Break the Fake: How to tell what's true online
Here are four quick and easy steps to find out the truth and share good information. Sometimes you only have to do one of these things, and most steps take less than a minute.
Using Fact-Checking Tools
Sometimes a single search can break the fake, if a professional fact-checker like Snopes has already done the work for you.
Speaking & Media Requests
MediaSmarts is home to trusted experts in the field of digital literacy and media literacy. Below, you can find a list of MediaSmarts experts available to comment on current affairs and trending topics in the media, or to book for select speaking engagements.
Indigenous Representation in Media
Indigenous people remain highly stereotyped in most mass media, in ways that are sometimes less remarked upon than stereotypes of other groups. This section examines how Indigenous people are represented, and participate, in various media and how media education can help both Indigenous and non-Indigenous youth understand the impact of stereotyped representations.
Click if You Agree (Grades 7-9)
Think you know how to read and understand privacy policies and terms of use? Learn how to make sense of legal documents for websites and apps with this interactive game.
Privacy Pirates: An Interactive Unit on Online Privacy (Ages 7-9)
This tutorial introduces children, ages 7-9, to the concept of online privacy and teaches them to distinguish between information that is appropriate to give out and information better kept private – and to recognize how this may change in different contexts.
Indigenous Education Overview
Indigenous education is the overarching incorporation of indigenous perspectives across Manitoba’s curriculum. Many curricular expectations in Manitoba Aboriginal Language and Studies courses relate to media and digital literacy. The following excerpt from Current Topics in First Nations, Metis and Inuit Studies (2011) detail how media and digital literacy have been integrated into the curriculum:
Digital Literacy 101
While MediaSmarts’ research shows that teachers place considerable importance on teaching their students digital literacy skills such as authenticating information, managing privacy, addressing cyberbullying, and being safe online, evidence suggests this is not reflected in Canadian classrooms. The intent of these resources is to support teachers in implementing digital literacy into their teaching practice and to help them to develop digital literacy lessons and activities that suit their students' needs.
Media Literacy 101
Media educators base their teaching on key concepts of media literacy, which provide an effective foundation for examining mass media and popular culture. These key concepts act as filters that any media text has to go through in order for us to respond.