Media Literacy 10 top tips _

Make sure you have a healthy information diet.

We know that we should care about the quality of the food we eat. Doesn’t it make sense that we should also care about the quality of the information we consume?. The information we consume shapes our perceptions, decisions, and social interactions in profound ways. Just like a poor quality food and can have consequences for our health, poor quality information can have consequences for our knowledge repertoire (or knowledge health). And what is the problem with that? Well, the problem is that our knowledge repertoire is what we use to interreact with the world around us in a logical and objective way. If we learn something that is wrong or flawed, this can lead to flawed decision-making, poor judgments and incorrect conclusions – all of which can have very negative consequences for our lives and the lives of other people around us.

So making sure that we have access to, and can recognise accurate and reliable information is really important if we want to make rational and well-informed decisions about so many aspects of our lives, from healthcare and finance to politics and social interactions.

When people are well-informed, they become more empowered and better prepared to engage in meaningful public conversations, understand complex issues, and make appropriate choices during key events in their lives, such as elections, for example. Being well-informed with accurate and reliable information also promotes a culture of learning, which reinforces the democratic process and contributes to a more robust and resilient society.

Use your scepticism rationally and wisely.

Even if you have a very good information diet and choose your sources carefully, you still have to apply some level of scepticism when you are dealing with media content. But what does scepticism mean in the context of media and information? Scepticism mainly involves questioning information to determine its validity. A sceptic doesn’t accept claims at face value but seeks evidence, rational reasoning, and logical consistency before drawing a conclusion. Scepticism is a tool to guard against deception, misinformation, and premature conclusions, and it encourages ongoing learning and curiosity.

Cynicism, on the other hand, is a more rigid and distrustful perspective. It entails a general disbelief in the sincerity or goodness of human motivations and actions, often expecting negative outcomes or intentions.

While healthy scepticism can lead to more profound understanding and defence against falsehoods, cynicism can lead to disengagement, hopelessness, and a lack of trust in people and institutions. Over time, chronic cynicism can erode personal relationships, reduce collaboration and community participation, and hinder positive change.

You have probably heard someone saying that “they don’t believe in anything nor trust anyone”. Well, that’s not very wise. There are certainly people and institutions that deserve to be trusted, and your role is to use your scepticism not to discredit everything and everyone, but instead to critically evaluate the ones that deserve your trust, based on evidence and reason.

Always check your own biases.

We all have a tendency to read information in a way that confirm beliefs and convictions that we already have. That what confirmation bias is. It’s an involuntary act of disregarding information that challenges or contradicts our beliefs, while giving more importance to information that aligns with them. This bias can lead to a distorted perception of reality, as we may unintentionally ignore important facts or evidence simply because we don’t like them.

It is important to understand that we all have biases and it’s not possible to get rid of them completely. However, we can at least be aware of this tendency to give more importance to information that matches our personal preferences. This is a very good first step and can have many positive benefits in our daily lives.

With so much information coming at us from so many sources – often prompted by algorithms that probably have a prerry good idea about our beliefs – it’s so easy to fall into the trap of consuming content that only aligns with our pre-existing beliefs. Many different narratives and perspectives coexist and if we don’t check our biases, we risk becoming passive consumers of information, rather than active and critical ones.

Besides, unchecked biases can reduce our capacity for empathy and understanding and negatively affect our interactions and discussions with other people by leading us to automatically dismiss peoples positions and concerns, without even listening to them.

Learn how to deal with conspiratorial thinking.

Conspiracy theories are beliefs or explanations that imply that some events or situations are the result of secretive, usually malicious plots by hidden, mysterious or powerful groups, even when there is little or no evidence to support such claims. These theories usually thrive on mistrust of governments, institutions and powerful people, offering alternative explanations that can be very persuasive, and providing emotional comfort or a sense of superiority.

It is human nature to seek out concrete explanations or reason for situations that make us feel scared, insecure or threatened, or for important and impactful events, such as the Covid-19 pandemic. But when there is no fast, simple explanation, there is a risk that simplistic theories will emerge usually based on selective, misrepresented, or absolute false information. This is problematic because it can leading people away from the actual truth, and the more people get involved with these theories, the harder it becomes for them to distinguish between reliable and false information, completely distorting their perception of reality.

When you encounter someone with this kind of conspiratorial thinking, don’t mock them or try to persuade them with evidence to prove they are wrong. This is not going to change their minds. Instead, try listening to them with respect, even if you disagree, because trying to understand where they are coming from is important. Instead of confronting them with facts, ask questions that encourage critical thinking, such as “how did you come across this information?” or “what makes you believe this source is reliable?”. The aim is to make them see the problems in the argument by themselves. And, finally, try to encourage them to explore a variety of sources, emphasising the importance of cross-checking information.

Be wary of how get your news on social media platforms.

Recently studies have shown that people are increasingly getting their news on social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, X and TikTok. While this is convenient for us and these platforms offer extraordinary access to information, there are significant downsides to be aware of.

To begin with, the vast amount of information and the fast-paced nature of social media feeds can promote quick-skimming over actual reading of news. This can result in users getting only a superficial understanding of news stories which can drastically affect the way they understand a story or event. Also, the fast and viral nature of content sharing on social media means that false or misleading information can proliferate quickly. Without rigorous editorial standards in place, it’s easy for people with bad intentions to crate fake accounts or pages pretending to be news outlets to disseminate fake or distorted facts as if they were real news.

It is also important to understand that social media platforms are primarily profit-driven. This means that advertisers pay for visibility, which can sometimes blur the lines between authentic news content and sponsored content or ads. To complicate things further, attention-grabbing headlines, clickbait, and sensational stories usually receive more traction and become ‘trends’ more easily on social media platforms than nuanced, in-depth journalism. News stories that incite strong emotions, whether positive or negative, are more likely to be shared, creating a potential bias towards emotionally charged news over more neutral, balanced reporting.

Think about all these issues while consuming news on social media platforms. And consider going directly to news media websites for a more comprehensive and in-depth experience of news consumption.