• Over half the participants had never been to a national conference before indicating major growth of the field in the US and the emergence of a new generation of voices and leaders.
  
  
• The quality

  Tessa shares a thought with Shelton Allen of the U.S. Dept. of Education

  of the presentations, panels, workshops and sessions was outstanding along with keynotes by tobacco whistle-blower Jeffrey Wigand, cultural critic Farai Chideya, and Australian media literacy pioneer Barrie McMahon.
  
  
• The conference attracted not just classroom educators but also national leaders including Denee Mattioli, president of the Nat'l Council for Social Studies; Nancy Grasmick, Maryland State Superintendent of Education; technology consultant Alan November (Empowering Students Through Technology) and Judith McHale, president of Discovery Communications, Inc. Video greetings came from Bill Moyers whose PBS News Show, Now received the AMLA Media Literate Media Award along with Janine Jackson, host of "Counterspin" from Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting and Howard Kirsch, columnist for the Washington Post.
  
  
• CML's Project Manager Sarah Bordac was "impressed by the sheer number and variety of high-quality model media literacy projects now going on in the US. Small and large projects are providing creative, cross-curriculum applications of media literacy curriculum for all grade levels. These projects are providing measurable data on the dramatic impact media can have in educating today's youth and will lead the way for further integration of media literacy into classrooms everywhere."

  ---

• The CML/GPN Bookstore

  The CML/GPN Bookstore was never not busy!

  and Preview Room was the absolute happening place! Taking up the whole end of a ballroom, display tables were organized by topic and arranged for browsing and comparing. The room was the brainchild of CML Founder Elizabeth Thoman, who spent many hours consulting with teachers and answering questions. "There are so many terrific resources now available for teaching media literacy – it was great to have the space to showcase them and help teachers find just what is right for them." CML plans to continue the spirit of the bookstore through expanded descriptions, reviews and customer comments for the teaching materials in CML's web catalog plus organizing special collections and "guided tours" of related resources.
  
  
• Meeting people

  Authors – start your pens!

  whose names grace the books on your shelves is one of the special treats of the NMEC – Kathleen Tyner, Steve Goodman, Sue Summers, Barry Duncan and Chris Worsnop from Canada, Geoff Lealand from New Zealand, Len Masterman from England – and so many more! A special table was reserved for presenter-authors to sign their books.
  
  
• CML's Jeff Share and Liz Thoman conducted the preconference "Media Literacy 101" to acclaim from a packed room of "newbies". As for attending sessions, Jeff's favorite presentation was by the Boston YWCA Youth Voice Collaborative. "They began with a racial lineup activity where they asked everyone to copy a list of nine titles: athlete, terrorist, governor, dictator, pimp, cop, actor, gay and drug addict. Then we had to match the title with a photo on the wall. The pictures were of men and women from different ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds. Once the audience made their choices, Susan McDonald and Elaine Ouimet ran an excellent debriefing session where they challenged the group to identify the visual cues that led them to make their choices. This was a terrific activity to focus media analysis on issues of race and gender."
  
  
• CML's

  Tessa Jolls (center) and the Project ArtSmart team celebrate their presentation success at NMEC 2003

  President and CEO Tessa Jolls was particularly thrilled to participate in the pre-conference workshop sponsored by the U.S. Dept. of Education for the grantees receiving federal funding for demonstration projects in media literacy and the arts. "CML is starting the third-year of our grant in partnership with Los Angeles Unified School District, the Education Division of the Music Center of LA, and AnimAction, Inc. Meeting others who are doing this important work was inspiring and seeing the work that students have produced was truly awesome."

• Faith Rogow, president of NMEC host-organization, the Alliance for Media Literate America (AMLA),

  Faith Rogow and Kathleen Tyner celebrate the opening of the conference.

  declared media literacy no longer a "movement" but a full-fledged academic "field." Read her inspiring opening remarks on the state of the US media literacy field.
  
  
• CML colleague Rose Pacatte noted the "holistic environment" of the conference that "allowed for diverse philosophical, cultural, religious/spiritual, and educational perspectives...The level of civility and respect for diversity in where each person is at in learning about and practicing media literacy education has increased greatly."
  
  
• Web-savvy AMLA members are gathering additional resources from the conference for posting on the web. A gallery of conference pictures is currently available at http://www.med.sc.edu:1081/nmec.htm. A database of handouts and resources from workshops and presentations will be ready by end of summer. In the meantime, the complete conference program and schedule of events is online at the AMLA website. Don't weep when you read it; just make plans to attend in 2005. Location to be determined.

FEATURED TEACHING RESOURCES

CML 'Conference Collection' brings it home to you!
So, you didn't make it to the Baltimore conference? Not to worry – let the conference come to you! We've assembled books from the keynote speakers and workshop presenters into a special "NMEC Conference Collection" and rounded it out with the "hottest" videos, CD's and teaching resources as selected by customers at the CML/GPN bookstore. Click on titles for complete descriptions. And don't forget you can order CML resources using a virtual "shopping cart" through CML's distribution partner, GPN Educational Media.
• In light of the conference theme of "Literacy and Liberty" (and controversy over the FCC's recent decisions), two engaging, pocket-sized books by Robert McChesney sold out the first day. Our Media, Not Theirs looks at the democratic struggle against corporate media – and Corporate Media and the Threat to Democracy advocates for media reform amidst a climate of corporate control of the news. Target Iraq takes the provocative position that U.S. news media helped "market" our recent invasion of Iraq.
  
  
• Journalist and keynote speaker, Farai Chideya's timely book Don't Believe the Hype provides factual ammunition for fighting stereotypes and misinformation about African-Americans in the media. And in Empowering Students with Technology, dynamic presenter Alan November demonstrates how to use technology in meaningful, learner-centered ways.
  
  
• The following titles were not only authored by NMEC presenters – but also proved to be bookstore highlights! Media educators—hurry and order Len Masterman's classic, Teaching the Media now that it's back in print – but quantities are limited. JoEllen Fisherkeller's Growing Up With Television is a groundbreaking, longitudinal study of TV's meaning in adolescents' lives. And from New Zealand comes Geoff Lealand's thoughtful reflection on TV's impact around the world – It's All Done with Mirrors.
  
  
• We often hear complaints from educators about the lack of practical books with classroom activities. Filling this void is the 4-part series that literally "flew" off of bookstore shelves – Media Literacy: Thinking Critically About...Movies, Television, Advertising – and Music & Media. There aren't many media literacy activity books for young children – but Eye Spy, an interactive coloring/drawing book available in both English and Spanish, is a gem of a resource.
  
  
• The Youth Media Makers camp at the conference was proof that youth media production is getting to be a high priority in schools everywhere. Teaching TV Production in a Digital World is a clear guide to teaching high school production in a media literacy context. Those who attended the panel with video documentarian Steve Goodman discovered his new Teaching Youth Media is both thoughtful and practical.
  
  
• As for most-requested videos in the preview room, Game Over: Gender, Race and Violence in Video Games topped them all. Note it's now available on both VHS and DVD.

And don't forget to check out the very latest new titles in our July, 2003 edition of New For You!

CLASSROOM CONNECTIONS

Images, Messages, Stereotype, and Slant
Last week's American Movie Classics documentary, "Hollywood and the Muslin World" explored what is evolving into a complex and somewhat volatile relationship between Western culture and our Muslim neighbors. The increasing penetration of American entertainment combined with what many Muslims see as offensive subject matter (Sex in the City, The Sopranos) is creating a cultural invasion in the Arab world no less significant than the current military one. Given that U.S. media for years has misrepresented and stereotyped Arabs as evil and sinister, the clash is even more relevant a media literacy exploration. We've found some wonderful lesson plans along with a growing collection of resources to help you plan units for the coming school year:


• PBS' "Global Connections – the Middle East" is a website created to help teachers, students, and the general public learn more about events around the world. You can download "Stereotypes: More Than Meets the Eye," a lesson to help grades 9–12 think critically about images and media that portray the Middle East and its inhabitants. Includes assessment, resources and NCSS standards.
  
  
• San Francisco's KQED-TV (PBS) station has two excellent curriculum plans that can be modified using your own primary source materials. Check out "(Find) Racial Stereotypes in Popular Culture" and "(Create) an Ethnic Student Newspaper."
  
  
• From the New York Times Learning Network "Los Artistas Unidos" helps middle and high school students examine the diversity (or lack of) in popular movies and television programs. Through readings, discussion, research and writing activities related to Hispanic actors, students explore issues of stereotype, disproportionate representation, depiction, and fairness.

Related Resources from CML:

• Reel Bad Arabs – Over 1,000 films portraying Arabs are examined – from early cinema to contemporary blockbusters.
• Target Iraq – A political analyst and veteran news correspondent argue that the news media "marketed" our latest invasion of Iraq.
• Color Adjustment – This award-winning video traces 40 years of race relations through prime time myths and stereotypes.
• Don't Believe the Hype – provides factual ammunition for fighting stereotypes and misinformation about African-Americans in the media.
• Picturing Us – African American identity is explored through this important collection of images and essays.
• Watching Race – Thoughtful analysis of how TV depictions of African-Americans have developed and changed over the years.
• The Children Are Watching – Carlos Cortès looks at what media teaches us about race, ethnicity, gender and religion.

And for extended learning, be sure to check out CML's Focus Page on Stereotype and Representation which features a wealth of articles, activities and resources in this subject area.

AROUND THE MEDIA WORLD

Did The Matrix Make Her Do It?
In a story perfect for NBC's crime drama, Law and Order – the Christian Science Monitor reports that a woman was found "not guilty by reason of insanity" after shooting her landlord and claiming that the movie "The Matrix" convinced her to kill. Learn more about the history of and connection between media and violent acts in The Matrix Made Me Do It.

Please forward this to a collegue or post it to listservs whose subscribers may be interested in these resources or information. Thank you. Subscribe to this E-Letter. Information on how to un-subscribe is sent to the registered e-mail address upon registration and is also included at the bottom of CML E-Letters. We do not share this list with any other organization.

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. We rely on tax-deductible grants and individual donations to sustain and expand our work. Thank you for your support.