My previous blog post pointed out that news media are really businesses. I follow-up here by suggesting that the entire topic should be dealt with in newspapers and on television as important public interest news.
Stories about big changes in major media organizations, the inside workings of biased news organizations, profiles of extreme talk show hosts and writers, sources of domestic fake-news, social media as weapons, foreign government generated fake-news, and much more, are all sources of potential audience-grabbing news stories.
Some news organizations already have media reporters. Brian Stelter at CNN is one of the few with high visibility. His program on Sunday mornings reports inside news about organizations, people and places, and also deals with the hot issues of the week.
Beyond reporting news media news stories, it is also in their self-interest for news organizations to invest heavily in media education. For them, promoting media literacy should simply be seen as essential immediate and long-term audience development.
All reporters should be required to read all of your blogs.
I thought that Lesson 504 was one of your best. A whole lot in there to think about; and an important “call to action” for those involved in all forms of news and journalism. Was happy to see you revisit the need for “media literacy” which is increasingly critical to a functioning democracy. We can only hope this is a topic that has (or will) become an increasing focus for educators at every level. While college level courses are helpful and important, there are two critical subjects that should be of primary importance in every Middle and High School curriculum in the United States. And they are “Civics” and “Media Literacy”! If the age of Donald Trump has resulted in anything of value, it is to have highlighted the critical need for focusing on these two areas of every citizen’s education.