Kung fu? In my Karate Kid?

Why is a movie about a young boy learning kung fu called The Karate Kid? For most of the film's young audience, Jaden Smith's break-out movie doesn't explain the confusion. Their parents and older siblings, however, may recall the earlier installments in this series which started with a young Ralph Macchio learning karate from Noriyuki “Pat” Morita, a movie which started as the hero's quest to learn karate to overcome his tormentors and evolved by film's end into a coming-of-age story about the bond between mentor and student. The first Karate Kid struck a chord with audiences, becoming the fifth-highest grossing film of 1984.

Marketing & Consumerism, Media Production, Movies

The Good Things About Television

Television is an inescapable part of modern culture. We depend on TV for entertainment, news, education, culture, weather, sports—and even music, since the advent of music videos.

Television

How Music Communicates Meaning

Understanding how music communicates requires looking at multiple layers: the lyrics, the sound itself, accompanying visuals (like music videos), and the broader cultural and historical context.

Audio Media, Music

Sorting Fact from Fiction

The changes in how news is consumed (and produced) described above have also made it harder to verify if a particular news item is accurate – and made it easier for misinformation to be spread, either intentionally or unintentionally.

Authenticating Information

Is your screen use creative?

If you’re wondering how to get started making media on your phone, tablet or computer, animation is a great place to start. You can start doing it as a family activity even when kids are very young and they’ll soon be able to do almost everything themselves.

Internet & Mobile, Media Production

Study shows Canadian teachers very positive about technology in their classrooms, while facing challenges to successful implementation

Ottawa (March 24, 2016) – As part of its ongoing study Young Canadians in a Wired World, MediaSmarts, Canada's centre for digital and media literacy, partnered with the Canadian Teachers’ Federation (CTF) and its Member organizations to survey online more than 4,000 teachers across Canada about technology use in their classrooms. 

North American Gapmil: London Declaration, Sept 20-21, 2016

A group of media and information literacy educators and organizations representing a broad range of sectors met in London, Ontario at Western University on Sept. 20 and 21, 2016 to form the North American Sub-Chapter of the UNESCO-initiated Global Alliance for Partnerships on Media and Information Literacy (GAPMIL) network.

The Battle for Community TV

If asked to think about community television (or public-access television, as a similar institution is called in the US) most people would probably conjure up the movie Wayne's World or its real-life analogue, The Tom Green Show: TV made by people who would, under normal circumstances, never appear on TV, shot in someone's basement or living room. Or perhaps they'd think of earnest, low-budget shows that showcase community events that wouldn't otherwise be televised, such as ethnic festivals or the Canadian Improv Games.

Events, Journalism & News, Television

Games peoples play

In ancient times the Olympics were a time when all nations – all Greek nations, anyway – would put away their differences and compete in almost every human activity, from poetry to the ferocious, no-holds barred combat sport called pankration. Being the very best that humans could be was seen as the best way to honour the gods of Olympus.

Events, Sports

National Program Helps Parents Understand and Engage in Their Kids' Online Activities

Ottawa, November 23, 2006 – Media Awareness Network and the Canadian Home and School Federation today announced a partnership to present a national school-based Internet literacy and safety program designed to help parents deal with their children’s online activities. The program, Parenting the Net Generation, addresses issues that arise when young people go online and provides tools and solutions to help parents positively manage Internet use in the home.