Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity and Canadian Broadcasting Policy
Canada’s Broadcasting Act, last amended in 1991, outlines industry guidelines for portrayal of diversity.
Young Canadians in a Wireless World, Phase IV: Online Privacy and Consent
Young Canadians in a Wireless World (YCWW) is Canada’s longest running and most comprehensive research study on young people’s attitudes, behaviours and opinions regarding the internet, technology and digital media. This report highlights findings related to how youth share and protect their personal information online and how they manage their identities in online spaces; how youth do or do not engage in various privacy practices like reading terms of service or using privacy settings; how youth feel about various forms of interpersonal and corporate surveillance online; and how various rules and practices in the home and between adults and youth can impact online privacy.
The Family Group Chat
Recently, my youngest got a new phone that has data and the ability to text anyone. We’ve been texting with my eldest for some time now too. But after years of communicating this way, it finally happened: We, the parents, were invited into a family group chat.
Data Privacy Week: New research shows youth are more concerned about their online privacy than ever
January 24, 2023 - MediaSmarts is releasing new research today, during Data Privacy Week, which shows that youth are more aware than ever of privacy concerns online and want to take steps to protect their own privacy, but they don’t always know how.
New research on youth and cyberbullying released for Pink Shirt Day
Ottawa, ON (Feb. 21, 2023) - New research conducted during the pandemic by MediaSmarts found 32% of young Canadians ages nine to 17 have experienced online meanness and cruelty, 49% have witnessed it, and 17% have engaged in this behaviour.
Fact Checker
To find out if a story has already been fact-checked, use the search bar below. It’s a custom search engine that lets you search several fact-checkers at once, including: Snopes.com, Agence France Presse Canada, FactCheck.org, Politifact, Washington Post Fact Checker, Associated Press Fact Check, HoaxEye and Les Decrypteurs.
Young Canadians in a Wireless World, Phase IV: Relationships and technology: Sexting
Young Canadians in a Wireless World (YCWW) is Canada’s longest running and most comprehensive research study on young people’s attitudes, behaviours and opinions regarding the internet, technology and digital media. This report is the second of two reports focusing on relationships and technology. In it, we share findings related to sending, receiving, and forwarding sexts and highlight what the YCWW Phase IV survey data tells us about young Canadians’ motivations and attitudes for engaging in sexting. We also speak to the role of trust and support in sexting behaviours among youth, focusing specifically on the impact of adult involvement and supervision and the desire for further educational support on this topic. Finally, we share resources that are currently available on the MediaSmarts website regarding sexting and highlight current research in the field that expands upon what we offer in this report.
Within the Phase IV YCWW survey, questions related to sexting were only available to participants in grades 7 to 11 (n=659). Overall, the sample size for youth who indicated they engaged in sexting was very small; in most cases, n=110 or less.
Reporting Platforms: Young Canadians Evaluate Efforts to Counter Disinformation
MediaSmarts facilitated online focus groups with youth ages 16 to 29 to examine and assess reporting processes on popular apps (Instagram, TikTok, Twitter, and YouTube). More specifically, we wanted to understand how young Canadians feel about current efforts to counter misinformation and disinformation online and what solutions they have regarding the problems and concerns they experience while navigating online information ecosystems and communities. Overall, youth expressed a lack of trust and confidence in the ability of platforms to counter misinformation and disinformation and to keep them informed and safe online. Participants emphasized that users are not provided with meaningful opportunities to engage with platforms to prevent and address misinformation and disinformation, and they felt platforms must make design changes that prioritize values of accuracy, transparency, trust, responsibility, and safety.