S1E15 Beyond Fake News: News Literacy and the Informed Citizen

In the age of information, why is so hard to be a well-informed citizen? Developing our news literacy can help us navigate the media landscape, and that means more than checking facts and spotting hoaxes. Yes, facts are important, but we also need a broader understanding of how news and information are produced and consumed in the digital age. What’s happening to real news, and how is it constructed? Are you in a filter bubble, and how can you break out? Are you the customer or the product in the attention economy, and how can citizens reclaim their power? Drawing on history, psychology, sociology, and politics, this conversation can help you increase your news literacy and teach others to do the same.

Seth Ashley, PhD, is associate professor of journalism and media studies at Boise State University, where he also serves as faculty advisor for student media. He is the author of "News Literacy and Democracy," and his research on media literacy, media sociology and communication policy has been published in a range of peer-reviewed journals. Ashley received his PhD and MA from the University of Missouri School of Journalism. He has worked as a writer and editor for newspapers and magazines and as a designer and technician for film and theater.

Learn more by reading "News Literacy and Democracy,” available from Amazon and Routledge.

https://www.amazon.com/News-Literacy-Democracy-Seth-Ashley-dp-113862506X/dp/113862506X/

https://www.routledge.com/News-Literacy-and-Democracy/Ashley/p/book/9781138625068

Watch the video here.