We Can Change The World

When broken down, the term media literacy means the ability to access, analyze and create media, allowing us to understand the the role and our relationship with media.

First Video: What is Media Literacy?

We spend 10-12 hours a day with media and are exposed to about 3, 000 discreet advertisements a day. With so much interaction with media, it is important to think about our relationship with it. This video discussed the idea that there are two main trends being seen throughout modern media: the centralized, corporate power that values profit over everything else, versus the locally run independent that values diversity, and allowing other voices be heard. The question that was brought to attention was, "How do we maximize the good and challenge the bad?" How do we produce and support the diverse, and challenge controlled news? We can be observers, but can we create media to react to that?

Second Video: Media Literacy - Education and Choice

This video started off with talking about five main questions we should be asking ourselves in order to be critical with the media we are exposed to:

1. Who sent this message? 
• You should know who the author is. This person makes decisions on what this message is.
2. What techniques were used to attract my attention?
• The art, music or writing used.
3. How might other people understand this message differently than me?
• Who is the target audience?
4. What values or types of view are represented by this message?
• There are things we will accept willingly and then there are things we will not want to accept. There are also a lot of point of views that get left out. Who's voice are we not hearing?
5. Why was this message sent?
• All media messages are organized to gain either profit or power, and by power influence over other people'e thinking.

Media can be both a beautiful and dangerous thing. A piece of media can be well created and pleasing to the ear or eye, but how does it influence the way people will think about the given topic or issue?

This video also discussed the idea that it is our education system that is flawed. Teachers are hired who are ignorant about differences, causing students to not be immersed in ways of addressing problems like sexism, racism, homophobia, and other prejudices. Children are also the target audience of pumped up advertising, instilling values of materialism and teaching children to judge people on what they have.

Both of these videos were informative and entertaining, and it made me realize just how powerful media can be. Like any great power however, it has to be used responsibly. Media has the capabilities to start revolutions, change mindsets of whole populations, or even start wars. Trump had a fallout with North Korea over a couple of arrogant tweets, books have been banned because they contained ideas that were deemed controversial. Media has the power to change the world, and deciding how we create and use our media is deciding which kind of world we want that to be.