Georgia Humanities has a project titled, Know Your News, which provides middle and high school students with the opportunity to become better journalists by teaching them how to comprehend the press and its function in our democracy. Know Your News also provides helpful tips on topics such as media literacy, which is what we’ll be looking at today.
These are just a few helpful beginner tips on media literacy to get you started on your journey to becoming a more reputable journalist:
Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ) Code of Ethics:
Seek Truth and Report it
Accuracy and fairness are key components of ethical journalism. When gathering, reporting, and interpreting information, journalists should act honorably and bravely.
Minimize Harm
Respect the humanity of all parties involved, including sources, subjects, coworkers, and the general public.
Act Independently
Serving the public is the highest and most important responsibility of ethical journalism.
Be Accountable and Transparent
In order to practice ethical journalism, one must accept accountability for their actions and be transparent about their choices.
Your Role and Responsibility as a Journalist:
Check the story's factual accuracy by doing some research.
Use websites such as Snopes or Politifact to fact check as those are reputable sources. More Available Here.
Do not rely solely on your favorite news websites or radio stations to get the full picture of a story. Instead, follow a variety of sources.
As some websites are paid, your school might offer a login to those websites so you can have free access.
If you are unsure of the source of a news story, don't share it.
To check the reliability of the news source, check the domain or web address of the website as unusual domains like ".com.co" or “.net“ may be found on untrustworthy websites. You can also check out the "About Us" section of the website to find out more about an organization and vet the source.
Speak up if you see someone spreading what might be false information or fake news.
Questions you should ask, regarding fake news, are:
Did the journalist provide a source citation for the information? The term for this is "attribution," and fake news frequently lacks attribution.
If so, did the article cite a reliable expert or source that you could easily confirm online?
To learn more about your role as a journalist as well as media literacy don’t forget to check out Know Your News that provide more in-depth guides and tools.