Episode 4 of the Media Lit Bit Podcast continues where we left off in the last episode…where last week we talked about what mis and disinformation are, in this one, we talk about what we can do about it. How we can tell, how to fact check and how to respond when we see it.

This episode was recorded just before the most recent election where mis and disinformation campaigns from both foreign and domestic sources ran rampant. While this episode can’t help with what’s happened in the past, it will hopefully be helpful in similar situations moving forward. Links and sources below offer useful resources to help in your own quest toward helping combat mis and disinformation and were also used in production of this episode.

List of Fact check sites  Web Sites for Fact Checking - Misinformation and Disinformation: Thinking Critically about Information Sources

How to spot fake news: Identifying propaganda, satire, and false information | SFU Library

Indivisible’s Truth Brigade Welcome to the Indivisible Truth Brigade

CISA Rumor vs. Reality website 

Carnegie Countering Disinformation Effectively: An Evidence-Based Policy Guide - Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

Combating Misinformation by Sharing the Truth: a Study on the Spread of Fact-Checks on Social Media

How memes are used to spread misinformation - Poynter

Disinformation nation How You Can Combat Propaganda – Disinformation Nation

Wisconsin watch Misinformation, Disinformation: A guide to sorting fiction from reality

Trust Project 8 trust indicators  https://thetrustproject.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/TrustProject_Trust-Indicators_Download.pdf

Jen Easterly interview. CISA director Jen Easterly on election security landscape in 2024 contest (8:44-9:12)  

Michigan secretary of state Jocelyn Benson press conference Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson speaks on first weekend of early voting

Episode 3 breaks down the terms mis and dis and mal information and also gives some background that shows that these things aren’t really as new or current as we think, but have actually been around for years and years.

Sources:

Meet the Press episode where Kellyanne Conway first used “alternative facts.” MTP75 Archives — Kellyanne Conway: Sean Spicer Shared ‘Alternative Facts’ In Trump's Crowd Size

Mis and disinformation history/timeline A short guide to the history of ’fake news’ and disinformation

Yellow journalism and misinformation Media and Misinformation: Studying Yellow Journalism with Students | Teaching with the Library

Definitions Misinformation, Disinformation and Mal-information | eReader

United Nations fact sheet

https://www.unhcr.org/innovation/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Factsheet-4.pdf

https://commonslibrary.org/disinformation-and-7-common-forms-of-information-disorder/

Stanford study https://news.stanford.edu/stories/2022/04/know-disinformation-address

Episode 2 of the Media Lit Bit podcast takes a look at the differences between things that are “news” and “not news.” It is much more difficult in today’s media landscape to tell the difference between fact and opinion, as online pieces don’t necessarily have to identify when something is just an opinion piece. 

The eight news values as described in the episode include: Impact, timeliness, proximity, prominence, rarity, currency, conflict, human interest. News values: 8 criteria that will actually get you news coverage.

This video talks more about the blurring of lines between news and opinion. The Blur Between Facts and Opinions in the Media

Opinion vs. News article for further reading https://ccnyintroductiontojournalism.com/2024/08/13/opinion-vs-news/comment-page-1/

What is this podcast about? Who am I and what qualifies me to do a podcast like this? Official definition of media literacy. What you can expect in following episodes.

Show notes:

Summary: Episode 1 of the Media Lit Bit podcast is an introduction to the next seven episodes and offers definitions for the terms “literacy” and “media literacy.” Understanding what media literacy is will make it hopeful to meet my goal for this podcast: to help us understand how to analyze messages we get from the different media we interact with and help counteract the false, misleading messages that are working so hard to muddy the waters.

Literacy-the ability to read, write, speak and listen in a 

way that lets us communicate effectively and make sense of the world.

https://literacytrust.org.uk/information/what-is-literacy/

UNESCO’s definition of literacy-Literacy is a continuum of learning and proficiency in reading, writing and using numbers throughout life and is part of a larger set of skills, which include digital skills, media literacy, education for sustainable development and global citizenship as well as job-specific skills.

What you need to know about literacy

Media Literacy-Media literacy is the ability to access, analyze, evaluate, create, and act using all forms of media. 

https://namle.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/Media-Literacy-One-Sheet.pdf

For access to my online news/media literacy course on Brownicity, click here.