Media literacy should be taught at school as well as university, Arab academics say.
Mohammed Habes, head of the Department of Radio and Television at Jordan’s Yarmouk University, says media literacy training should be linked to the recipients’ developmental stage and begin as early as possible, because of the new generation’s increasing use of smartphones and the misinformation and disinformation they encounter on social media.
“Introducing media literacy is crucial as it empowers young individuals who are the target audience to choose topics and critically analyse them, thereby safeguarding societies from negative impacts,” Habes told Al-Fanar Media.
Jordan stands out among Arab nations in its efforts to integrate media literacy training into both schools and universities. This initiative gained momentum when the Jordan Media Institute started the “Media and Information Literacy” project in 2016, in collaboration with Unesco and the European Union. The project aims to promote media and information literacy in public policies, higher education institutions, and schools.
Saddek Rabah, a professor of mass communication in Qatar University’s College of Arts and Science, agreed on the need for more media literacy training.
“Introducing media literacy is crucial as it empowers young individuals who are the target audience to choose topics and critically analyse them, thereby safeguarding societies from negative impacts.”
Mohammed Habes, head of the Department of Radio and Television at Jordan’s Yarmouk University
“Arab societies, along with others striving to enhance awareness and resilience in today’s global landscape, require comprehensive media literacy encompassing both traditional and digital realms,” Rabah told Al-Fanar Media. He added that the rapid advances in artificial intelligence and digital technology had increased the challenges for media literacy teachers.
“Media literacy plays a critical role here. It equips individuals with the knowledge, competencies, and essential skills needed to navigate complex digital landscapes confidently,” Rabah said. “This is especially crucial in the digital realm, as it empowers individuals to discern various types of content and evaluate their credibility and significance, amidst a backdrop dominated by fake news, information overload, and biased narratives.”
Challenges in the Arab World
Major challenges confronting individuals and societies in the Arab world, Rabah said, include “the proliferation of deceptive content, biased narratives, and deliberate cultivation of ignorance to sow doubt. … Without media literacy, individuals are vulnerable to misleading information, unless they possess critical thinking skills and the capacity to authenticate the content they encounter.”
Teaching media literacy at different educational stages is essential for pupils’ intellectual security, he added. “The increasing awareness in Arab conversations must translate into tangible actions to avoid being mere superficial awareness. The actual integration of media literacy into educational systems in the Arab world, whether in schools or universities, is currently inadequate, if not entirely absent.”
International Interest in Media Literacy
One indication of the rising global interest in media literacy is the growth of the International Council for Media Literacy, a nonprofit organisation that began in the 1930s as a study group of the Madison, Wisconsin, chapter of the American Association of University Women. The group added television to its purview in the 1950s and took its current title in 2021.
“The actual integration of media literacy into educational systems in the Arab world, whether in schools or universities, is currently inadequate, if not entirely absent.”
Saddek Rabah, a professor of mass communication in Qatar University’s College of Arts and Science
Similar groups motivated by the same concerns arose in other countries. In 1982, during the International Symposium on Media Education at Grünwald,, in what was then West Germany, Unesco recommended comprehensive media education programmes from preschool to university, and in adult education. It called for training courses for educators to improve their media knowledge and teaching; promoting research in areas like psychology, sociology, and communication sciences related to media education; and bolstering Unesco’s efforts to foster international cooperation in the subject.
In her message during Global Media and Information Literacy Week in October 2023, Unesco Director-General Audrey Azoulay said media literacy was a fundamental 21st-century skill. She highlighted the importance of this skill because of digital advances that have amplified misinformation and hate speech on social media platforms, challenging democratic values and cultural diversity.
“With the spread of rumours and the distortion of facts, the boundary between true and false has become blurred,” Azoulay said. “This is undermining the very foundations of our societies and democracies.”
Misinformation puts lives at risk, she said, citing “the propagation of fake cures, the fuelling of vaccine conspiracy theories, or the spread of racism and hate speech” as examples.
“In this deluge of information, we need more reference points and more rational thinking. That is why media and information literacy is such a key skill for the education of 21st-century citizens.”
Audrey Azoulay, director-general of Unesco
“In this deluge of information, we need more reference points and more rational thinking,” Azoulay said. “That is why media and information literacy is such a key skill for the education of 21st-century citizens.”
Covid-19’s impact can also not be understated. The World Health Organisation says an “infodemic” of misinformation hindered efforts to address the crisis. It sought to counter this by providing tools to help people discern accurate information and reject falsehoods about the pandemic.
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