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2016 presidential election underscores the need for news literacy

Updates

We have just weathered a presidential election in which a bitterly divided nation seemed incapable of
agreeing on facts — let alone solutions — for the country’s myriad challenges.

Meanwhile, the press, polls and pundits proved to be stunningly wrong in crafting the narrative of this election and appeared out of touch with broad swaths of voters. Partisans on all sides displayed intense hostility to, and distrust of, the news media.

Amid this fractured civic discourse, it is more vital than ever that the next generation be taught how to discern credible, verified information from raw information, spin, misinformation and propaganda. It is essential that young people understand the role of the news media and the First Amendment in a democracy.

The News Literacy Project remains more committed than ever to this mission. As always, we appreciate your support and participation in this important cause.

 

More Updates

News literacy insights on misinformation about immigration protests

Viral rumors and falsehoods have spread in the wake of political protests, particularly recent ones opposing detentions by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency. In a story for Mashable, Peter Adams, Senior Vice president of Research and Design at the News Literacy Project, offered tips for news consumers to avoid getting tricked by false…

NLP in the News

For Education Week, educators share how they teach students to question health influencers

An opinion piece in EducationWeek by two educators from New York featured the News Literacy Project’s District Fellowship program. The commentary described how the program supported their efforts to teach students to critically evaluate health and wellness claims on social media. “By the end, our teens had developed habits of healthy skepticism when scrolling their…

NLP in the News