By Andie Davis
Hi everyone! I’m Andie Davis, Senior Account Executive at Landis Communications. Today, I will discuss media literacy in the age of AI.
As the world embraces artificial intelligence, it’s becoming increasingly more difficult to understand what is real and what isn’t, especially on social media. AI can be an incredibly powerful tool when used for good, but it can also be used to misinform and deceive.
Before we dive in, I’ll define some key terms we’ll be discussing today:
Misinformation:
False information that is spread, regardless of whether there is intent to mislead.
Disinformation:
Deliberately misleading or biased information; manipulated narrative or facts; propaganda
Deepfakes:
An image or recording that has been convincingly altered and manipulated to misrepresent someone as doing or saying something that was not actually done or said.
Media literacy:
The ability to critically analyze stories presented in the mass media and to determine their accuracy or credibility. Media literacy education is crucial for adults as well as children. It’s not something that you learn once and then you’re done. It’s about both practical skills, and just as importantly about knowledge and awareness of the digital environment and how it operates. In this sense, it is a life-long process as digital and media environments are constantly evolving.
And evolve they have – rapidly. In a 2024 Pew Research survey, 55% of Americans reported regular use of AI. Research by Exploding Topics indicates that 77% of companies are either using or exploring the use of AI in their businesses, and 83% of companies surveyed said AI is a top priority in their business plans.
With the emergence of AI-powered large language models and generative AI, there is a growing concern for how this information can be used to deceive or misinform. We are already seeing some of this play out on social media with AI generated deepfake videos of public figures or news events. So, what do we do about this, and how?
Media literacy has been and will continue to be a crucial tool in the toolbox for fighting misinformation and disinformation. We need to be able to use informed decision-making to assess information online and identify trusted sources. Never trust what you see online at face value – it’s our responsibility as consumers of information to look into claims being made. Always look at the post or article’s sources and do your due diligence to fact-check by looking at academic or research papers. Being media literate not only makes us more responsible consumers but also opens up opportunities to engage more fully and more creatively with the online (and offline) media world.
We have a unique opportunity right now to determine how AI should be used in our daily lives, whether that is for personal, business or educational use. Setting the stage for the future lives with us and the demand we create for safe guardrails on such a powerful tool. AI can bring a lot of good, as long as we use it responsibly.
To learn more about media literacy, disinformation and misinformation, feel free to watch some of my earlier blogs on these topics on the Landis website at Landispr.com.
Thanks for watching!
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