Diagnosing Propaganda Techniques in Campaign Ads: Civic Discourse and Media Literacy

Leigh Kellmann Kolb, Assistant Professor of English and Journalism at East Central College

January 13, 2020

Presidential election years present ample opportunities for lessons in media literacy; depending on your outlook and your class dynamics, this is either exhilarating or terrifying. Either way, it’s necessary for us to play a role in helping students navigate the overwhelming messages that surround them.  ...

Media Literacy Resources: Navigating a Digital Society

Michelle Turner and Leigh Kolb

September 5, 2019

To thrive and not just simply survive in a digital society, media literacy is a must. People of all ages need to be able to digest and analyze vast amounts of information from various sources. It is critical educators help students effectively create, access, analyze, and evaluate messages in a vari...

Lesson: Is it news or opinion?

Malorie Paine, Kingsbury High School, Memphis, TN

February 8, 2019

At an almost alarming rate, students these days are unable to determine news writing from opinion writing. In my two Journalism I classes, I conducted a pre-assessment experiment where students evaluated a news article and opinion article from the local newspaper. I asked students to read both pieces,...

Media Literacy in 2018: Top Five

Leigh Kolb, Assistant Professor of English and Journalism at East Central College

January 1, 2019

One of the most exciting aspects of weaving media literacy instruction into the classroom is the rich source material that we are able to glean from news and entertainment media, pop culture and social media. It can also feel overwhelming to try to keep our instruction on pace. When Beyoncé dropped...

Combating Apathy in an Era of “Fake News” and Standardized Testing

Leigh Kolb, English and Journalism Instructor at East Central College

January 1, 2018

Fake news. Bias. Alternative facts. Journalism is under attack, and our students certainly feel the apathy that results in this constant cycle of distrust. For students who might be interested in journalism, the job market seems dubious and there’s been increasing vitriol about mainstream news outlets...

Ancient Texts, Modern Media Literacy

Leigh Kolb, English and Journalism Instructor at East Central College

September 24, 2017

Perspective. This is a word we use often when we delve into the fundamentals of media literacy. Whose perspective are we getting, and who is in control of the message? How is this perspective different from what we are used to? Are many perspectives being considered? When we teach media literacy,...

Commentary vs. Journalism: Are journalists biased?

Michelle Turner, Washington High School, Washington, MO, and JEA 2016 Broadcast Adviser of the Year

July 23, 2017

A recent poll by Gallup reports that 62 percent of Americans believe journalists are biased in the arena of politics. The majority of those polled feel journalists favor Democrats in their reporting. This isn’t a shocker. Poll after poll has similar results: Americans believe journalists are biased...

Character Ed should link in lessons on Media Literacy and Digital Citizenship

Michelle Turner, Washington High School, Washington, MO, and JEA 2016 Broadcast Adviser of the Year

April 17, 2017

The need for Media Literacy and Digital Citizenship in school curriculums cannot be denied. However, I have a radical proposal. Can we emphasize in those lessons themes that include kindness and respect for others? Just a few weeks ago, I saw two prime examples of why incorporating Character Education...

Journalists’ Creed gets an updated look – download!

April 4, 2017

The Missouri School of Journalism just redesigned the print presentation of The Journalist’s Creed. Please feel free to download here, share this, make copies, hang it as posters, etc. Walter Williams’ words are timeless!...

Beyoncé and Black History: Get in Formation

Leigh Kolb, English and Journalism Instructor at East Central College

January 28, 2017

On Feb. 6, 2016, Beyoncé released "Formation," a surprise new single and music video. The next day, she performed the song during the Super Bowl halftime show. The music video itself featured stunning imagery of southern African American pride, and included painful imagery as well, including Katrina floodwaters, an empty swimming...