be fully aware of the media used during the school day and ensure they can balance what media is used at home.
We know that giving our children the tools to differentiate being reality (news) and fantasy (cartoons) is a big piece of the puzzle. Children will continue to learn on media platforms that are a far cry from our chalkboards and film strips. They will have to instantly decipher the information their “device” is showing them, then decide to “store” or “delete” the data given their interests. Instant news and data thus will require more and more instant decision making for young and old alike. What do we store in our memory bank? How do we keep our human “RAM” from being overloaded?
What it will mean to be media literate in the future will depend on how our children adapt and interpret the world they are born into. Carefully balancing human interpersonal skills and media-based technology will be paramount.
The media literacy field will need to be careful in that it does not become an added academic burden. How does the field find a way to become more incorporated into education without added administrative structures and costs? Ensuring media literacy is a core component of higher education curriculum, as well as professional development courses for educators of all ages and backgrounds will be key.
The live coverage of JFK’s assassination and funeral forever changed the media landscape. People from across the globe shared the pain and sorrow in real time with moving images, not through a static radio broadcast or day old newspaper story. Parents and teachers were able to discuss what was happening with their children, to help them process the horrible event. Let’s hope that modern media literacy efforts can continue to promote parent and child interactions that will provide teaching moments.
If we can teach our children to take a moment, to process and reflect, then whatever the future of mass media holds can be met with open arms.
Steve has more than 20 years of strategic communications experience. He currently serves as Executive Vice President of Area Resources for Community and Human Services (ARCHS). Steve operated his own communications consulting business for six years prior to joining ARCHS. He previously served as Communications Director for BJC Healthcare, Chief of Staff for the Chairman of the American Hospital Association (1999) and as a PR/Marketing Director for Christian Hospital. Steve is the past board president of the UMSL Alumni Association and the Crime Victim Advocacy Center (CVAC). He is a founding board member of Gateway Media Literacy Partners (GMLP). Steve is also the founder of the St. Louis LGBT History Project and publishes www.pinkpillbox.com – a fun look at history, pop culture and politics.
He has a bachelor’s degree in communication from UMSL and a master’s degree in communication from St. Louis University.
