Wizards of EdTech Podcast episode touts value of Informable, Checkology
An educator on the EdTech Round Robin episode of Wizards of EdTech Podcast promotes (11:48) the value of Informable as a news literacy resource for all ages as well as the Checkology® virtual classroom.
Newsy segment covers pandemic’s effect on press freedoms
In Newsy’s April 30 segment on the coronavirus and misinformation, COVID-19 Limiting Press Freedoms, NLP’s Darragh Worland notes that the pandemic has empowered some governments to censor information or crack down on reporters trying to cover the crisis.
Apple News adds How to Know What to Trust in COVID-19 guide
Under the heading, Tried-and-true tactics to help spot bogus claims, no matter the subject, Apple News Spotlight includes NLP’s easy-to-follow guidelines, How to Know What to Trust, in its comprehensive guide to COVID-19 misinformation.
COVID-19 and kids: Newsy looks at resources to aid understanding
NLP resources and initiatives are included in an April 24 Newsy piece regarding COVID-19 and kids. The segment, Kid-Centered News Shows Aim To Help Children Understand COVID-19, also quotes NLP’s Peter Adams.
COVID-19 and Bill Gates conspiracy theories topic of second segment of Newsy series
COVID-19 and Bill Gates conspiracy theories are the topic of the second installment in a weekly series for Newsy featuring the News Literacy Project. Darragh Worland, NLP’s vice president for creative services, discusses how conspiracy theories linking the COVID-19 pandemic and Bill Gates have gained traction and become wildly popular across social media despite having been widely debunked.
“Public figures in general are easy targets for conspiracy theories,” Worland tells Newsy viewers in the April 24 segment.
According to the segment, people mentioned false conspiracy theories on social media that incorrectly linked Bill Gates to coronavirus 1.2 million times between February and April. The theories, Worland says, were created out of selective manipulation of information on Gates.
“Their research is just leading them down all these paths and their mind is making connections that really are not there,” Worland says. “Ultimately these kinds of conspiracy theories can affect people’s civic life, they can affect the decisions that they make.”
Newsy is an online national news network owned by The E.W. Scripps Co., which joined NLP in presenting National News Literacy Week in January as part of our ongoing partnership.
Healthy living website taps NLP for ‘infodemic’ advice
John Silva, NLP’s director of education, offers advice and tips for Well+Good’s audience as they navigate misinformation swirling around the coronavirus. The April 22 piece Why social media has helped turn COVID-19 into an ‘infodemic’ includes interviews with public health and media literacy experts.
COVID-19 and 5G conspiracy theories topic of first segment of Newsy series
COVID-19 and 5G conspiracy theories are the topic of the first installment in a weekly series for Newsy featuring the News Literacy Project. Darragh Worland, NLP’s vice president for creative services, discusses how conspiracy theories linking the COVID-19 pandemic and 5G wireless technology are circulating widely on social media despite having been debunked by scientists.
“Once a falsehood makes it out into the mainstream, even if you delete the post, the damage has been done,” Worland tells Newsy viewers in the April 17 segment.
The solution, she notes, is news literacy, specifically: “being able to recognize the story and to be able to stop yourself before you let your brain sort of go down these paths.”
Newsy is an online national news network owned by The E.W. Scripps Co., which joined NLP in presenting National News Literacy Week in January as part of our ongoing partnership.
Gonzales a guest on We Don’t Talk About That podcast
Suzannah Gonzales, NLP’s associate director of education, discusses misinformation and what each of us can do to avoid falling for it and to help others avoid it as a guest April 13 episode of the We Don’t Talk About That podcast with Lucas Land.
“One thing I’m suggesting to people is, think like a journalist during this time of misinformation. Consider all pieces of information. Check it out, as we say,” Gonzales tells listeners.
Article stresses coronavirus misinformation danger
In the article “Misinformation Is a Matter of Life and Death” published on Medium on April 9, NLP CEO and founder Alan C. Miller notes the true danger in misinformation about the coronavirus: “The COVID-19 pandemic has underscored a new reality that now permeates our lives: misinformation is a threat not just to the public life of our country, but to our public health as well.”
Philadelphia publication: NLP an online learning resource
The Philadelphia Public School Notebook, an independent, nonprofit news service serving supporters of the Philadelphia public schools, put the News Literacy Project at the top of its list of “Online learning resources you may have missed.”
The article, published April 3, notes that Checkology is free for U.S. educators and parents affected by COVID-19 related school closures. It also describes components of the e-learning platform.
AllSides showcases “Understanding Bias” Checkology lesson
AllSides featured NLP’s new Checkology virtual classroom lesson, “Understanding Bias,” as a resource in the Media Bias section of its homepage on April 1. AllSides is a news website that strives “to display the news as it is covered from a breadth of perspectives. That includes different perspectives on the same story, as well as different opinions on the day’s top stories.” Its mission is to: “Strengthen our democracy by freeing people from filter bubbles so they can better understand the world — and each other.”
Teen Vogue: NLP a resource to combat misinformation
The News Literacy Project makes Teen Vogue’s list of “10 Ways to Fight For Social Justice During the Coronavirus Pandemic,” published on its website on March 30. NLP is included under No. 8 Combat Misinformation as a resource because, “There is so much information and misinformation about COVID-19 floating around online.”
Silva advises public on how to cope with misinformation overload
John Silva, NLP’s director of education, advises the public to “act like a journalist” in the March 22 Associated Press article Virus outbreak means (mis)information overload: How to cope. Silva says anyone searching for accurate information about the virus needs to act a little like a journalist by verifying suspicious claims
Be wary of information from groups or news organizations you don’t know — in some cases the groups behind misinformation create websites and social media accounts that look like a legitimate news organization. Remember that there’s a difference between news stories and opinion pieces. News stories should include the source of the information. If there’s no source or attribution, be suspicious, Silva tells readers.
NLP weighs in on the coronavirus and social media
Peter Adams, NLP’s senior vice president of education, is quoted in the article “Health experts embrace social media to fight coronavirus,” published by The Hill March 21. “A lot of experts are speaking directly to the general public. It can be very valuable. The challenge for the public is knowing who is really telling the truth. Trolls and imposters are also active in that space,” Adams says.
Peter Adams discusses the coronavirus on Univision News
The COVID-19 pandemic continues to spread and so has related misinformation. Much of the false and misleading content is being shared widely on social media. Peter Adams, NLP’s senior vice president of education, discusses the topic live on Univision News on March 20, noting the danger inherent to the spread of misinformation related to the virus and what each of us can do to stem the flow.
USA Today article on ‘social media pandemic’ features NLP
Peter Adams, NLP’s senior vice president of education, is featured in the March 19 USA Today article “Welcome to the first social media pandemic. Here are 8 ways you can stop the spread of coronavirus misinformation.”
Adams notes, “Really well-intentioned people are trying to make sense of this and help friends and family to the greatest degree possible so they just sort of share everything they see, and that turns into this overabundance of information, a lot of which isn’t true.”
Column on ‘fake news’ quotes NLP’s Peter Adams
Natalie Y. Moore’s March 19 column in the Chicago Sun-Times, “Fighting back against the fake claim of ‘fake news,’” closes with thoughts on “fake news” from Peter Adams, NLP’s senior vice president of education.
Column on value of trusted information shares advice from NLP
Ethan Shorey’s March 18 column,“During these times, trusted information so important,” in the northern Rhode Island newspaper, The Valley Breeze, a newspaper in northern Rhode Island, includes advice for navigating misinformation from Peter Adams, NLP’s senior vice president of education.
Adams interviewed for NPR program on coronavirus misinformation
Michel Martin of NPR interviewed NLP’s Senior Vice President of Education Peter Adams for the segment “Misinformation Around The Coronavirus” on the March 14 segment of All Things Considered Weekend Edition.
“The equivalent of taking 20 seconds and washing your hands is very much the same in the information space, where if you take 20 seconds, investigate the source, do a quick Google search, stay skeptical, we can eliminate a great deal of the confusion and misinformation out there,” Adams tells listeners.
Alan Miller featured in “Real vs. False” column
Larry Magid’s March 13 Mercury News column, “Magid: Tools to help identify real vs. false online information,” includes information about Checkology and quotes from an interview with Alan C. Miller, NLP’s founder and CEO.
HundrED’s coronavirus resources roundup includes Checkology, NewsLitCamp
HundrED, a global education nonprofit, included NLP’s Checkology virtual classroom and NewsLitCamp as innovative resources in the March 12 article, “Proactive Measures In Education During The Coronavirus Pandemic.”
N.Y. Times cites NLP as coronavirus misinformation resource
A March 11 article in The New York Times Learning Network section, “Coronavirus Resources: Teaching, Learning and Thinking Critically,” listed NLP as a resource “for staying on top of what’s true and what’s not — and for learning key news literacy skills useful not just in this context, but for thinking critically about any information you encounter.”
TeachThought Podcast episode focuses on NLP’s work
Suzannah Gonzales and John Silva discussed their work on behalf of NLP to empower educators to teach students the news literacy skills they need to become smart, active consumers of news and other information and engaged, informed participants in civic life on the TeachThought Podcast. They were interviewed for the March 7 episode of the education-focused program that discusses topics that can help teachers better prepare students for the modern world.
Politico ‘Birthday of the Day’ features NLP’s Miller
The politics, business and policy website Politico ran a Q and A with NLP founder and CEO on his birthday, March 5, 2020. In the “BIRTHDAY OF THE DAY: Alan Miller, CEO and founder of the News Literacy Project” piece, Miller talks about how he got started in journalism and shares a personal anecdote.
New York Times piece on news literacy trends cites NLP
Alan C. Miller, founder and CEO of NLP, is quoted in a feature article in a Feb. 20 New York Times Learning section about news literacy trends. “Increasingly, students are arriving at college with bad digital citizenship habits. They are outsourcing their judgment to their peers and to technology,” Miller says.
The piece, “These Students Are Learning About Fake News and How to Spot It,” also links to the NLP quiz, “How News-Literate Are You?,” and describes Checkology and one teacher’s experience using it.
Presidents Day piece examines White House views on free press through history
The Hill, a Washington, D.C., -based news website that focuses heavily on politics, policy and business, published a commentary by Alan C. Miller, founder and CEO of the News Literacy Project, discussing the history of U.S. presidents’ views regarding a free press. The article, which ran on Presidents Day, looks at this history in light of the current administration’s attacks on journalism as “fake news.”
“Donald Trump is by no means the nation’s first chief executive to take umbrage at the coverage he receives from the press. In fact, presidents from George Washington to Barack Obama have complained, sometimes bitterly, about journalists’ critical reporting,” Miller writes in his opening.
What former U.S. leaders also have in common is an understanding of the vital role of the press in our democracy. Miller demonstrates this by featuring select leaders’ statements on the topic.
Miller also says that “many presidents have expressed appreciation for the vital role the press plays as a cornerstone of democracy — even when they felt they had been unfairly attacked. So, on Presidents Day, at a time when many tend to see the news through a prism of Republican red or Democratic blue, it seems fitting to note this long bipartisan history.”
The piece also notes the important role of a free press in keeping the United States electorate informed. This is particularly relevant as the nation enters campaign season for the presidential election in November. “So, on this Presidents Day, let’s recall those chief executives who, despite their own fraught relationships with the news media, have recognized that a free press is a pillar of democracy. As the 2020 presidential campaign unfolds, let’s be mindful of their words as we look to the press to provide the information that we need to help us decide who will lead our country,” Miller concludes.
Adams discusses coronavirus misinformation on Newsy
Peter Adams, NLP’s senior vice president of education, is featured in a video segment on the news website Newsy discussing misinformation circulating around the coronavirus outbreak. Adams explains how rumors that invoke fear, such as ones involving public health, can be strong drivers of misinformation.
National News Literacy Week draws strong media coverage
NLP partnered with The E.W. Scripps Company on the first National News Literacy Week (Jan. 27-31). The initiative brought awareness to the need for news literacy education and provided students, educators and the public with tools, tips and resources for becoming news-literate. The week also generated robust news media coverage for NLP, Scripps and news literacy in general, including the following:
“Thomas Jefferson students tackle big issues as part of News Literacy Week” (Denver7, Denver)
“Our democracy depends on news literacy” (San Francisco Chronicle)
“KATC, Scripps partner for National News Literacy Week” (KATC, Acadiana, Louisiana)
“Launching National News Literacy Week with journalist Alan Miller” (WPIX, New York City)
“Interview with National News Literacy Project founder Alan C. Miller” (KMTV, Omaha, Nebraska)
“KPAX, KAJ partnering with News Literacy Project” (KPAX, Missoula, Montana)
“We need to carefully choose the sources we rely on for news ” (LNP, Lancaster, Pennsylvania)
“What is the National News Literacy Project?” (WRTV, Indianapolis)
“Working in our communities to stop the spread of misinformation” (News5, Cleveland)
“Groups promoting news literacy to combat misinformation” (David Bauder, The Associated Press)
“Editorial: Literacy can be more than reading (Pittsburgh Tribune-Review)
“How to not be duped in today’s chaotic media landscape” (PennLive, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania)
“Miller: Why news literacy is vital for democracy” (The Roanoke Times, Roanoke, Virginia)
“Facts matter, but news literacy does, too” (Meredith Williams, Post-Bulletin, Rochester, Minnesota)
Apple News app adds news literacy guide created by NLP
Apple Insider and Tech Crunch were among the technology news sites reporting that a section of the Apple News app devoted to coverage of the 2020 elections now features a news literacy guide created by NLP. Axios also referenced the guide in its Feb. 7 newsletter. In its own announcement, Apple said the guide — which it noted was produced “in partnership with the News Literacy Project” — would “help readers identify misinformation online and offer simple tips for seeking out accurate and reliable information.”
TeachThought publishes Checkology resource on critical thinking
A resource from NLP’s Checkology virtual classroom, 20 Questions to Help Students Think Critically About News, was published Jan. 26 on the website TeachThought, which is dedicated to innovation in K-12 education.
Reliable Sources podcast features Alan Miller
NLP founder and CEO, Alan Miller, was Brian Stelter’s guest on the Jan. 24 segment of his Reliable Sources podcast. In his Jan. 23 newsletter, Stelter, CNN’s chief media correspondent and host of the Sunday show Reliable Sources, described their conversation:
“On this week’s Reliable Sources podcast, News Literacy Project founder and CEO Alan Miller previews the first-ever National News Literacy Week — starting Jan. 27 — and a new partnership with Scripps’ local TV stations.
“Miller told me about his efforts to make people part of the ‘information solution.’ While the News Literacy Project focuses on middle and high school programs, the public awareness campaign with Scripps will give the general public ‘some tools and resources to become more news-literate,’ he said. We also discussed between skepticism and cynicism; the impact of digital disinformation; why the term ‘fake news’ is an oxymoron,’ and more.”
NLP’s Suzannah Gonzales is guest on Minnesota Public Radio
Suzannah Gonzales, NLP’s associate director of education, was a guest on the Minnesota Public Radio program News With Kerri Miller on Jan. 22. She was joined by Barbara Fister, scholar-in-residence at the nonprofit research institute Project Information Literacy. The segment, titled “How to educate young people about information, news literacy,” addressed information challenges and explored education tools we all can use to navigate the information landscape.
Listen here.
NLP cited in report on status of media literacy education
NLP received a shout-out from the education news site Education Dive on Jan. 7. In “Report: Florida, Ohio called ‘advanced leaders’ in K-12 media literacy efforts,” reporter Linda Jacobson looked at a new report by Media Literacy Now, a national advocacy group, detailing the status of state laws and proposed legislation promoting media literacy education for grades K-12. Jacobson noted that NLP provides educators with both resources and professional development programs.
NLP’s advice cited in USA Today article on election disinformation
Jessica Guynn, a senior technology writer at USA Today, includes advice from the News Literacy Project in her Dec. 12 article, “Facebook disinformation in the 2020 presidential election: What you can do to stop its spread”: When you’re checking your social media feeds, watch out for manipulated and fabricated images and videos, and give political endorsements (which are easily faked by disinformation peddlers) a second look before “liking” or sharing.
Checkology receives international Digital Wellbeing award
HundrED, an international nonprofit that promotes inspiring innovations in K-12 education, has selected the News Literacy Project’s Checkology® virtual classroom for a 2019 Spotlight on Digital Wellbeing award.
The award recognizes our e-learning platform as one of 100 global innovations in 2019. HundrED’s website features the honorees, each with a page that includes an overview, key data and videos. NLP’s NewsLitCamp® professional development program is also featured on the HundrED website.
“We are gratified that HundrED has recognized Checkology as a meaningful innovation in news literacy education,” said Alan C. Miller, NLP’s founder and CEO. “This recognition not only validates our work in the field but helps demonstrate the importance of bringing news literacy education to classrooms around the world.”
HundrED describes the importance of “digital wellbeing” to education in the context of the large role of the internet and electronic devices in the lives of young people: “This technological impact has many positive effects; for example, an increased scope in learning new knowledge and connecting with others from all over the world. However, it is becoming increasingly necessary for young people to adopt healthy habits when using digital devices so that they fully develop their mental, physical and social wellbeing.”
Digital wellbeing criteria
Judges select programs and products submitted for Spotlight award consideration on the following criteria:
- Innovativeness: Does the submission bring something new, within the context?
- Impact: Does it show demonstrable evidence of impact and has it been running for at least 1 year?
- Scalability: Can it be used, or is it already being used, in other areas or countries around the world?
HundrED’s research team and 30 members of the HundrED Academy — stakeholders in the field of education — select the winners.
Based in Helsinki, Finland, HundrED announced its first collection of 100 inspiring global education innovations in October 2017.
Washington Post education blog offers lessons from The Sift®
Valerie Strauss, author of The Washington Post’s education blog, Answer Sheet, is featuring items from NLP’s weekly newsletter for educators through the end of the school year. These columns are linked below:
“How QAnon Conspiracy Theory Became an Acceptable Option Marketplace Ideas more Lessons Fake News” (May 19, 2020)
“Covid 19 Conspiracy Video Goes Viral Flamingos Venice Other Lessons Fake News” (May 12, 2020)
“Seen Photos People Ignoring Social Distancing Rules Why Some Are Misleading Plus Primer Spotting Fake News” (May 5, 2020)
“Three Doctored Covid-19 Protest Photos Other Lessons Fake News” (April 28, 2020)
“No Microwaving Masks Doesn’t Sanitize Them More Lessons What’s Real Fake Covid-19 News” (April 15, 2020)
“No Coronavirus is Not False Flag Event or Linked 5g Cell Towers That More News Literacy Lessons” (April 9, 2020)
“News Literacy Lessons Wrong Ways People Believe Covid-19 Began” (March 25, 2020)
“Five Tips Students Coronavirus Pandemic News Literacy Lessons” (March 19, 2020)
“Coronavirus Spreads so does Misinformation News Literacy Lesson” (March 11, 2020)
“News Literacy Lessons: Student Finds Flaw Twitters Candidate Verification Teens Turn TikTok Politics” (March 3, 2020)
“News Literacy Lessons Bloomberg Tests Social Media Rules Plus China’s Censorship Virus Outbreak” (Feb. 25, 2020)
“News Literacy Lessons: Have you Stopped Talking People Because Their Political Views” (Feb. 14, 2020)
“News Literacy Lessons: How Pandemic Misinformation About Coronavirus Has Far Outpaced Diseases Spread “(Feb. 5, 2020)
“News Literacy Lessons: How Damaging Fake News is Spreading About China’s Virus Outbreak” (Jan. 28, 2020)
“News Literacy Lessons: Why Piece About Facebook Teen Vogue Sparked Confusion”(Jan. 15, 2020)
“News Literacy Lessons: How Satirical Story About Democrats Qasem Soleimani Was Spread Fact Plus Doctored Video Joe Biden” (Jan. 7, 2020)
“News literacy lessons: Clint Eastwood’s ‘Richard Jewell’ film and Greta Thunberg” (Dec. 18, 2019)
“News literacy lessons: Manipulating social media and letters to soldiers” (Dec. 10, 2019)
“News literacy lessons: Measles vaccine misinformation, and getting banned on TikTok” (Dec. 3, 2019)
“News literacy lessons: Students show ‘troubling’ lack of information skills — plus a Sacha Baron Cohen speech” (Nov. 26, 2019)
“Fighting the misinformation pandemic: Here’s help teaching students to distinguish real news from what’s fake” (Nov. 19, 2019)
Article on The Fulcrum touts Informable, NLP’s new app
An article by The Fulcrum, a nonpartisan digital news organization focused on strengthening American democracy, makes the case that students are not the only ones who need news literacy education. In the Nov. 25 piece, “Adults may need media literacy even more than students,” Eliza Newlin Carney touts NLP’s new brain training app Informable. The mobile app expands NLP’s reach to include the general public. Alan Miller, NLP’s founder and CEO, explains why resources for adults are important. “Unless we give the public the tools to be more discerning consumers and sharers of news and information, we’re not going to be able to address the misinformation pandemic that threatens to undermine the country’s civic life and our democracy.”
NLP in Newsweek column: Need to teach people to ‘resist misinformation’
In a Nov. 21 Newsweek column,”Facebook Won’t Save Us From Fake News. We Need to Teach People to Resist Misinformation | Opinion,” by Helen Lee Bouygues, founder of the Reboot Foundation, says of NLP: “There are some positive signs here in the United States. Several organizations, including Stony Brook University and the News Literacy Project, are working to develop media literacy curricula and other resources for teachers.”
NLP’s scope and initiatives featured in The Washington Post’s education blog
“If you don’t know what the News Literacy Project is and does, it’s time you do.”
That’s how Valerie Strauss, who writes The Washington Post’s education blog, Answer Sheet, starts today’s post about NLP’s scope, reach and initiatives. “Fighting the misinformation pandemic: Here’s help teaching students to distinguish real news from what’s fake” introduces readers to what we do and describes NLP resources that can help them become more news-literate.
Answer Sheet will be featuring items from every issue of The Sift®, our newsletter for educators (published weekly on Mondays, with the exception of federal holidays and Christmas, spring and summer vacation periods), through the end of the school year.
A look inside NLP’s NewsLitCamp® at the San Francisco Chronicle
EdSurge, an online news outlet that focuses on education technology, reported on NLP’s Nov. 14 NewsLitCamp at the San Francisco Chronicle. “Inside a News Literacy Camp, Where the Newsroom Becomes the Classroom” notes that the unique professional development format and setting of a NewsLitCamp allows the educators and journalists in attendance to learn from each other.