Media literacy a key skill

We are constantly bombarded with information. The stream of media content we receive every second on our electronic devices, email accounts and social media is overwhelming. It affects us physically, mentally and emotionally.

About 60 percent of the global population uses the internet, especially the youth, with more than 70 percent of the world’s young people online. However, we are negligent about offering widescale and sustainable media and information literacy training for all. The spread of online and offline disinformation and misinformation, conspiracy theories, hate speech and the misuse of social media should make us more attentive and responsible in facing this threat.

The intense, deliberate and highly professional disruptive content has progressively eroded trust in governments and the media in recent years. However, studies suggest that, where citizens are exposed to media and information literacy at a policy level, they have a higher capacity of resilience to disinformation. We need policies and programs at organizational, institutional, national and regional levels that enhance the capacities of people to think critically and effectively engage with information and content, and ensure equitable access to quality information.

The ability to evaluate the accuracy and truthfulness of information, to search for and find information from reliable and credible sources, and organize and use information in an ethical, responsible way have become important skills.

Misinformation and disinformation have become a very serious problem, as was evident, for example, during the COVID-19 pandemic. They are also evident in election campaigns, conflicts and even development programs and projects where there is a deliberate attempt to disrupt, undermine and derail.

The UN General Assembly in

2012 unanimously adopted a resolution proclaiming a Global Media and Information Literacy Week from Oct. 24-31 every year. Although the occasion has been commemorated around the world, it is not as widely recognized in the Middle East, even though this region witnesses a high rate of misinformation and disinformation. The occasion came and passed last month, as every year, without noticeable initiatives by media and education institutions or regional and international organizations.

There is a need to include this skill in school curricula at all levels, hold workshops and lectures, organize public campaigns to build the capacity of the public to critically read and think about the information they receive, and restore trust in credible sources and reliable journalism.

While policies are targeted to regulate and control social media providers, it is also important to raise awareness and build the capacity of the receivers to distinguish between good and bad content.

Before you click, before you share, think and do not be a part of the spread of false information. Simply writing “as received” does not absolve you from responsibility.