Media and Information Literacy

1st Semester Handout

INTRODUCTION TO MEDIA AND INFORMATION LITERACY

What is Communication?
• The English word 'communication' has been derived from the Latin word, 'Communicare' which means
to impart or participate or to transmit. The word 'Communicare' is derived from the root 'Communis'
which means to make common or to share. (http://www.rapodar.ac.in/)
• The act or process of using words, sounds, signs, or behaviors to express or exchange information or to
express your ideas, thoughts, feelings, etc., to someone else (http://www.merriam-webster.com)
• The exchange of information and the expression of feeling that can result in understanding
(http://dictionary.cambridge.org)

Types of Communication
Verbal Communication
• With verbal communication, people express their thoughts, ideas, and feelings through spoken
or written language. (https://socialskillscenter.com/) (Oral and Written)
Nonverbal Communication
• Nonverbal communication uses other methods, such as body language including facial
expressions, gestures, and other body movements.( https://socialskillscenter.com/)

Models of Communication
Lasswell’s Communication Model
• also known as the action, linear, or one-way model of communication.
• Easy and simple
Shannon and Weaver Model of Communication (1948)
• Mother of all models
• particularly designed to deal with the elements affecting the sender and the receiver which are
the source, transmitter, noise, channel, reception, message, receiver, and feedback.
RECEPTION MODEL Osgood- Schramm Model Of Communication (1954)
• is a two-way street with a sender and a receiver which requires two participants taking turns to
send and receive messages.
TRANSMISSION MODELS Westley and MacLean’s Model of Communication (1957)
• identifies the communication does not begin when human talks rather when the human
responds to his/her physical environment.
• The model was believed to have two contexts- interpersonal and mass communication.
Berlo’s SMCR Model of Communication
• has four main components – source, message, channel, and receiver, which describes the
communication process.
What is media and information literacy?
Literacy
The ability to identify, understand, interpret, create, communicate and compute, using
printed and written materials associated with varying contexts. Literacy involves a continuum of
learning, wherein individuals are able to achieve their goals, develop their knowledge and potential,
and participate fully in their community and wider society.

Media
The physical objects used to communicate with, or the mass communication through physical objects
such as radio, television, computers, film, etc. It also refers to any physical object used to communicate
messages.
Media Literacy
The ability to access, analyze, evaluate, and create media in a variety of forms. It aims to empower
citizens by providing them with the competencies (knowledge and skills) necessary to engage with
traditional media and new technologies.

Information
A broad term that covers processed data, knowledge derived from study, experience instruction,
signals or symbols.
Information Literacy
The ability to recognize when information is needed, and to locate, evaluate, and effectively
communicate information in its various formats.
includes the competencies to be effective in all stages of the lifecycle of documents of all kinds, the
capacity to understand the ethical implications of these documents, and the ability to behave in an
ethical way throughout these stages.

Technology literacy
The ability of an individual, either working independently or with others, to responsibly, appropriately,
and effectively use technological tools. Using these tools an individual can access, manage, integrate,
evaluate, create and communicate information.

Media and information literacy

The essential skills and competencies that allow individuals to engage with media and other
information providers effectively, as well as develop critical thinking and life-long learning skills to
socialize and become active citizens.

6 KEY CONCEPT In Media Analysis

1. All messages are "constructed".
2. Each medium has different characteristics, strengths, and a unique "language" of
construction.
3. Media messages are produced for particular purposes.
4. All media messages contain embedded values and point of view.
5. People use their individual skills, belief and to construct their meaning from media
messages.
6. Media and media messages can influence belief, attitudes, values, behaviors and the
democratic process.
 Evolution of Traditional Media to New Media

Traditional Media VS New Media

Traditional Media
• Media experience is limited.
• One Directional
• Sense receptor used are very specific.
New Media
• Media expreince is more interactive
• Audiences are more involved and send feedback simultaneously.
• Integrates all aspect of all medias.
History of Communication
Pre-Historic age before 1700’s
People discovered fire, developed paper from plants, and forged weapons and tools with stone, bronze, copper
and iron.
Industrial Age 1700’s-1930’s
People used the power of steam, developed machine tools, established iron production, and the manufacturing
of various products (including books through the printing press).
Electronic Age 1930’s-1980’s
The invention of the transistor ushered in the electronic age. People harnessed the power of transistors that led
to the transistor radio, electronic circuits, and the early computers. In this age, long distance communication
became more efficient.
Information Age 1990’s-2000’s
The Internet paved the way for faster communication and the creation of the social network. People advanced
the use of microelectronics with the invention of personal computers, mobile devices, and wearable technology.
Moreover, voice, image, sound and data are digitalized. We are now living in the information age.

Information Age
WHAT IS INFORMATION
• Data that has been collected, processed, and interpreted in order to be presented in a useable form.
• A broad term that can cover processed data, knowledge derived from study, experience, instruction, signals or
symbols. In the media world, information is often used to describe knowledge of specific events or situations
that has been gathered or received by communication, intelligence, or news reports.
PLAGIARISM
• Using other people’s words and ideas without clearly acknowledging the source of the information.
How will we know if we are committing plagiarism?
Common Knowledge: Facts that can be found in numerous places and are likely to be widely known.
Interpretation: You must document facts that are not generally known, or ideas that interpret facts.
Quotation: Using someone’s words directly. When you use a direct quote, place the passage between quotation
marks, and document the source according to a standard documenting style.
Paraphrase: Using someone’s ideas, but rephrasing them in your own words. Although you will use your own
words to paraphrase, you must still acknowledge and cite the source of the information.

Plagiarism has legal implications. While ideas themselves are not copyrightable, the artistic expression of an idea
automatically falls under copyright when it is created. Under fair use, small parts may be copied without permission
from the copyright holder. However, even under fair use - in which you can use some parts of the material for academic
or non-profit purposes -you must attribute the original source. What is considered fair use is rather subjective and can
vary from country to country.
 Types of Media
Print Media
media consisting of paper and ink, reproduced in a printing process that is traditionally mechanical.
Broadcast Media
media such as radio, television and film that reach target audiences using airwaves as the transmission medium.
New Media
content organized and distributed on digital platforms.
Social Media- forms of electronic communication (such as web sites) through which people create online
communities to share information, ideas, personal messages, etc.(http://www.merriam-
webster.com/dictionary/social%20media)
Media Convergence
⚬ The co-existence of traditional and new media.
⚬ The co-existence of print media, broadcast media (radio and television), the Internet, mobile phones, as well as
others, allowing media content to flow across various platforms.
Mass Media
The main means of mass communication, such as broadcasting, publishing, and the internet, considered
collectively. ( oxford languages)
Media Effect
Refers to the many ways individuals and society may be influenced by both news and entertainment mass
media, including film, television, radio, newspapers, books, magazines, websites, video games, and music.
(https://assets.publishing. Service.gov.uk)

Third Party Theory

•People think they are more immune to media influence than others.
Reciprocal Theory
•When a person or event gets media attention, it influences the way the person acts or the way the
event functions.
•Media coverage often increases self-consciousness, which affects our actions.
Cultivation Theory
•states that media exposure, specifically to television, shapes our social reality by giving us a distorted view on
the amount of violence and risk in the world.
MTRCB- Movie and Television Review Board is the government agency responsible for rating television
programs and films in the Philippines.
Boomerang Effect
•refers to media-induced change that is counter to the desired change.
AGENDA-SETTING THEORY (Lippmann/ McCombs and Shaw)
•process whereby the mass media determine what we think and worry about
•public reacts not to actual events but to the pictures in our head, created by media
PROPAGANDA MODEL OF MEDIA CONTROL (Herman & Chomsky )
•The model tries to understand how the population is manipulated, and how the social, economic, political
attitudes are fashioned in the minds of people through propaganda.

FUNCTIONS OF COMMUNICATION AND MEDIA

1. Inform citizens of what is happening (monitoring function)
2. Educate the audience (meaning and significance of facts)
3. Provide a platform for public discourse (public opinion and expression of dissent)
4. “watchdog” role of journalism
5. Channel for advocacy for political viewpoints
 Media and Information Sources
Indigenous knowledge (IK) is the local knowledge – knowledge that is unique to a given culture or society. IK
contrasts with the international knowledge system generated by universities, research institutions and private firms.
(Warren 1991).
Characteristics
• oral tradition of communication
• store information in memories
• information exchange is face-to-face
• information are contain within the border of the community
Library - a building or room containing collections of books, periodicals, and sometimes films and recorded music for
people to read, borrow, or refer to.
Internet- the large system of connected computers around the world that allows people to share information and
communicate with each other.

EVALUATING INFORMATION
by Eastern Kentucky University Libraries
based on the work of Paul and Elder
 Media and Information Languages
Genre Codes and Conventions

Genre
• comes from the French word meaning 'type' or 'class‘
• can be recognized by its common set of distinguishing features (codes and conventions)
Conventions - are the generally accepted ways of doing something.
Codes- are systems of signs, which create meaning.
Symbolic codes- show what is beneath the surface of what we see (objects, setting, body language,
clothing, color, etc.)
Technical codes - are ways in which the equipment must be used to create a story.
Written Codes -are the use of language style and textual layout (headlines, captions, speech bubbles,
language style, etc.)
Types of Photography Camera Angles and When to Use Them ( According to Open House Pictures posted May 30,2022)
1. Eye-Level Camera Angle
The simplest and most commonly used angle is the eye-level angle. By using this neutral angle, you can get a really
close-up image of your subject.
The eye-level angle is perfect for conveying emotion and picking up facial detail and expression. Shooting eye-level
photographs will make your pictures appear more natural, as it’s similar to what you would actually see.
However, using this angle all the time might leave your pictures looking a little dull.
2. Low Angle Photography
Choosing a low-angle shot requires looking up at your subject from below their eye level, and shooting upwards (this
might involve sitting down or squatting).
The low angle is great for making your subject seem bigger, closer, taller, and wider. It also conveys a sense of depth to
your photograph. This unique perspective is commonly used in films to make a character or scene seem dominating or
epic.
3. High Angle Shot
The high angle shot is, unsurprisingly, the opposite of a low angle. To achieve a high angle, either tilt your camera
downwards or make sure you’re a few inches above your subject and shoot looking down on them.
High angle shots can significantly alter the impression of your photos, making your subject seem smaller and the
surroundings appear more vast. The perspective of a high angle can result in a much more dramatic picture.
4. Bird’s-Eye View Angle
A more extreme version of the high angle is the bird’s-eye view angle. This is when you need to be positioned so that
you’re looking down over your subject.
The bird’s-eye view angle works really well for including lots of detail in your shot. However, it can be hard to get a real
bird’s-eye view without a ladder!
This angle is perfect for taking photographs of food or a still-life arrangement on a table.
5. Dutch Angle Shot (Canted/ Slanted)
The Dutch angle is a camera shot with a tilt on the camera’s roll axis. Also known as the Dutch tilt or canted angle, this
shot produces a viewpoint mirroring a tilt of the head.
The Dutch angle is a cinematic technique, used to portray a sense of uneasiness or tension. With roots in German
Expressionism, it’s often used in street style photography.
6. Close-Up Shot
Close-up photographs refer to a tightly cropped image that shows your subject up close, with much more detail than the
human eye would perceive.
A typical close-up camera shot would include your subject’s face from the forehead to their chin. Or, it can focus on one
specific detail. This type of shot would be taken using an eye level camera angle, to capture the facial features perfectly.
7. Long Angle Shot
Long shots are one of the best ways to identify your subject in relation to their background (showing a person standing
in front of a famous landmark, for example).
More can be included in the long shot, from surroundings to people. The long camera shot is ideal for capturing whole-
body images and groups of people and is great for filming action sequences.
8. Medium Shot Camera Angle
In between the long shot and the close-up, is the medium shot. Medium shots typically show the subject from their head
to their waist. These shots are great for capturing both the facial expressions and body language of your subject.
Medium camera shots also work well for photographing people alongside whatever background they’re in. As neither
the subject nor the background dominates the shot, it allows us to focus on both of them when looking at the image.

Legal, Ethical, and Societal Issues

Intellectual Property (IP)
• refers to creations of the mind, such as inventions; literary and artistic works; designs; and symbols,
names and images used in commerce. (Source: Who are the customers you want to cater to?).
• protected by law , that enable people to earn recognition or financial benefit from what they invent or
create. aims to promote an environment in which creativity and innovation can flourish by striking the
proper balance between the interests of innovators and the wider public interest.
World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)

• the global forum for intellectual property services, policy, information and cooperation.
• It is the UN agency responsible for treaties involving copyright, patent, and trademark laws. WIPO can be a force
for progressive change, helping the world take into account public interest and development needs.
Type of Intellectual Property
Copyright (Author’s right) - ▪a legal term used to describe the rights that creators have over their literary and
artistic works (https://www.wipo.int/copyright)
▪examples are books, music, paintings, sculpture and films, to computer programs, databases, advertisements,
maps and technical drawings.
Republic act 8293 INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY CODE OF THE PHILIPPINES

Patent- an exclusive right granted for an invention, which is a product or a process that provides, in general, a
new way of doing something, or offers a new. (https://www.wipo.int/patents/en/).

• It provides the patent owner with the right to decide how - or whether - the invention can be used by
others.
 Trademarks - a sign capable of distinguishing the goods or services of one enterprise from those of other
enterprises. (https://www.wipo.int/trademarks/en/).
▪refers to a recognizable insignia, phrase, word, or symbol that denotes a specific product and legally
differentiates it from all other products of its kind. (https://www.investopedia.com/terms/t/trademark.asp)
Industrial Design - constitutes the ornamental or aesthetic aspect of an article.
(https://www.wipo.int/designs/en/).
▪It may consist of three dimensional features, such as the shape of an article, or two dimensional features, such
as patterns, lines or color.
Geographical Indications and Appellations of Origin - signs used on goods that have a specific geographical
origin and possess qualities, a reputation or characteristics that are essentially attributable to that place of
origin.
▪It most commonly includes the name of the place of origin of the goods.
Trade Secrets- is typically something not generally known to the public, where reasonable efforts are made to
keep it confidential, and confers some type of economic value to the holder by the information not being known
by another party. (https://legal.thomsonreuters.com/en/insights/articles/four-types-of-intellectual-property).
Courts will generally look at the following factors to determine if something is a trade secret:
•Extent to which the information is known outside of the company
•Measures taken to guard the secrecy of the information
•Value of the information to competitors
•Extent to which the information is known throughout the company’s employee base and others
involved in the business
•Money or effort spent by the company to develop the information and how easy would it be for others
to duplicate the information
▪Example:
–new business models
–customer and supplier information
–especially around price; marketing strategy
–processes and formulae
– and other confidential business information.
Digital Divide, Addiction, and Bullying
Digital Citizenship - is the norms of appropriate, responsible technology use (http://www.digitalcitizenship.net/)

Key principles with elements of digital citizenship

1. Respect Yourself/ Respect Others - Digital Etiquette- “the use of good manners in online communication such
as e-mail, forums, blogs, and social networking sites.
Digital Access- is the ability to fully participate in digital society.
Digital Law- can be defined as the legal rightsand restrictions governing technology use. In today's world, many
people are not responsible digital citizens.
2. Educate Yourself/ Connect with Others-
Digital Literacy - means having the skills you need to live, learn, and work in a society where communication and access
to information is increasingly through digital technologies like internet platforms, social media, and mobile devices.
(https://www.westernsydney.edu.au/)
Digital Communication- involves an organization's online communication efforts. (https://www.northeastern.edu/)
3. Protect Yourself/ Protect Others
Digital Rights and Responsibility- is having the right and freedom to use all types of digital technology while using the
technology in an acceptable and appropriate manner. (https://sites.google.com/)
Digital Safety- is learning how to safeguard your privacy and protect your family from predators as we connect in this
new digital age.
(https://digcitutah.com/)
Digital Health and Welfare- refers to physical and psycho-social well-being in a technological world. · In the physical
health domain, the ergonomics of the work (https://www.rockyview.ab.ca/)

Digital Divide
• an economic inequality between groups in terms of access to, use of, or knowledge of ICT.
• The divide within countries (such as the digital divide in the United States) can refer to inequalities between
individuals, households, businesses, and geographic areas at different socioeconomic (and other demographic)
levels.
• The Global digital divide designates countries as the units of analysis, and examines the divide between
developing and developed countries on an international scale.
• The term became popular in the late 1990s.

Main factors why the Digital Divide happens according to Aleph Molinari
• Lack of Access due to affordability,

• Lack of knowledge on how to use the technology

• Lack of knowledge of the benefits of the technology.

How to bridge the gap caused by digital divide

1. Make internet access affordable.
2. Empower internet users especially in rural areas
3. Improve internet infrastructure
4. Improve internet access to public places.
5. Provide more computers with internet access to schools

Computer Addiction
• the excessive use of computers to the extent that it interferes with daily life.
• This excessive use may for example interfere with work or sleep, result in problems with social interaction, or
affect mood, relationships, and thought processes.
 Here are some ways to combat digital addiction.
1. Turn off notifications in your devises
2. Put away gadgets during mealtime.

3. Assign no-tech hours

4. Limit Yourself to One Screen at a Time

5. Download only the Right Apps

6. Include more outdoor activities in your routine

7. Spend more time with family and friend without gadgets.

Cyberbullying
• bullying that takes place online, or using electronic technology such as cell phones, computers, and tablets over
communication tools including social media sites, text messages, chat, and websites.
Examples of cyber bullying:
• text messages or emails composed to insult or demean;
• rumors or false statements spread by email or posted on social networking sites;
• and humiliating photos, videos, websites, or fake profiles deliberately shared across social media.)
• Tips to Help Stop Cyberbullying

• 1. Know that it’s not your fault.

• 2. Don’t respond or retaliate.

• 3. Save the evidence.

• 4. Reach out for help.

• 5. Use available tech tools.

• (Most social media apps and services allow you to block the person)

• 6. Protect your accounts.

• Don’t share your passwords with anyone – even your closest friends, who may not be close forever – and password-protect your phone
so no one can use it to impersonate you.