Author: Tara
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Have a Cranky Uncle?
Uncles really can’t catch a break. They have basically become the Karens of misinformation. It does seem a little unfair, since I don’t think they have a monopoly on succumbing to fake news but the Melbourne Center for Behaviour Change at the University of Melbourne has cleverly leveraged the trope to create an educational game…
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A Tale of Two Charlie Kirks
I’m an incredibly sensitive person, and I’ve led a pretty sheltered life in rural America. So, despite growing up obsessed with hip-hop culture, and listening to artists like Public Enemy and Tupac, I never truly understood the struggle these artists were expressing in their lyrics about police violence in America. For many of us in…
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No Platform Can Save Us: Why Media Literacy Is the Real Fix
As a Xennial, I was a very early adopter of social media. First Diaryland, then MySpace, and then Facebook had me all-in and extremely online. That’s when, in November of 2014, Facebook, with its hooks deep in my dysregulated dopamine pathways, fed me my first video of a child being murdered. After the flood of…
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Red Flags: How and Why to Verify a Breaking News Story
This is an Instagram post that showed up in my feed. Full disclosure: I’m a huge fan of Chicago, I kind of like J.B. Pritzker, and I definitely don’t think Trump should be deploying the National Guard to cities. So on its surface, this post looks like good news to me. But that doesn’t mean…
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News Literacy Tools
Misinformation is a hot button issue these days, as its existence abounds. Content creators are using social media to debunk misinformation and expose media bias. But, it’s probably wise to educate ourselves outside of social media too. Websites like Snopes have been around for awhile, fact-checking rumors, conspiracy theories and statements made by public figures.…
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How I expertly consume media as a media literacy student.
For 24 hours I will be keeping track of all of the media I consume to evaluate my media literacy skills, habits and ability to spot misinformation. I’m very well-informed and educated so this should be exemplary behavior. 10:30 a.m.: Morning routine: I wake up and check my text messages and snapchat messages. My mom…
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Everything is Computer Above the Clouds
Would you rather live in the fictional world of The Jetsons, or in present-day USA? I created a poll and asked Reddit users this question. An overwhelming majority (76%) choose the fictional world of The Jetsons. So, I thought I’d imagine what it would take to turn present-day USA into the imagined future of The…
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Have the kids ever been alright?
Set the stage. It’s spring in America. The weather couldn’t be more lovely. Another group of teens prepares to participate in the rite of passage that is high school graduation. The crowd of proud onlookers collectively document nearly every second. The graduation ceremony is also filmed and streamed live on Facebook. QR codes are connected…
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An Inconvenient Vaccination (and Autism) Story
I didn’t vaccinate my daughter when she was born and the reasons aren’t what you might expect. 18 years ago, the natural health movement wasn’t as popular as it is today but like the anti-vaccine movement, it was growing. It was a family member of mine who told me that both of their colleague’s children…
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Under Their Eyes
For my Media Literacy class I’ve logged my media behavior to analyze my privacy. 11 a.m.: I start my day by checking Instagram and TikTok. I have multiple accounts, but my business Instagram is all about art and design and that’s what I’ve been using more lately. I mostly like or save posts from other…