Media Literacy

I recently gave an evening talk at one of our Bible schools on the subject of “Media Literacy — Discerning between Good and Evil.’ Based on comments received afterward, the topic struck a responsive chord. Parents, children, and ecclesias are struggling to cope with the messages of mass media and their remarkable ability to intrude on our daily lives.

Although turning off our media delivery devices (i.e., smartphones, televisions, computers, etc.) is often a helpful choice, it fails to take into consideration the vast scope of media and the fact that many of these devices have positive uses. It has become essential, therefore, that we teach ourselves and our children how to think critically about what we are being bombarded with on a daily basis. Media literacy equips us to deconstruct media with the purpose of discerning between good and evil.

The wide impact of mass media and the importance of media literacy are considered in a document called Literacy for the 21st Century:

“When one considers video games, television, pop music, radio, news papers, magazines, billboards, the internet — even T-shirts! — we are exposed to more mediated messages in one day than our great-grandparents were exposed to in a year. Media literacy teaches the skills we need to navigate safely through this sea of images and messages — for all our lives.1

With this in mind, I would like to discuss some of the ways that Sunday schools and CYCs can counteract the ungodly messages that our children face on a daily basis.

Starting point

Because every parent will have a separate policy regarding media exposure and usage in their home, a good place to start with children of all ages is to have a look into their world. This should be done with a desire to find out how best to help them, not out of a spirit of judging others.

Check into your students’ world by asking them questions like these:

  • If I (the SS/CYC teacher) was thinking of buying a video game or app for my kids, what would you suggest?
  • If I have time for a little TV tonight, is there anything good on?
  • What are some of the popular musical groups these days? What do you think of their music?
  • What are some of the things that are ‘going viral’ right now? Do you ever get involved in them?
  • What’s going on at your school that’s cool or uncool, fascinating, unfair, outrageous or worrisome?

Once you’ve got a list, keep your eyes and ears open for examples from their world that you can use to illustrate concepts when you are ready to teach media literacy.

It is also important to get an idea of your students’ knowledge and perspectives of media. Again, here are some useful questions to ask them:

  • What is included in the given media?
  • In general, how does it make you feel?
  • Has the information you received from the media ever made you feel angry or good?
  • Do you think the media has an influence in your life, your choices, and your attitude?
  • What are some of the values that are promoted by the media?
  • How does the media portray smoking, violence, and personal relationships?
  • Have you ever considered how God views our use of media?

Asking questions like these will give you an idea where to start with the young people.

Four principle messages of media

There are many messages that are promoted by mass media. I have identified four that I feel are particularly insidious and need to be addressed both in our homes and in our ecclesias. The media will often try to do the following:

  • Sexualize everything.
  • Promote materialism.
  • Elevate and promote immoral and risky behaviors.
  • Make violence entertaining.

It is extremely important for our children to begin recognizing the crafty ways that media present these messages and that turning away from them can be a matter of salvation. It is also imperative that parents, aunts, and uncles, take the lead in these matters. If our kids don’t see and hear us condemning violent, immoral, materialistic messages, they won’t comprehend why they are bad for them.

Five key concepts

There are five key concepts to have in mind when analyzing media. The more our young people become familiar with these concepts, the better able they will be to focus their examination of media; and the better able they will be to understand the stated and implied meanings that are embedded in the messages they are analyzing.

  • All media messages are ‘constructed.’. It is important for children to know that media presentations don’t just happen. Commercials, songs, movies, newscasts, television shows, etc., are always created for very specific purposes.
  • Media messages are constructed using a creative language that has its own rules. When a media message is created, it is done using tested and proven language and techniques that are designed to persuade you to do something.
  • Different people experience the same media message differently. When media messages are created they often target a specific audience. It is beneficial to try to view the message from another person’s perspective in order to gain a greater understanding of the message.
  • Media have embedded values and points of view. Quite often these values are in the subtext of the message. It is important to consider what types of behaviors or lifestyles are being promoted or sold.
  • Most media messages are organized to gain profit and/or power. It is important to understand that no media is concerned with our spiritual well-being. Its primary purposes are to make money and gain power.

Combining the five key concepts with the four principal messages of media equips a Sunday school or CYC class with many tools to begin deconstructing and interpreting media. It will be important for teachers to select media examples that are appropriate for their age group to analyze. There are many, many examples that would never be appropriate, yet it is quite easy to find examples that will enable you to teach good media literacy skills. Keep your eyes open for ads, movie posters, magazine covers, songs, video games, T-shirts, billboards, etc., that carry corrupting messages and can be appropriately analyzed in class.

Activities

Deconstruction. Select a media sample and analyse it using the key concepts. The goal is to get to the truth of the message. Asking the right questions is crucial when deconstructing a media sample. For example: Who created this message and why? Who is their target audience? What creative or persuasive techniques have they used to catch my attention? How close is it to reality? What values or morals are being promoted or ignored?

Finish the Story. This is a particularly good strategy to use with advertisements, but it also works with other media trends and messages. It is always beneficial to have students follow things through to their logical ending. Have them imagine that they have purchased a certain product and started using it. They “finish the story” by discussing, writing, acting out, or drawing a picture that represents the truth about their life after using the product. Ultimately this should demonstrate the many false claims that ads make and the consequences of risky behaviors.

Create an Info graphic. Info graphics display a lot of information in a simple, attractive way.2Show your students some examples and have them create an info graphic to educate their peers about the dangers of a specific media topic. Students can create info graphics online by going to sites like pikto chart.com/ and www.easel. ly. In the process, they can make media serve them, not the other way around.

Prepare a PowerPoint (or Prezi) Presentation. Have individuals or groups of students create a PowerPoint presentation for their Sunday school or CYC class that promotes positive media use, the dangers of media, online safety, effective strategies for curbing the overuse of media, etc. I also mention Prezi because it can be used to create a presentation online. The presentation can be stored and then accessed anywhere. Go to prezi.com/ to get started.

Create a Commercial. Have students use the techniques they have learned to create a commercial that promotes Godly behaviors and characteristics. You’ll be amazed at what young people can do using their media knowledge and tools.

Be an Ad/Media Detective. Have students bring in an ad or media message that is trying to sell them something. Have them identify the strategies that the ad/ media uses and have them explain the real message that is being communicated.

Bible examples of “Sales Jobs”. Find examples in the Bible of people or groups that used creative techniques to sell a message (Jeroboam, Absalom, Rabshakeh, etc.). Use media literacy skills to analyze their messages.

Create a Counter Ad. Start with a specific ad. Using the format of the ad itself, have the students recreate it, cutting through the deception and providing truthful statements that can be glued over the original ad.

Of great importance

The most important thing you can do for your Sunday school or CYC class members is to gradually transfer the responsibility of discernment to them. It is essential that they begin to monitor their own habits, and that they begin to think critically about what the world is trying to feed them. It is essential that they become able to independently analyze and interpret the bombardment of messages they receive and not let media control them. It is vital that they understand that all the things promoted by the world are temporary; they are all going to pass away. Spending our time and energy on eternal things is of much greater value.

The most important tool we have at our disposal is the word of God. We must continue to make our Heavenly Father’s way of thinking our way of thinking. Most of what we see and hear being promoted these days is utterly opposed to our God. We need to have verses imprinted on the tablets of our hearts so that when temptations arise, the verses will shout out to us to reject the evil and choose what is good. Throughout all the activities discussed, verses need to be at hand and committed to memory. Below are a few that can be used as starting points.

  • Sexual Immorality: Psa 103:3; Job 31:1; Matt 5:28; 1 Cor 6:18.
  • Materialism: Psa 37:16; Matt 13:22; 1 Tim 6:10; Luke 12:15.
  • Immoral living: Rom 13:13; Gal 5:21; 1 Thess 5:5-7.
  • Violence: Gen 6:11 and Matt 24:37; Psa 11:5.

Much more could be said, but this article provides a way for families and eccle­sias to get started in media literacy. It has never been more important to do so. Historically, we have done a very good job of teaching our children the essential message of the Bible and how to defend ourselves against false doctrine. In the meantime, the world has been devising more and more ingenious and subtle ways to divert our hearts away from our Heavenly Father. It is time to start teaching our children how to stand up against this insidious onslaught and why it is essential.

  1. Elizabeth Thomas, Literacy for the 21st Century, An Overview & Orientation Guide to Media Literacy Education, Center for Media Literacy, 2003, p.9. This document is available online at http://www.medialit.org/sites/default/files/mlk/01_MLKorientation.pdf.
  2. Charts, diagrams and graphs are common examples of info graphics.