Media literacy versus fake news: fact checking and verification in the era of fake news and post-truths.

Abstract

This paper provides research findings to support the case for media literacy as an aid to journalists and jour- nalism educators in a disruptive age through the foster- ing of resilient media engagement by young citizens. It posits that encouraging media literacy in news consum- ing publics facilitates a more critically engaged civic soci- ety. Focused on trust, it shares the outcomes of a project funded by the US Embassy in London, which brought to- gether leading researchers from the United States and UK with a range of key stakeholders, including journal- ists. Their collective aim: to devise a practical strategy for harnessing media literacy to develop young people’s un- derstanding of and ability to withstand ‘fake news’.