Welcome to my mini-module on Critical Media Literacy!
In their 2019 text, Douglas Kellner and Jeff Share define Critical Media Literacy as a “theoretical framework and practical pedagogy” that “involves identifying, analyzing, and challenging media that promote representations or narratives involving racism, sexism, classism, homophobia and other forms of discrimination that further marginalize targeted social groups” (pp. XI-XIII).
As a pedagogical strategy, CML “deploys a variety of theories and perspectives to engage a full range of the politics of representation in which media texts present constructs of race, class, gender, sexuality, and other constituents of identity in ways that promote oppression and perpetuate classism, racism, sexism, heterosexism, and other forms of discrimination” (p.23). It is “a strategy for counteracting hegemony (by) exposing its construction and unveiling the biases inherent in all communication” (p. 25).
In the hundreds of interviews with educators and researchers that I have conducted in my 15 years in higher education, a consistent theme in regards to the purpose of education is to promote higher order thinking skills in the interest of improving lives for all individuals, dismantling systems of oppression and hegemony, and creating a more egalitarian society overall. To me, it has become increasingly apparent that we can reach these goals by promoting the intersectional framework of Critical Media Literacy in our pedagogy and our everyday practice.
Feel free to browse and watch the full length interviews with our participants below and related videos I’ve produced. Thanks to all who participated in this project!
References:
Douglas, Kellner & Share, Jeff. (2019). The Critical Media Literacy Guide: Engaging Media & Transforming Education. 10.1163/9789004404533.