MEDIA LITERACY •Masaryk University •Brno, Czech Republic OUTLINE ¢THEORY: ¢Defining Media Literacy ¢Types of Media Messages ¢Approaches to Analyzing Media Texts ¢ ¢PRACTICE: ¢Denotation and connotation ¢CLIL: Advertisements ¢ - advertisement ¢ - video ¢ESP: Health Fraud ¢ ¢ ¢ ¢ ¢ MEDIA ¢provide a source of information - use of media sources of written, audio, and visual texts ¢ ¢however, it should also be a tool for learning to interpret multiple layers of messages ¢ ¢awareness of mediated images of people, places, things, ideas, values versus reality LITERACY ¢In the past – ability to read and write ¢ ¢Today – the skill of understanding, interpreting, and critically evaluating texts ¢ ¢Literacy changes as new technologies emerge ¢ ¢Central problems: ¢ - uncritical acceptance of facts/ideas/opinions ¢ - interpreting texts as right or wrong instead of being open to interpretation ¢ ¢ WEB 1.0 – “GOING TO A LIBRARY” ¢for passive reception of information ¢ ¢majority of users = consumers of content ¢ ¢limited interaction between sites and web users (no comments, reviews, etc.) ¢ ¢read-only, static web pages ¢ ¢ ¢ ¢ ¢ ¢ WEB 2.0 – “TALKING WITH A GROUP OF FRIENDS” ¢active interaction among users, encouraging participation, collaboration, and information sharing ¢ ¢characterized by the creation and sharing of intellectual and social resources by end-users ¢ ¢the use of wikis, blogs, discussion groups, online electronic tools, etc. ¢ ¢ ¢ ¢ ¢ WEB 3.0 – “HAVING A PERSONAL ASSISTANT” ¢dynamic applications, interactive services, and machine-to-machine interaction ¢ ¢characterized by its ability to interpret user input and tailor the web surfing experience to make it more relevant and personal (semantic web) ¢ ¢e.g. last.fm: a music service providing the users with personalized recommendations based on the music they listen to ¢ ¢ ¢ ¢ ¢ DEFINING MEDIA LITERACY ¢Silverblatt (2008): ¢1. Promoting critical thinking skills 1. ¢2. Understanding the process of mass communication ¢ ¢3. Media impact on the individual and society ¢ ¢4. Strategies for analyzing and discussing media texts ¢ ¢5. Insight into our culture and ourselves ¢ ¢6. Understanding and enjoyment of media content ¢ ¢7. Producing effective, responsible media messages ¢ ¢ DEFINING MEDIA LITERACY ¢Quinlisk (2003): ¢1. media messages are constructed representations of reality ¢ ¢2. individual experiences filter media messages ¢ ¢3. media messages carry social, political, economic, and aesthetic power ¢ ¢4. each form of media has its own communicative characteristics DEFINING MEDIA LITERACY ¢Hobbs (2011): ¢1. Media messages are constructed ¢2. They are produced within economic, social, political, historical, and aesthetic contexts ¢3. Interpretation – an interaction between the reader, the text, and the culture. ¢4. There are codes and conventions associated with different genres ¢5. Media representations impact people’s understanding of and participation in social reality. ¢6. Media messages reflect and shape individual and social behavior, attitudes, and values. SO, WHAT IS MEDIA LITERACY? ¢ ¢reality is mediated via symbolic representations - ¢media messages arise within specific contexts - ¢they provide insights into our world - ¢they are conveyed through genres - ¢they impact on individual and society. TYPES OF MEDIA MESSAGES 1.manifest messages: overtly expressed, recognizable by the target audience. 2. 2.latent messages: hidden in the media text, being therefore difficult to notice 3. 3.cumulative messages: frequently occurring, add new shades of meaning over a certain period of time, reproducing gender, age, race, and cultural stereotypes 4. MEDIA LITERACY AND EFL ¢Bringing specific issues into focus: ¢ ¢portrayal of people, society, and culture ¢ ¢promoting attitudes and values by specific images ¢ ¢meaning via technical and symbolic features ¢ ¢media influence on opinions of others, world views, social relations, and behaviors ¢ ¢meaning is interpreted differently in different cultures ¢ FRAMEWORK FOR ANALYZING MEDIA TEXTS (HOBBS 2011) APPROACHES TO MEDIA LITERACY SILVERBLATT (2008) ¢PROCESS: the purposes of a media text ¢ ¢FORMULAIC: structure, characters, and plot ¢ ¢HISTORICAL: depiction of events in specific genres ¢ ¢IDEOLOGICAL: reflection of ideologies in media ¢ ¢AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL: individual perceptions ¢ ¢NON-VERBAL: analysis of gestures, visuals, fonts… ¢ ¢ ¢ ¢ ¢ SCIENCE. IT’S A GIRL THING! ¢European Commission's online campaign spot ¢discrepancy between the intention and actual potential to change gender stereotypes ¢connecting women primarily with fashion and make-up ¢science = chemistry and physics (social sciences are excluded) ¢the focus in on appearance (looking pretty) ¢the result: higher education will make you even sexier ¢ ¢ ¢ ¢ http://media.npr.org/assets/img/2011/01/20/30539712_custom-4ae4a83b35bee1912fb40d5689e6bdf78303c678 -s6-c30.jpg •THE RED FLAGS OF HEALTH FRAUD http://blogs-images.forbes.com/jeffbercovici/files/2012/08/dr.-oz-weight-loss-pills.jpg •THE RED FLAGS OF HEALTH FRAUD THE RED FLAGS OF HEALTH FRAUD ¢fast results and no restrictions on diet, exercise, or lifestyle ¢easy fixes to obesity or impotence ¢promises to cure untreatable diseases ¢expressions connoting mystery, such as hidden ingredients ¢the use of all natural therefore safe ¢testimonies from unknown physicians alias actors ¢product endorsement by sportsmen ¢the before/after comparison (adjusted with Photoshop) ¢sense of urgency: limited availability, act now ¢no-risk guarantee with money back SOURCES ¢ANDING, R. H. Nutrition Made Clear. The Teaching Company, 2009. ¢HOBBS, R. Digital and Media Literacy. Connecting Culture and Classroom. London: Sage Ltd., 2011. ¢QUINLISK, C. C. Media Literacy in the ESL/EFL Classroom: Reading Images and Cultural Stories. In: Tesol Journal. 2003. ¢SILVERBLATT, A. Genre Studies in Mass Media. A Handbook. New York and London: M. E. Sharpe, 2007. ¢Pros and Cons of Controversial Issues [online]. ProCon.org, Santa Monica [accessed 2014-08-20]. Available from WWW: ¢ ¢