Beyond Verification: The Evolving Role of Fact-Checking Organisations in Media Literacy Education for Youth

Lucia Mesquita, Margarida Maneta and Maria José Brites
Additional contact information
Lucia Mesquita: Centre for Research in Applied Communication, Culture, and New Technologies, Lusófona University, Portugal
Margarida Maneta: Centre for Research in Applied Communication, Culture, and New Technologies, Lusófona University, Portugal
Maria José Brites: Centre for Research in Applied Communication, Culture, and New Technologies, Lusófona University, Portugal

Media and Communication, 2024, vol. 12

Abstract: This research investigates the crucial role of fact-checking organisations in promoting media and information literacy (MIL) amid the challenges of widespread misinformation. By educating and empowering individuals, these organisations and their educational branches are identified as emerging components within MIL ecosystems, particularly focusing on engaging youth. Using qualitative research methods, our study analyses the activities of seven prominent fact-checking organisations and two university-affiliated projects across Spain, Catalonia, Poland, Hong Kong, the Philippines, Argentina, and Brazil. Thus, our study aims to understand why fact-checking organisations have become involved in MIL education and training for youth and what types of MIL, approaches, and subjects fact-checking organisations employ in their MIL education and training initiatives for this audience. Our findings reveal a shift in these organisations toward actively promoting MIL education through dedicated divisions and teams driven by mission-oriented action and peer collaboration. Various institutions and political and educational policies support or hinder this transformation. A significant issue observed is the limited availability of open-access materials and general opacity regarding their pedagogical approaches. Although these organisations have integrated educational components into their models, achieving financial sustainability remains challenging.

Keywords: education; educational policies; fact-checking; media and information literacy; misinformation; youth training (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.cogitatiopress.com/mediaandcommunication/article/view/8690 (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:cog:meanco:v12:y:2024:a:8690

DOI: 10.17645/mac.8690

Access Statistics for this article

Media and Communication is currently edited by Raquel Silva

More articles in Media and Communication from Cogitatio Press
Bibliographic data for series maintained by António Vieira () and IT Department ().