by Ann Kaste
Quick Summary
eLibrary Minnesota's Outreach and Instruction librarians are launching a new Minitex Messenger article series on media literacy and the identification of misinformation and disinformation for librarians and educators working with K-12 students, library patrons, and community members.
One challenge in this work is that we use many different terms to describe similar ideas. This series will use Media Literacy Now’s definitions of the various terms, with ‘media literacy’ as the umbrella term for the following competencies and concepts:
- Media literacy is the ability to: decode media messages, including the systems in which they exist; assess the influence of those messages on our thoughts, feelings, behaviors, perceptions, beliefs, health, and on our society; and use and create media to provide information, send a message, or tell one’s own story in a way that is thoughtful, conscientious, safe, and responsible.
- Digital citizenship refers to the use of media literacy to participate in the public sphere using communications technology. Digital citizenship is an outcome that requires media literacy skills.
- Digital literacy is applying media literacy skills when using digital technology to create, send, and take in information and messages.
- Artificial Intelligence or AI literacy is another component of media literacy, not a new literacy. AI literacy is applying media literacy skills to recognize and think critically about media that is created using AI technology – sometimes called “synthetic media” – and to be reflective and mindful when using AI to create media.
- Information literacy is a subdomain of media literacy that enables individuals to recognize when information is needed and have the ability to locate, evaluate, and use effectively the needed information.
- News literacy is a subdomain of media literacy with an emphasis on knowledge of journalistic practice and the news media industry applied to judging the credibility and reliability of information found in news sources.
- Digital wellness education addresses the physical and emotional health impacts of media use, with attention to helping develop the conscious, balanced use of media that aligns with an individuals’ goals for their health and well-being.
In upcoming articles, we'll explore all these topics, including specific challenges such as how misinformation spreads, how to move beyond checklist-based evaluation, and how AI and emerging technologies are reshaping ideas of evidence and authorship. Each article will include classroom- and library-ready resources.
Stay tuned for updates, and reach out if you have ideas for topics we should cover and resources we can share. We hope to hear from you and keep the conversation about media literacy vibrant and dynamic among our Minitex community of librarians and educators.
AI-generated image created with OpenAI’s DALL·E via ChatGPT. 1/17/26
