By Lee Edwards
Between November 2022 and April 2023, a team of researchers at the LSE conducted a stakeholder-centric consultation on the challenges facing the media literacy sector in the UK. Commissioned by the Department of Science, Innovation and Technology (formerly DCMS), the remit was to gather more detailed evidence of the barriers to delivering media literacy, extending the understanding of issues already recognized in the 2021 Online Media Literacy Strategy.
Drawing on a stakeholder workshop, individual interviews with funders and stakeholders, a roundtable with academic experts, a survey of media literacy stakeholders, and a comparison of international case studies, the research findings confirmed that challenges revolved around three overlapping areas: the context for media literacy, delivery of media literacy interventions, and evaluation of practice. Issues included fast-changing media landscapes and technologies that were difficult to keep up with; generally low public awareness of the meaning and value of media literacy; a fragmented sector where it was difficult to track what was being delivered and by whom; funding that tended to be short-term and inherently fragmented; ongoing challenges associated with reaching vulnerable and neglected audiences; and a lack of quality benchmarks for delivery. More fundamental issues included the need for longer-term and more secure funding, investment in evaluation research, and stronger leadership for the sector, including within government.
For those who have been following the sector for some time, the list of challenges contains few surprises. Nonetheless, the rich discussions among stakeholders did reveal the detail of the challenges in practice. They also illustrated the connections between these challenges, suggesting that a strategic approach to developing solutions could help to mitigate several of the barriers to delivery at once.
This principle was echoed in the findings of the international case comparisons. While no cases had resolved the conundrum of how to evaluate the quality and impact of media literacy interventions on a societal level, the evidence from experts in each of the ten countries we reviewed did suggest some common practices that supported media literacy practitioners’ work.
These included clear government support for media literacy, but in a way that exemplified ‘leadership without ownership’ – providing symbolic and material support through policy direction and funding, but empowering stakeholders to drive sector activities. In countries where media literacy strategy was more developed there was a layered infrastructure for delivery, with multiple organisations responsible for delivering interventions for different audiences or purposes, but often with a stakeholder-led coordinating body or network playing a significant role (e.g. Belgium [Flanders], Canada, France, Finland, Netherlands). Embedding media literacy in educational curricula and enshrining it in government policy both meant that the sector received more sustained and focused attention and investment. In countries where media literacy work was most developed there was also a vibrant volunteer network of stakeholder initiatives, featuring collaboration among stakeholders as well as between stakeholders and government. Often, this work focused around a pivotal event or occasion that focused attention on the importance of media literacy, such as a National Media Literacy Week or a specific media literacy campaign for a particular audience.
Overall, the research findings suggest that the UK government has taken steps in the right direction to address some challenges – for example, by providing funding targeted at evaluation, and to support pilot projects for vulnerable audiences. But as MILA members know, the challenges are extensive. The findings indicate where more can be done to consolidate and extend the great work by practitioners that is already being done, improve both the quality and reputation of media literacy by investing in more robust evaluation of its impact, and develop stronger leadership and collaboration between government and stakeholders in the interests of long-term progress.
Lee Edwards is Professor of Strategic Communications and Public Engagement, Department of Media and Communications, LSE. She was the lead investigator on this project and co-author of Addressing cross-sectoral challenges report.
