The copious amount of information hurling itself at us daily is astounding and overwhelming. We hear podcasts, commercials, and daily radio reports. We see near constant commercial reels on television and elsewhere, informative articles in our email inboxes, print material in our mailboxes, and minute-to-minute notifications on our phones for a plethora of apps. Without intermission, everything seems to be vying for our attention! It’s easy to get lost and confused in the constant swirl of news due to society’s steady use of various forms of technology and media tools that disseminate information.
So, how do we successfully navigate this
chaotic landscape?
Employ information and media literacy.
Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education https://www.oercommons.org/courseware/lesson/83552/student-old/ |
|
|
Although technology tools have evolved over time, the concept of information literacy is not new. Information literacy in relation to news literacy has seemed to gain more attention in recent years with the rise of political fake news claims. The Liturgist podcast interview with Clay Johnson (2017) covers this topic in the episode entitled Fake News & Media Literacy. This podcast informs the audience about the influence of media on the public, the seriousness of being a responsible citizen by evaluating information with a skeptical mind, and how to assess information using a set of criteria or evidence markers. There are so many rabbit holes to scurry down when discussing fake news (including one of my favorite books, 1984); however, I want to expound upon how the claim of “fake news” has been used by public figures to shut down or discourage questions or statements that may conflict with a certain agenda, message, or persona. The damaging effects of these fake news claims as described by Clay Johnson reminded me of the acronym DARVO. Dr. Jennifer Freyd (2023) states DARVO stands for "Deny, Attack, and Reverse Victim and Offender.” It is usually a term associated with abuse victims, but I think it applies to the use of fake news claims and using discernment. I argue if an observable pattern exists of a person or organization displaying an unwillingness to be held accountable for their actions or even having their actions questioned in any way, DARVO might be a deflecting tactic and skepticism is advised.
More consistently applicable questions to determine trustworthiness outlined by Clay Johnson (2017) on The Liturgist podcast include:
- Is the author or contributors named?
- Where is this information being published? Is there an editorial review board? What kind of reputation do they have? Who owns or is affiliated with it? Do they publish corrections?
- Is there a date of publication? Is it recent?
- Are specific sources cited? How do they reference sources?
- Is it well written?
- Does the information presented elicit anger or fear? What is the emotional response?
References
Association of College & Research Libraries (ACRL). (2015) Framework for information literacy for higher education. American Library Association. https://www.ala.org/acrl/sites/ala.org.acrl/files/content/issues/infolit/framework1.pdf
Freyd, J.J. (2023). What is DARVO? Retrieved January 25, 2023, from http://pages.uoregon.edu/dynamic/jjf/defineDARVO.html.
Gungor, M. & Science Mike (Hosts). (2017, March 7). Fake news & media literacy [Audio podcast]. The Liturgist. https://theliturgists.com/fake-news-media-literacy-podcast-page/
Partnership for 21st Century Learning. (2015, May). P21 framework definitions. https://www.marietta.edu/sites/default/files/documents/21st_century_skills_standards_book_2.pdf
Valenza, J. (2016, November 26). Truth, truthiness, triangulation: A news literacy toolkit for a “post-truth” world. School Library Journal. https://blogs.slj.com/neverendingsearch/2016/11/26/truth-truthiness-triangulation-and-the-librarian-way-a-news-literacy-toolkit-for-a-post-truth-world/
Hi Rae,
ReplyDeleteThanks for your well-written post. I really like how your voice shines through the information. I, too, struggle with what my media diet should be as a future school librarian. I am a slow reader and a slow thinker, so to have to consume so much from so many sources about so many topics to remain at the forefront of knowledge and also unbiased seems overwhelming to me. You bring up a very good point about protecting your mental health. I am warming to the idea that we as librarians do not need to actually consume all the information to be helpful, we need to be able to teach students how to get information that is reliable for their needs. I feel mentally comforted that there are processes out there in the Framework and the Standards that can help us guide learners about how to be more information literate.
Thank you,
Jen
Hey, Raegan!
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for your blog post this week. You brought up some great points from the readings and podcast from this week’s module. Your take on the information in this module was very informative and allowed me to understand even more of the content that was covered.
Reading through this week’s readings and viewings made me think about how I evaluate and use information. It seems that it made you think the same way. I do not do well at evaluating information, but from this module I learned that I must take the time to do so. It is our jobs as librarians to assess information and teach students to do the same. In the future, my eyes will be open. I will be using the strategies that we learned in this module to make sure that the information I researched is reliable. If we practice evaluating the information we seek each time we research, the more prepared we will be when teaching students to do the same.
Again, thank you for sharing!
Sincerely,
Courtland Smith