What is Media Literacy?

The use of mass media in our lives plays such a large role that it is necessary to be literate in its language. Media literacy is the ability of a person to recognize messages that are presented in mass media. This recognition allows them to understand, analyze, and even question what is being presented to you. Everyday people see messages that have been slipped into the media whether they are obvious or not. Reading the newspaper, listening to the radio, and even half watching TV, people are constantly being exposed to many forms of media. Because of this constant exposure it is important to be fluent in the language of the media, so you can better educate yourself. Being able to recognize media messages makes people knowledgeable in the happenings of the world. These days due to the great expose most everyone is media literate. This is important, because it gives people a greater understanding of how people communicate. Not only do we use the typical forms such as speech, but we also use advertisements, news reports, and many other forms. Whether we consciously know we are absorbing information from the media or not, the process is constant. In order to be an active member in our society one must be part of our world’s biggest conversations and be media literate.