What is Media Literacy?

Media Literacy is the knowledge of mass media. It enables people to analyze and evaluate messages in a variety of genres: such as, television, radio, magazines, newspapers, advertisements, music, movies, etc. Media Literacy is one of the most important and vital pieces of modern human life. Without Media Literacy we would not be educated about worldwide or nationwide affairs, weather updates or warnings, any political involvement, and more. Think about how important the media is to all of us today. Not one person can avoid the media even for at least one day. It is simply a necessity.

There’s more to Media Literacy than just entertainment. Obviously, advertisements are made to persuade the public into buying a certain product, voting for a certain candidate, etc. We need the media for news updates and important information that is vital to our town or city, state, and country. There are a variety of ways to present this information. For example, brochures, newspaper, talk radio, internet, and more. Technology, such as the internet, is becoming more essential to peoples’ everyday lives.

Think about it for one second: you’re in the city walking around trying to avoid bumping into the mass amount of people that are overpopulating the skinny sidewalks. Look into a crowd like that and count how many people you see using a cell phone, iPod, or any other kind of media technology. More and more people are becoming more dependent on technology now because it is the easiest and fastest way of staying on top of everything in the media. Nowadays, people can get all their emails sent directly to their cell phone, they have the internet right in front of them at any time to search any news, weather, or sports updates. Media is essential for everyone’s daily lives. We don’t even realize how important media is to our everyday lives because it is so universal. Modernly, nobody would be able to survive without Media Literacy.