Notes on Media and Information Literacy

Introduction to Media and Information Literacy

  • MIL: ability to access, analyze, evaluate, create, and respond to media messages in a critical and informed way.
  • Purpose: enable informed, responsible participation in media environments.

Objectives

  • Define communication and media.
  • Identify the two basic types of communication.
  • Understand the elements of communication and major models.

What is communication?

  • The act or process of using words, sounds, signs, or behaviors to express or exchange information, ideas, thoughts, or feelings with someone else.
  • Also the exchange of information and expression of feelings that can lead to understanding.

Types of communication

  • Non-verbal communication
  • Verbal communication

Non-verbal communication

  • Signs, gestures, symbols; body language; colors; facial expressions

Verbal communication

  • Oral (spoken)
  • Written

Main types/Process of Communication

  • LINEAR MODEL
  • INTERACTIVE MODEL (Schramm)
  • TRANSACTIONAL MODEL (Barnlund)

Linear Model (Shannon-Weaver)

  • One-way communication — from sender to receiver, with no feedback.
  • Famous model: Shannon-Weaver Model (1949) – often called the "mother of all communication models."
  • Key components: Information source, Transmitter, Channel, Destination, Receiver, Encoder, Decoder, Noise.
  • Feedback is not a feature of the basic linear model.
  • Year: 1949

Shannon-Weaver Model components

  • Information source
  • Encoder / Transmitter
  • Channel
  • Noise
  • Decoder / Receiver
  • Destination
  • Note: Feedback is not part of the linear model.
  • Reference year: 1949 and original related work 1948

Interactive Model (Schramm)

  • Two-way communication with feedback, but not at the same time.
  • Two participants encode and decode messages; each sender/receiver interprets messages through their own field of experience.
  • Year: 1954

Schramm's Model (1954)

  • Message flows back and forth between encoder and decoder.
  • Emphasizes shared experiences and mutual interpretation (interpreter roles).
  • Key idea: communication is a two-way process shaped by both parties’ experiences.

Transactional Model (Barnlund)

  • Real-time, two-way communication where both sender and receiver are active at the same time.
  • Represents communication as a dynamic, continuous process with multiple channels and contexts.
  • Concepts: encode, decode, noise, feedback, channel, interpreter
  • Year: 1970

Barnlund's Transactional Model (1970)

  • Emphasizes simultaneous exchange and shared construction of meaning.
  • Components: Encode/Decode, Feedback, Noise, Channel, Interpreters (for both sender and receiver)

Communication tone

  • "Communicating is one thing, but your tone while communicating is everything."

Activities (learning tasks)

  • Draw your favorite communication model and provide a real-life example.
  • Media Detective: Truth or Trick group activity (classify statements as Fake, Needs Verification, or Reliable).

Media Detective: Truth or Trick (group activity)

  • 1. Fake 2. Needs Verification 3. Reliable 4. Fake 5. Need Verification 6. Reliable 7. Fake 8-9. Reliable 10. Reliable 11. Needs Verification

What is media?

  • Refers to the tools, platforms, and technologies used to create, store, deliver, and receive information or messages.

Types of media

  • Print Media
  • Broadcast Media
  • Outdoor Media
  • Digital or New Media
  • Multimedia (as a feature of digital/new media)

What is Media Literacy?

  • The ability to access, analyze, evaluate, create, and respond to media messages in a critical and informed way.

What is Information?

  • Data or knowledge derived from study, experience, instruction, signals, or symbols; knowledge of specific events or situations.

What is Information Literacy?

  • The ability to find, evaluate, use, and share information effectively and responsibly.

Terms to understand

  • Media Literacy: The ability to read, analyze, evaluate and produce communication in a variety of media forms.
  • Information Literacy: The ability to recognize when information is needed and to locate, evaluate, effectively use and communicate information in its various formats.
  • Technology (Digital) Literacy: The ability to use digital technology, communication tools or networks to locate, evaluate, use, and create information.

Examples

  • Digital Literacy: You will use the internet.
  • Information Literacy: You will look for reliable information.
  • Media Literacy: You will examine whether the YouTube video you watched is biased.

Closing

  • Thank you