Media and Information Literacy Repository – South Asia

It investigates the relationship between Accountability and Autonomy

Rapid advancements in media and information technology have led to an increasingly complex and interconnected information landscape. Navigating this digital age requires critical thinking skills and a comprehensive understanding of media and information literacy (MIL). However, the definitions of MIL vary across contexts, disciplines, and cultures. This qualitative study describes and analyzes diverse definitions of MIL through an in-depth analysis of existing literature to shed light on nuanced perspectives within the field, as well as the peculiarities and similarities of the terms ‘media literacy’ and ‘information literacy.’ By delving into qualitative dimensions, the article contributes to a comprehensive understanding of the evolving landscape of media and information literacy. Study findings will contribute to the development of a unified and comprehensive understanding of MIL and facilitate the design of educational programs and policies to enhance media literacy skills among individuals across societies and age groups. This theoretical study is devoted to analyzing theoretical and conceptual definitions of Media and Information Literacy to uncover the wide-ranging aspects of the umbrella term.

The Media and Information Literacy (MIL) concept has been widely used by librarians and information and knowledge practitioners to refer to three often clearly distinguished literacies: media literacy, information literacy, and digital literacy. MIL empowers people to develop themselves and their societies through enhanced capacities in communication and information in the digital age. The complexity of the digital and information society demands that citizens and learners possess information and digital literacies and competencies for lifelong learning, civic engagement, democratic participation, sustainable societies, and building and nurturing trust in media. While MIL seeks to build and nurture critical thinking and understanding skills amongst the populace as they navigate the information society, its application in development initiatives leaves much to be desired in most countries in the Global South. This article explores how MIL can be embraced as a key enabler of community development and social justice initiatives and contributes to the ongoing debate on the centrality of media, technological change, innovation, and education in advancing social justice. The study adopts a multisectoral approach by bringing together different information and communication practitioners, educators, and communities to advance social justice in Sub-Saharan Africa. Guided by UNESCO’s five laws of Media and Information Literacy, the study employs a qualitative research approach through document analysis and key informant interviews with MIL leaders in selected countries in Sub-Saharan Africa. Findings of the study contribute to strategies that can be used to integrate media and information literacy skills into community development initiatives.

Media literacy is not just a popular phrase but a necessity in the contemporary information society, particularly in evaluating information and combating disinformation. This article explores the critical role of higher education in improving students’ media literacy, with a particular focus on universities in Kosovo and North Macedonia. The research methodology employs a mixed approach, combining curriculum analysis, focus groups, and semi-structured interviews to examine current educational practices and institutional challenges. The results show that universities play a key role in developing critical thinking but face obstacles. However, they also have the power to overcome these obstacles. Recommendations include reforming curricula to integrate media literacy, improving teacher training, and promoting interdisciplinary approaches to empower students as informed and responsible participants in the media environment. In conclusion, the findings highlight the need for systemic support in education to develop analytical skills and an ethical attitude towards information in a digital context among young people.

This paper is intended to investigate the determinants of media information literacy by examining the skills of students belonging to the University of Jammu in July 2022. The focal point of the study is to identify the predictors of MIL by assessing students’ familiarity with various concepts of MIL and their level of MIL skills. MIL is studied through a scale having four parameters, with a 0.741 interclass correlation and a total reliability of 0.81. The majority of respondents demonstrated poor MIL skills, distinct from the self-reported MIL (W = 2386.5, p < 0.001, rB = 0.8). It was found that information literacy, computer literacy, and freedom of expression indirectly affect MIL, mediated by the capacities to create and evaluate information. Nevertheless, MIL is directly affected by information literacy.

The curricular integration of Media and Information Literacy (MIL) is crucial for cultivating informed, critical, and engaged citizens in contemporary society. It assists in addressing the challenges of the digital era and capitalizing on the opportunities presented by the ever-changing media landscape. Thus, the present systematic literature review uses the PRISMA guidelines to examine three dimensions in the process of integration of Media and Information Literacy (MIL) in the prescribed curriculum: formulation, implementation, and evaluation and challenges. Starting with the search criteria, 131 studies were found in the Web of Science, Scopus, ERIC, Dialnet and Google Scholar databases, published between January, 2013, and March, 2023, written in English, Spanish, Portuguese, and Turkish. The findings suggest that the will of the political sphere and the activism of the triad composed by passionate teachers, civil society, and academia, are key factors for promoting the introduction of MIL in formal education. Likewise, it is underlined that the evaluation of this education policy requires special attention, in order to guarantee the analysis of its reach, effectiveness, and capacity to adapt against the challenges that emerge in the media ecosystem. Thus, the intention is to provide up-to-date information for the creation of policies, research studies, and curricular content on this subject.

This study explores the application of constructivist principles in the development of digital media literacy within higher education. Constructivism and digital media literacy share foundational elements, including active participation, critical thinking, contextual learning environments, and social collaboration. This research employs a qualitative approach through a literature review. Publications from 2014 to 2024 were selected based on their relevance to constructivist learning theory and digital media literacy, resulting in four core sources analyzed. The findings demonstrated that constructivist principles significantly contribute to the enhancement of digital media literacy skills, particularly in the areas of content creation, information management, digital publishing, and critical engagement. These competencies are essential for fostering independent, reflective, and responsible learners. The study concludes that constructivist-based approaches are vital for effectively integrating digital media literacy into higher education. To support this integration, it is recommended that universities embed digital media literacy into curricular frameworks and provide additional resources such as training programs through university libraries. These libraries, as central information hubs, can play a pivotal role in supporting students’ digital literacy development and promoting lifelong learning.

Purpose – Media and Information Literacy (MIL) education plays a crucial role in combating misinformation and disinformation in the digital era. This study explores an innovative pedagogical approach by integrating Experiential Learning Theory (ELT) into non-digital game-based learning to bridge gaps in MIL knowledge and skills among Malaysian secondary and tertiary students, while also addressing the digital divide. Given that current MIL interventions often rely solely on self-assessment, this study emphasizes the need for more objective assessment methods to measure actual learning outcomes. Methodology – A one-group pre-post-test mixed-methods research design was employed. A total of 95 participants from secondary and tertiary educational institutions in Malaysia engaged in an ELT-informed MIL board game intervention. The impact on MIL knowledge was assessed using a structured MIL knowledge test and a qualitative feedback survey. Findings – Results indicate that the intervention positively influenced MIL knowledge acquisition, as indicated by statistically significant improvements in post-test scores. Qualitative feedback further revealed enhanced understanding of MIL concepts, strengthened sense of responsible digital citizenship, and affirmation of the experiential game-based approach as an effective learning method. Significance – This study offers valuable insights into the application of ELT within non-digital game-based MIL education, particularly across diverse educational levels in Malaysia. It presents a scalable and cost-effective model for fostering critical thinking and ethical media engagement, offering practical recommendations for educators, community-based organisations, and policymakers in advancing MIL education nationwide.

Today, fostering media and information literacy (MIL) among citizens is essential for preserving democracy. The effectiveness of scalable interventions, particularly those employing lateral reading, a fact-checking heuristic, is well recognised. Our digital workshop, designed to model lateral reading from a user's perspective, has proven beneficial in educational settings and has garnered expert endorsement. Addressing recent scholarly calls to understand the underlying mechanisms of successful MIL interventions, our study is anchored in Cognitive Load Theory. We examine how different instructional modalities in our workshop influence engagement with lateral reading and how effectively it is executed. The study separates implicit text feedback and hands-on video instructions, previously combined, in a full-factorial design using a parallel-group RCT. We analysed the responses of 178 upper-secondary students in the online workshop and conducted a detailed video analysis of 30 students participating in a controlled environment at their schools. Our findings reveal that hands-on video instructions notably enhance both the engagement and effectiveness of the lateral reading heuristic. This study underscores the significance of a human-computer interaction perspective in designing more impactful media and information literacy interventions.

The social character of ethics is best revealed by exploring the complex dynamics linking individuals’ freedom to moral requirements. In this article, we consider James Laidlaw’s influential proposal that an anthropology of ethics makes freedom central to what is distinctively ethical in human life, but we argue that it unduly restricts the proposed scope of anthropology. This account of freedom is both overly cognitive, focusing on reflection, viewed as involving distance, decision, reasoning, and doubt, and too individualistic, downplaying the importance of freedom’s normative background and excluding from consideration many documented forms of ethical experience. We propose instead an alternative, more open-ended conceptualization of freedom, distinguishing a concept of freedom that differs from its widely varying conceptions, and drawing on ethnographic material from the Hunza Valley in Northern Pakistan and elsewhere to illustrate multiple ways in which the constitution of selves and normative constraints impinge on one another.

Information literacy is a critical topic in contemporary pedagogy and information science. It is ranked among the essential competencies for the 21st century, and in recent years, it has received increasing research interest. The problem, however, is that research has focused mainly on primary and university (college) contexts and only rarely analyzed secondary school settings. This paper, therefore, focuses on a group of high school students and examines whether the literature’s idea of their needs corresponds to their actual needs. Based on the analysis of 32 documents indexed in the Scopus and Web of Science databases, the paper identifies seven significant discursive areas addressed in the literature, both theoretically and empirically. These are: the relationship of libraries and librarians to the development of information literacy, information evaluation, the relationship of information literacy and learning competencies, connection with other competencies, emphasis on the constructivist approach, the social dimension of information literacy, and its possible use for self-actualization. These topics form a specific research discourse. In the second phase of the research, focus groups (8 groups in 4 schools, 41 students) on information literacy were studied through the seven essential discourses mentioned. Although our sample lacked reflections on the relationship between the library and high school students, the remaining six fundamental discourses appeared in the testimonies of high school students (libraries and librarians, evaluation of information, learning competencies, connection with other literacy, constructivist approach, the social dimension of information literacy, and information literacy as a means of self-actualization). The findings show that the main difference between literary discourse and student responses lies in the perception of libraries as centers of information literacy development, with students preferring the school or their teachers instead.

All theories of world creation, whether scientific, philosophical, or religious, can readily acknowledge the fact that humans have primarily evolved to engage with nature, the individual self, fellow human beings, society, and other naturalistic aspect of existence. Nevertheless, several novel challenges ascend when the human mind engages with technology, media, machines, and related concepts such as—ChatGPT, artificial intelligence, and to name a few. For that reason, we need philosophy and critical assessment of the uncovered essence of advanced technologies, media and machines and our way of life concerning them. In other words, protectively assessing their impact requires a thorough examination of ethical and existential concerns, including technology’s implications for freedom, AI’s evolving role, the essence of human being, and the unexamined transformative societal changes that follow. Building upon the premise that these phenomena share a common thread despite their apparent disparities, our interdisciplinary pursuit draws inspiration from philosophical luminaries such as Luciano Floridi, Karamjit S. Gill, David Kaplan, Aldous Huxley, Martin Heidegger, Hannah Arendt, and Gandhi. Through philosophical insights, we explore the essence of technology and its broad effects, with a focus on its impact on human freedom and essence in both public and private domains.

This article has two objectives. The first is to conceptualise digital media literacy as a multi-dimensional concept by differentiating media content from media device. A broad range of skills is required to use digital media, and each dimension can be clarified by separating the device from the content. The second goal is to relate social exclusion to digital media literacy. How people use digital technology has long-term outcomes that could be either beneficial or disadvantageous. In the first part of the article, the multi-dimensional aspect of digital media literacy is discussed. Dimensions include the abilities to access, understand and create both in the area of device and content. The second part of the article discusses how social exclusion is related mostly to the third dimension of digital media literacy: the ability to create and participate.

This paper builds on the collaborative work of media researchers and professionals as well as education decision makers and teachers that met in Graz, 5- 7 December 2007, at the invitation of the Council of Europe. The purpose of the workshop was to determine the validity of media education and to verify that human rights could be an added value to such an education. Three main questions were debated, that built on each other: 1) “Which media literacy?” focused on an assessment of the various definitions of media education, trying to come to terms with the distinction between old and new media, old and new literacies. 2) “Which competences, skills, attitudes and values?” considered the core elements for developing coherent literacy training programmes and sought to identify the integration of human rights in current methods of teaching. 3) “How to develop these competences, skills, attitudes and values?” discussed concrete examples of best practice, especially those dealing with interactions between public and private sectors and old and new media. It also examined how to evaluate the efficacy of empowerment practices and policies, raising issues of awareness, self-regulation and the role of the state and of Intergovernmental Organizations such as the Council of Europe

The concept of critical media literacy expands the notion of literacy to include different forms of mass communication and popular culture, as well as deepens the potential of literacy education to critically analyze relationships between media and audiences, information and power. The authors argue that critical media literacy is crucial for participatory democracy in the twenty-first century, and that the only progressive option that exists is how to teach it, not whether to teach it. The article, first, explores the theoretical underpinnings of critical media literacy and demonstrates examples from community-based after school programs and an inner-city elementary school that received a federal grant to integrate media literacy and the arts into the curriculum.

Ideal for professors who want to provide a comprehensive set of the most important readings in the philosophy of technology, from foundational to the cutting edge, this book introduces students to the various ways in which societies, technologies, and environments shape one another. The readings examine the nature of technology as well as the effects of technologies upon human knowledge, activities, societies, and environments. Students will learn to appreciate the ways that philosophy informs our understanding of technology, and to see how technology relates to ethics, politics, nature, human nature, computers, science, food, and animals.

The Society of Control is a philosophical concept developed by Gilles Deleuze in the early 1990s to highlight the transition from Michel Foucault’s Disciplinary Society to a new social constitution of power assisted by digital technologies. The Society of Control is organized around switches, which convert data, and, in this way, exercise power. These switches take data inputs (digitized information about individuals) and transform them into outputs (decisions) based on their pre-programmed instructions. I call these switches “automated decision-making algorithms” (ADMAs) and look at ethical issues that arise from their impact on human freedom. I distinguish between negative and positive aspects of freedom and examine the impact of the ADMAs on both. My main argument is that freedom becomes endangered in this new ecosystem of computerized control, which makes individuals powerless in new and unprecedented ways. Finally, I suggest a few ways to recover freedom, while preserving the economic benefits of the ADMAs

Recent developments in European media policy have given priority to the notion that all citizens need to be digitally literate to fully participate in the emerging Information Society. Media literacy or digital literacy, it is argued, will be required to able to exercise informed choices, understand the nature of content and services and take advantage of the full range of opportunities offered by new communications technologies. Further, being media literate, citizens will be better able to protect themselves and their families from harmful or offensive material.

Free market capitalism is understood by most Americans as instrumental to the American dream, providing ordinary people with the economic means for their pursuit of happiness. The benefits of free enterprise, however, accrue increasingly to a small fraction of already wealthy high income earners, corporate shareholders, and business interests with a long, consistent, and well documented history of antagonism towards the interests of consumers, workers, society, and the natural environment. Emerging models of geopolitics, the economy, and the corporation suggest that this elitist, anti-regulatory posture of business is fast becoming obsolete as the value of human capital gains currency in the knowledge-driven, creative economy of the market state. The emergence of the market state can be viewed as a movement toward economic democracy, in which people expect accountability from business and free enterprise as a platform for achieving their goals and realizing their dreams.

Introduction: Information literacy has become indispensable in navigating today’s fast-paced media environment, with teachers playing a pivotal role in fostering reflective and critical digital citizenship. Positioned as future gatekeepers, pre-service teachers are the key to teaching media skills and especially information literacy to future generations of pupils. Given the particular challenges facing educators today compared to previous generations, it is important to determine whether the next generation of teachers feel adequately prepared and perceive themselves as competent to pass on these skills to their future pupils. However, previous research has highlighted deficiencies in formal learning opportunities at universities, underscoring the need for further investigation into pre-service teachers’ information acquisition, evaluation practices as well as their perceived relevance to teaching, and person-related factors associated with their perceived competence in teaching information literacy.Method: An online questionnaire was presented to participants, employing a mixed-method approach. We qualitatively examined the sources of information used by pre-service teachers and the evaluation strategies they employ, while quantitatively analyzing relationships between pre-service teachers’ person-related factors and their perceived teaching competence. Participants assessed their perceived teaching competence, perceived learning opportunities, self-efficacy (general and related to information assessment), perceived informedness, selective exposure, need for cognition, need for cognitive closure, and mistrust in media coverage.Results: Data from 371 participants revealed digital media dominance in information acquisition over traditional sources, albeit with a prevalence of surface-level evaluation strategies over reflective approaches. Two distinct dimensions of perceived competence in teaching information literacy emerged: one focusing on information assessment while the other centers on the understanding of news creation processes. Perceived competence in teaching information literacy was significantly associated with self-efficacy in information assessment, perceived informedness, selective exposure to information as well as perceived learning opportunities focusing on information evaluation. Moreover, pre-service teachers employing diverse information evaluation strategies demonstrated a heightened sense of perceived competence in teaching information assessment.Discussion: Our results provide valuable insights into the multifaceted nature of pre-service teachers’ perceived competence in teaching information literacy. Theoretical implications for future research as well as practical implications for teacher education and the structure of future curricula are discussed.

MIL (Media and Information Literacy) is a stand-alone course integrated by the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in 2011, which directly relates to an individual's daily communication and lifelong learning abilities. Nonetheless, promoting the MIL curriculum in universities worldwide is difficult since specific countries like the United States and the United Kingdom, have their frameworks, standards and models for teaching and evaluating IL or MIL. After analyzing 91 relevant articles, the researchers found that universities still need to accept the MIL curriculum worldwide. In terms of curriculum frameworks, most of the existing studies adopted the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) IL curriculum framework proposed by the American Library Association (ALA). In comparison, the MIL education framework proposed by UNESCO has been not adopted fully. It will take time to synthesize ML and IL into a stand-alone course due to resistance to pedagogical reforms, overloading students, limited classroom, and faculty training gap. The promotion of student-centeredness, educational equity, gender equality, decolonization, anti-racism, rethinking Eurocentrism, white centrism and bridging the digital divide will become a universal value in the MIL curriculum in universities MIL modules will be integrated into the core curriculum of different disciplines in a flexible manner. The involvement of academic library staff in the MIL education process will become more widespread. As educational technology (EdTech) and communication technologies become widely integrated into MIL education, encouraging students' participation in the design and process of the MIL course will be more prevalent.

The advent of digital media has profoundly transformed political campaigns and voter behavior, reshaping the landscape of political communication and electoral processes. Digital platforms, such as social media, websites, and online forums, have enabled political candidates to engage with voters more directly and efficiently than ever before. Through personalized messaging, targeted advertising, and real-time interaction, campaigns can now tailor their strategies to specific voter demographics, harnessing data analytics to influence opinions and mobilize supporters. Additionally, digital media offers voters unprecedented access to information, allowing them to evaluate candidates and issues from multiple perspectives. However, the same platforms also present challenges, such as the spread of misinformation, echo chambers, and polarization, which can distort public discourse and affect voter decision-making. This paper explores the dual-edged role of digital media in modern political campaigns and its impact on voter behavior, including the implications for democratic participation and the integrity of electoral processes.

This paper examines literature from the COVID-19 period (2020–2022) to outline prevalent themes and essential competencies in the post-COVID era. Employing informetrics within a quantitative research approach, the study scrutinizes Scopus database data using the terms COVID-19, e-learning, e-commerce, and media and information literacy. Results reveal a surge in scholarly focus on e-commerce, online learning, e-health, and ICTs, including social media. A total of 355 media and information literacy terms were identified, with digital, information, health, and media literacy at the forefront. Moreover, 244 corresponding competencies and skills were noted. The study emphasizes the necessity for comprehensive media and information literacy programs, diverse competencies, and stakeholder engagement in fostering a digitally literate society. Prioritizing skill development for navigating digital landscapes is vital amid the fourth industrial revolution, laying the groundwork for adept usage of media, information, and digital realms.

Concerns about the spread of disinformation, information disorder, and fake news have grown to unprecedented proportions in recent years. This study aimed to explore how to mitigate this communication disorder and achieve a balance in the relationship among the public, the media, the dominant institutions, and the digital influencers in society. This study used the grounded meta-synthesis method, which relies on induction, to arrive at a new model according to the objective of the study. The process of open, axial, and selective coding included 101 studies, books, reports, and guides, starting with the Public Opinion by Walter Lippmann, issued in 1922, and ending with the 2022 Edelman Trust Barometer. The results led to the proposal of a new model to reduce communication dysfunction, in which media and information literacy (MIL) plays a crucial role in increasing an individual's ability to resist disinformation and enhancing their ability to monitor the performance of institutions, as well as expanding the circle of influencers in social media. To fulfil the three goals and contribute to achieving a degree of functional balance in communication within societies, the model recommends enhancing MIL. Other intervening variables, such as the fragility of political, cultural, and legal structures, should not be disregarded.

Media and information literacy (MIL) is gaining academic attention due to media technology advancements and evolving communication, with pre-service teachers (PTs) playing a crucial role in preparing future citizens. This systematic review examined 40 articles focusing on PTs to identify their theoretical characteristics and methodological patterns. The methodology follows the PRISMA statement and covers research from 2013 to 2024. All of these selected papers are evaluated using a quality assessment tool, Quality Assessment Tool for papers with Diverse Designs (QATSDD). The review identifies a regional concentration of PTs’ MIL research in Europe and Asia. This demonstrates how regional settings and national policies have a significant impact on MIL research, as do differences in terminology usage and conceptual understanding. However, aspects of PTs’ MIL that support teaching practices remain underexplored in the existing literature, indicating a critical gap in preparing PTs for their roles as educators. Concerns regarding the credibility of results are further raised by the extensive use of self-reported assessments. Furthermore, because they have a big impact on PTs' MIL abilities, demographic factors including gender and regional discrepancies need constant monitoring. The findings highlight the need to integrate MIL into teacher education to enhance teaching competencies and address regional and demographic disparities, ensuring preservice teachers are equipped for modern educational demands.