Building resilient communities in the Baltics & beyond

• In Event: Roundtable Session 5
  In Refereed Roundtable Session: Media and information literacy: building youth resilience to manipulative information

Proposal

The presentation is based on comprehensive media literacy mapping in the Baltic States and Ukraine, Moldova, and Georgia, identifying the main challenges in the media literacy field. The applied research was conducted in December 2021, prior to Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The presenter will briefly introduce the main results of the applied research, focused on actors, audiences, and activities.

The research was built on desk research and more than 80 semi-structured in-depth interviews with representatives of organizations active in the media and information literacy field. The report details an analysis of 1) cross-sectoral cooperation and networking; 2) evaluation of media literacy activities; 3) sustainability and funding, and 4) the role of media in increasing media literacy. In all the countries involved, schools are the dominant audience for both addressing and creating media literacy activities for children and creating and implementing different types of activities for teachers.

For example, in each of the countries mentioned above, an ongoing process of securitization of media literacy was identified, making it simultaneously part of the education agenda, as well as a matter of national security. At the same time, while there are developments at the level of policy, the actual implementation is also taking place. The majority of strategic documents underline the priority of critical thinking, which is a media literacy component. The documents also outline the skills needed to evaluate information for well-informed decision-making. Yet, the dominant approach in education (in the recent past) is to focus on digital literacies and technical skills.

Among the main obstacles is a lack of evidence-based effectiveness of media literacy activities, weak monitoring (including the exposure of the target audiences to informational threats), a low level of institutional coordination and cooperation, as well as a lack of resources. In some countries, political will is lacking to address vulnerable groups, including ethnic minorities in their languages. In the current curriculums, as stated by some interviewed actors, the prioritization of digital literacy and technical skills should be changed to more critical thinking and trust-oriented activities.

The lessons learned from the first months of Russia's invasion of Ukraine and its influence on the media literacy field and community brings to the agenda an additional focus on strengthening the media literacy ecosystem. How does active warfare change the media literacy education environment? One of the most topical questions is how to define and redefine the vulnerable audiences facing active warfare.

Given the widening definition of media and general transformation of the information environment and media consumption among the public, civic activists and their organizations should be engaged in regular resistance training, based on experience and knowledge of those in conflict or war. The final question planned to be addressed in the presentation is “What should media literacy for the future include” based on the development of the cognitive warfare concept.

Author

• Solvita Denisa-Liepniece, Vidzeme University of Applied Sciences