Breaking it Down

Have you noticed changes in media images over the past few decades? Over the years, the definition of what is acceptable has changed. On one hand, important social issues are being given more attention; on the other hand, many television shows, movies, music, and other media have become more graphic.

Have you ever thought about the role that media play in shaping public perceptions? Have you talked to your teens about it? They face a barrage of messages from television shows and movies, video games, music, and the Internet—all packed with ideas about what it means to be young, how to handle interactions with others, how to have fun, and how to gain status as an adult. Yet, teens may not be as equipped as we are to critically examine the parts of the message—its meanings, intent, context, and impact. And, because of teens' extensive use of media and other technology, media have farreaching potential to influence their values and culture— perhaps more than ever before.

Media literacy can help youth recognize and understand messages—subliminal or direct—delivered in song lyrics, television shows, movies, advertisements, or depicted on T-shirts and jewelry.

The influence of the media should not be underestimated. By mid-adolescence, teens have watched about 15,000 hours of television—more time than they spend with teachers in school. Add to that figure the hours devoted to surfing the Internet, playing video games, watching videos and DVDs, listening to the radio, and attending movies, and the media's impact becomes clear.

The Media Literacy Ladder

The media literacy ladder is a visual organizer to help teens identify, analyze, and evaluate media messages. The information presented in the ladder can empower your teen by helping her become a critical consumer of information. Each step on the ladder introduces teens to one of five basic principles of media education. Ask your teen to pick any media message—a movie, a magazine article, a TV or magazine advertisement, a T-shirt, or song lyrics. Next, starting at the bottom of the ladder and working to the top, ask your teen to answer the questions at each step on the ladder. The first two steps (identifying form and purpose) require your teen to identify details in the media message. For example, a TV news broadcast presents information differently than a billboard or a bumper sticker does. Those differences in form help shape not only what is said but also how it is said.

The top three steps encourage your teen to analyze information in the media message. In other words, she can make comparisons, link cause and effect, distinguish fact from opinion, and investigate bias and slant. In doing so, your teen may begin to understand how messages are constructed to shape meaning and how the construction process itself is shaped by assumptions about culture, gender, race, social class, and age.

Finally, when your teen has reached the top of the ladder, encourage him to evaluate the media message. That is, ask him to draw conclusions and form opinions about the media message. Is the message accurate and complete, or is important information missing from the message? You and your teen can "climb the ladder" together to discuss the latest movie, breaking headline, a favorite music video, hit song, or advertising campaign.

Climb the Ladder

You notice your teen singing along to a music video on TV. You could initiate a conversation that may go something like this (P is for parent and T is for teen):

At this point, you can congratulate your teen for coming to this conclusion. You can use the opportunity to explain the basic fundamentals of media literacy and take a more academic approach to analyzing other media messages in the future.

Movies and Music

A recent study showed that almost all of the movies evaluated (98 percent of the 200 most popular movie rentals of 1996 and 1997) depicted substance use. Illicit drugs appeared in 22 percent of the movies, and alcohol and tobacco appeared in more than 90 percent of the movies. More than one-fourth of the movies that depicted illegal drugs contained graphic portrayals of drug preparation and/or ingestion.

One thousand of the most popular songs from 1996 and 1997 were also assessed, and 27 percent of them were found to contain a clear reference to either alcohol or illicit drugs. However, only 2 percent of the songs had substance use as a central theme. Substance use was rarely associated with any motivations or consequences, and only 19 percent of songs mentioned any negative consequences from drugs.

But illegal drug use was associated with wealth or luxury in 20 percent of the songs in which drugs appeared, with sexual activity in 30 percent, and with crime or violence in 20 percent. players.

A striking finding from the song analysis study was the dramatic difference among music categories— substance use references were more common in rap music (63 percent of all rap songs) than any other type of music, including alternative rock (11 percent), hot-100 (11 percent), heavy metal (9 percent), and country-western (1 percent).

By helping our teens become media literate, we can help protect them from pressures from advertising and other media forms to smoke, drink, use drugs, have sex, or eat unhealthy foods. We also can help them build communication skills, encourage them to consider multiple interpretations of media messages, put portrayals of themselves and others in perspective, and improve media use habits, such as changing ritualistic viewing behaviors. In addition, we can improve the media use habits of the entire family and promote more proactive behavior among all family members.

Media literacy is not media bashing; the goal is not to ridicule the media. Media are dominant forces in our culture and an important part of our teenagers’ lives. It should be evaluated fairly, not denigrated. Media literacy is also no silver bullet or magic wand; it will not instantly solve all of our problems. But it is our best defense in resisting manipulation and keeping a perspective on the images and messages that are a part of media and youth culture.

As you employ these skills at home, remember that the heart of media literacy lies in the discussion. There are many activities that you can do with your children, but nothing is more important than talking with them about what we watch, hear, and read. Keep discussions relaxed; this takes the pressure off of teens to get the “right” answer. Draw out their ideas and guide them to critically examine what they see and hear. Remember to keep probing the answer as this helps young people expand their thoughts. This helps them focus and helps us understand how they perceive what they view. It doesn’t matter so much what questions you ask; the important thing is to get youth to express and to challenge what they see and hear.

Young people can learn how to read between the lines so that they can understand exactly what music videos, movies, and other forms of communication that reach youth are saying to them.

See: Talk With Your Teen About Media Literacy

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