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- Spotlight on Resources
GIVE A GIFT OF MEDIA LITERACY!
Looking for that last minute holiday gift? CML has identified a collection of music CDs, coloring books and storybooks for children, making-media resources for tweens and teens plus helpful books and resource kits for young parents. All make great gifts with a media literacy focus! Plenty of inventory still left and if you order now, delivery is still possible. Check out what's available at:
- CENTERpieces
A) CML HOLDS FIRST DONOR BREAKFAST
Over 200 friends and supporters of the Center packed the California Yacht Club November 14 to attend our first annual donor breakfast featuring a new video about the CML and testimonials from teachers who have benefited from our work in Southern California and around the country. LA Times media critic Howard Rosenberg introduced CML president and founder Elizabeth Thoman whose brief but stirring remarks sketched the Center's vision for the future.
B) WEBSITE REPORT
An average of 5000 unique visitors come to CML's website each day according to our November web report. And thousands of teachers accessed our ELECTION CONNECTION bulletin board during the fall political campaign. Feel free to invite your friends and colleagues to check out our site - and come back often!
- Media Literacy News
A) ACTOR DANIEL STERN MOONLIGHTS AS MEDIA LIT TEACHER
United Press International recently published one of the best articles on media literacy and the media violence issue we've ever read. It featured an extensive interview with actor Danny Stern (the tall bad guy from "Home Alone") who's been teaching a 9th grade media literacy class at Malibu (CA) High School periodically for the past three years. CML helped Danny get started and we're proud of his innovative class. Read more about the class and his ideas about media literacy plus comments by CML executive director Tessa Jolls at:
http://www.medialit.org/ReadingRoom/rrother/stern_upi.html
B) EDUCATION WEEK FEATURES MEDIA LITERACY
Education Week, the major newspaper of the US education scene, featured a double-page spread in their December 6 issue, titled "Schools Begin to Infuse Media Literacy Into the Three R's." CML president Elizabeth Thoman was quoted extensively along with teachers and media literacy leaders from around the country. Both the article and the sidebar of key resources are still online at
http://www.edweek.org/ew/ewstory.cfm?slug=14media.h20
- Calendar
FOUNDING CONFERENCE JUNE 23-26, 2001 FOR NEW MEDIA LITERACY ORGANIZATION
If you haven't heard by now, the Partnership for Media Education, a collaborative of media literacy leaders (including CML) in the USA is changing its name to the Alliance for a Media Literate America (AMLA) and will hold its founding conference next June as part of the 2001 National Media Education Conference in Austin, Texas. Planning is well underway for the event with nearly 50 breakout workshops (selected from over 100 submissions from 31 states and 3 Canadian provinces), dynamic pre-conference sessions, keynote speakers and issue forums, a cybercafe and bookstore and much, much more. When you open your new 2001 calendar, highlight June 23-26! And put it in your budget for the New Year! For continuing details, costs, registration, etc. keep checking
http://www.nmec.org
- Curriculum Connections
A) "GOT MILK?" OR "NOT MILK?" - MEDIA LITERACY IN SCIENCE CLASS
An excellent lesson plan from the New York Times Learning Network provides a creative way to integrate media literacy skills in science and health classes. Written by media literacy teacher Eric Miller (Project Look Sharp in Ithaca, NY), the curriculum unit helps kids critically analyze information about dairy products on the Internet. It's built around an article by health writer Jane E. Brody, "Debate Over Milk: Time to Look at the Facts." So about those milk mustaches on famous celebs pictured in magazine ads? It's really white glue!
http://www.nytimes.com/learning/teachers/lessons/000925monday.html
B) PBS UNVEILS "DYING TO BE THIN" WEBSITE
This week's edition of "Nova" featured an important program exploring the struggle millions of young women (and increasingly, men) have with anorexia and bulemia. Check with your PBS station for reruns of "Dying to be Thin." It will also be available in streaming video indefinitely on the program's excellent website:
http://www.pbs.org/nova/thin/
- Around the Media World
A) MOVIE REVIEW WEBSITES PROVIDE HELP AND GUIDANCE
It's holiday time, and the studios are bombarding kids and families with new movies to see and just released videos to rent. As we all know the published movie rating system often isn't much help and a kid star doesn't mean it's a kid's flick! The Internet provides several sites to give parents and adults information and guidance for selecting movies and videos. Despite the surrounding ads, one of the best is: http://www.screenit.com/
One of the best religious review sites is sponsored by the national Catholic Communication Campaign:
http://www.nccbuscc.org/movies/index.htm The latter also has a toll-free telephone movie review line: 1-800-311-4CCC
B) CAN YOU TELL THE DIFFERENCE? PRETENDING TO BE LIVE
A recent item in the New York Times recounted the experiences of several devoted bird watchers who heard the song of several species of birds not known to frequent the areas where CBS had "live" coverage of golf tournaments. As it turns out, CBS was in the habit of enhancing the sound tracks of golf matches with bird song recorded elsewhere. According to the Times, CBS has acknowledged the error of its ways and has stopped looping the phony sounds. They do, however, continue to put bird seed around exposed microphones hoping to attract hungry (and cheerful) birds!
Do you have any questions about the media literacy field or comments to share about your own experiences? Feel free to e-mail us at: cml@medialit.org
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The CENTER FOR MEDIA LITERACY is a non-profit organization established to promote critical thinking about the media and to provide leadership, training and resources for media education in schools, religious and community organizations. In the global media culture of the 21st century, we believe in "empowerment through education" for children, young people and adults.
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http://www.medialit.org/