Media literacy is being able to engage not just with the immediate content of a media text, but also to be able to apply knowledge and understanding of institutional factors that have an impact on shaping the text itself and on the messages and values embedded within the text. Media literacy also involves knowledge and understanding of how different audiences in different times places may interpret the text in different ways. Crucially, the media-literate reader of the text is able to see that his/her own reading of the text may be at odds with that applied by some or all of the target audience.  Source: Wayne O'Brien -Media Education Assn, UK


“the ability to sift through and analyze the messages that inform, entertain and sell to us every day.
It’s the ability to bring critical thinking skills to bear on all media— from music videos and Web environments
to product placement in films and virtual displays on NHL hockey boards. It’s about asking pertinent questions
about what’s there, and noticing what’s not there. And it’s the instinct to question what lies behind media
productions— the motives, the money, the values and the ownership— and to be aware of how these
factors influence content”  Media Awareness Network
 
"To be successful in college and in the workplace and to participate effectively in a global society,
students are expected to understand the nature of media; to interpret, analyze, and evaluate the
media messages they encounter daily; and to create media that expresses a point of view and influence
others. These skills are relevant to all subject areas..."
College Board Standards for College Success, English Language Arts, 2006


"The more I grasp the pervasive influence of media on our children, the more I worry
about the media literacy gap in our nation’s educational curriculum.  We need a sustained
K-12 media literacy program—something to teach kids not only how to use the media
but how the media uses them.  Kids need to know how particular messages get crafted
and why, what devices are used to hold their attention and what ideas are left out. 
In a culture where media is pervasive and invasive, kids need to think critically about
what they see, hear and read.  No child’s education can be complete without this."
FCC Commissioner Michael Copps (prepared remarks at June 2006 event)

 "Media Literacy is the ability to ‘read’ and understand visual, aural and digital messages.
It means having the skills to understand and interact with the media analytically, critically and knowledgeably."
(Burton, Lee 2005, ‘What is this Media Literacy Thing? Primary and secondary classroom ideas from across Australia,
 in Australian Screen Education Online, Autumn 2005, issue 38, pp. 93-98.)

"Media literacy emphasizes the following elements: a critical thinking skill that allows
audiences to develop independent judgments about media content;  an understanding
of the process of mass communication; an awareness of the impact of media on the
individual and society; the development of strategies with which to discuss and analyze
media messages; an awareness of media content as 'text' that provides insight into our
contemporary culture and ourselves; the cultivation of an enhanced enjoyment,
understanding and appreciation of media content; and in the case of media communicator,
the ability to produce effective and responsible media messages." (Art Silverblatt in
Media Literacy, Keys to Interpreting Media Messages, 2001)
 

 Media literacy is an expanded information and communication skill that is responsive to
the changing nature of information in our society. It addresses the skills students need
to be taught in school, the competencies citizens must have as we consume information
in our homes and living rooms, and the abilities workers must have as we move toward the
21st century and the challenges of a global economy. (Source: Telemedium)

Media literacy empowers people to be both critical thinkers and creative producers 
of an increasingly wide range of messages using image, language, and sound. It is 
the skillful application of literacy skills to media and technology messages. As 
communication technologies transform society, they impact our understanding 
of ourselves, our communities, and our diverse cultures, making media literacy 
an essential life skill for the 21st century.
(The Alliance for A Media Literate America, 2000) 


Media literacy is concerned with helping students develop an informed and critical understanding of 
the nature of mass media, the techniques used by them, and the impact of these techniques. More 
specifically, it is education that aims to increase the students' understanding and enjoyment of how 
the-media work, how they produce meaning, how they are organized, and how they construct reality. 
Media literacy also aims to provide students with the ability to create media products. 
( Media Literacy Resource Guide, Ministry of Education Ontario, 1997)

 

“It would be a breach of our duties as teachers for us to ignore the rhetorical power of visual forms
of media in combination with text and sound…the critical media literacy we need to teach must
include evaluation of these media, lest our students fail to see, understand, and learn to harness
the persuasive power of visual media.”
(NCTE Resolution on Visual Literacy)

Media literacy refers to composing, comprehending, interpreting, analyzing, and appreciating the language 
and texts of...both print and nonprint. The use of media presupposes an expanded definition of 'text'...print 
media texts include books, magazines, and newspapers. Nonprint media include photography, recordings, 
radio, film, television, videotape, video games, computers, the performing arts, and virtual reality...constantly 
interact...(and) all (are) to be experienced, appreciated, and analyzed and created by students."
(SOURCE:  NCTE, Commission on Media, Carole Cox, 1994, p.13)