An educator's guide to
the week in news literacy |
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Here are the latest news literacy topics and tips on how to integrate them into your classroom. |
Debates over free speech and censorship have intensified following Charlie Kirk’s death. |
1. Kimmel suspension sparks free speech debates |
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Proponents of the network’s decision — which came in response to Jimmy Kimmel’s comments on air about the suspect accused of assassinating conservative activist Charlie Kirk — described it as a justifiable action by a private company following concerns from advertisers and affiliates.
- Critics argued that it set a dangerous precedent in which government pressure results in censorship that not only threatens the First Amendment but also might have a broader chilling effect on other political speech.
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Hours before the suspension, Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr had criticized Kimmel’s remarks and suggested that the agency might take action against the network.
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Broadcast networks that have a license from the FCC are required to operate in the public interest. What do you think this means?
- Do you believe Kimmel’s suspension represented a government attack on free speech? Or a business decision? Explain your position.
- What forms of expression are protected by the First Amendment?
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Why did the framers of the Constitution believe such protections were important?
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💡 Idea: Use the “First Amendment” slide in Week 3 of the Daily Do Now resource to reflect on free speech protections. |
2. Foreign state media use Kirk killing to push propaganda |
Russia, Iran and China are exploiting the Sept. 10 death of conservative activist Charlie Kirk to sow conspiracy theories, fuel social discord among Americans and advance their countries’ political interests. |
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Foreign state-run media outlets have spread false claims to frame the killing as a conspiratorial plot, according to an analysis from NewsGuard.
- Russian media falsely blamed Ukraine for Kirk’s death, Iran falsely accused Israel, and China used the killing to portray the U.S. as a failing and dysfunctional nation.
- Foreign influence campaigns and online trolls commonly seek to weaponize polarizing events in the U.S. for their own gain.
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Why do you think foreign adversaries saw Kirk’s killing as an opportunity to spread propaganda?
- What are state-run media outlets? How are they different from independent, standards-based news organizations?
- What can you do to push back against these kinds of false, conspiratorial narratives?
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3. Push for more student journalism in NYC |
Just 1% of public high school students in New York City have access to a journalism class, but a coalition of student journalists and educators is working to change that — and already seeing results. |
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A new report shows 90 out of about 400 public high schools across the city offered some type of journalism course last year, with 30 schools launching courses this year as part of a pilot program.
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One high school senior taking a new journalism elective at her school in Brooklyn told Gothamist: “Journalism is interviewing, understanding the community, and so much more.”
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How can students act as watchdogs for what goes on at their schools?
- If you were the editor of your school newspaper, what topics would go on the front page? Why?
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These classroom-ready slide decks provide a comprehensive walk-through on how to debunk false rumors. |
❌ NO: These are not genuine images of a Chihuahua standing among a group of wolves. ✅ YES: They were digitally altered to insert a Chihuahua into trail-cam images of a group of wolves and shared as part of an AI story. ✅ YES: The original photos are from a trail-cam research project by a Northern Michigan University student and show a group of wolves (and no Chihuahua) in the Upper Peninsula wilderness in 2019 and 2020.
⭐ NewsLit takeaway: Are you disappointed that these images are fake? When we want something to be true, we are more prone to believe it. View these Google Slides for a few tips to help spot and debunk this engaging (and misleading) content. | ❌ NO: WNBA star Caitlin Clark did not offer to pay education expenses for Kirk’s children. ❌ NO: NFL players Jalen Hurts, Justin Jefferson, Travis Kelce, Nick Bosa, Josh Allen, Aaron Rodgers and others did not donate $300,000 each to Kirk’s family.
❌ NO: Singer-songwriters Ed Sheeran and Adele did not write tribute songs and rappers Eminem and Kid Rock did not launch a charitable foundation in Kirk’s name. ✅ YES: Many public figures have expressed support for Kirk’s family and millions of dollars have been raised to support them after Kirk was fatally shot Sept. 10.
⭐ NewsLit takeaway: Many rumors that spread after Kirk’s death were created with artificial intelligence text generators that use trending topics and celebrity names to create clickbait articles. View the Google Slides below for tips on how to spot this AI slop. |
➕ Hunting for a book your local librarian can’t find? It might have been invented by an AI chatbot. Libraries are getting more requests for materials that don’t exist as people ramp up their use of these tools and trust AI responses, which are often inaccurate. ➕ Balancing speed and accuracy during breaking news events is no easy feat. The New York Times offered an inside look at how its journalists covered Charlie Kirk’s assassination — publishing over 100 stories in six days.
➕ The most-consumed news topic by American adults: government and politics, according to a Pew Research Center survey. Half of young adults ages 18 to 29 surveyed also say they get news about these topics extremely often or often.
➕ Weather forecasters are facing online hate and harassment that experts say is being fueled by misinformation and conspiracy theories about climate change.
➕ There is a bizarre but persistent false claim that singer Avril Lavigne has been replaced by a body double. BBC Bitesize included this in its roundup debunking common conspiratorial claims — while noting that half of U.K. teens surveyed have seen conspiracy theories online.
➕ Three million photographs capturing the “joy and struggle” of Black history are one standout artifact in the new archives for The Afro American, a 133-year-old Black newspaper in Baltimore. |
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