Download full text
(external source)
Citation Suggestion
Please use the following Persistent Identifier (PID) to cite this document:
https://doi.org/10.17645/mac.v11i2.6389
Exports for your reference manager
Teaching Journalism Literacy in Schools: The Role of Media Companies as Media Educators in Germany
[journal article]
Abstract German journalism is facing major challenges including declining circulation, funding, trust, and political allegations of spreading disinformation. Increased media literacy in the population is one way to counter these issues and their implications. This especially applies to the sub-concept of jou... view more
German journalism is facing major challenges including declining circulation, funding, trust, and political allegations of spreading disinformation. Increased media literacy in the population is one way to counter these issues and their implications. This especially applies to the sub-concept of journalism literacy, focusing on the ability to consume news critically and reflectively, thus enabling democratic participation. For media companies, promoting journalism literacy seems logical for economic and altruistic reasons. However, research on German initiatives is scarce. This article presents an explorative qualitative survey of experts from seven media companies offering journalistic media education projects in German schools, focusing on the initiatives’ content, structure, and motivation. Results show that initiatives primarily aim at students and teachers, offering mostly education on journalism (e.g., teaching material) and via journalism (e.g., journalistic co-production with students). While these projects mainly provide information on the respective medium and journalistic practices, dealing with disinformation is also a central goal. Most initiatives are motivated both extrinsically (e.g., reaching new audiences) and intrinsically (e.g., democratic responsibility). Despite sometimes insufficient resources and reluctant teachers, media companies see many opportunities in their initiatives: Gaining trust and creating resilience against disinformation are just two examples within the larger goal of enabling young people to be informed and opinionated members of a democratic society.... view less
Keywords
disinformation; media skills; journalism; Federal Republic of Germany; educational program; news agency; school education
Classification
Communicator Research, Journalism
Free Keywords
journalism literacy; journalistic media education; media literacy; news media literacy
Document language
English
Publication Year
2023
Page/Pages
p. 53-63
Journal
Media and Communication, 11 (2023) 2
Issue topic
Fakespotting: (Dis)Information Literacy as Key Tool to Defend Democracy
ISSN
2183-2439
Status
Published Version; peer reviewed