Media Literacy is Dead and We Need To Bring It Back

By: Aneesha Mahapatra

Let’s be real. Media literacy is basically dead and many people struggle with not knowing what media literacy truly is. It’s knowing how to tell what’s real and what’s not when you’re scrolling online, reading a novel, watching a movie, and more. It’s about spotting fake news, understanding bias, and making smart choices with the information we see everyday. 

We’re living in a time where fake news spreads faster than a social media trend, and critical thinking. Seems like nobody wants to use their brain and be educated these days. You scroll through your feed, see something insane, and automatically believe it’s true without a second thought or checking other sources. This isn’t a new phenomenon whatsoever, since people have been letting the media control their thought processes and decisions whether it’s political, social, or cultural when it could be the most B.S. news ever  (*cough cough Fox News*). People have been misinterpreting media for years on end and continue to do so. 

Meta recently announced they're getting rid their fact-checking program and replacing it with a system similar to X (formally Twitter), which is controlled by Elon Musk (and we all know what he’s like). What this means is that instead of professional experts verifying facts, the responsibility now falls on everyday users to call out and correct misinformation. Meta’s basically saying they want to bring back “free expression” but admitted it means more “bad stuff” might slip through the cracks.

This matters for media literacy because now we’re relying on regular people to catch fake news, not experts. Without the right skills, we’re more likely to fall for misinformation. Without proper media literacy, people might not have the skills to tell what's legitimate and what's fake. With billions of people on Facebook, Instagram, and Threads, this means more deceptive news will spread, and that's why it's even more necessary now to enhance our media literacy and learn how to survive this messy online world.

Media literacy is also dead when it comes to film and art. One example I’ve come across recently is the movie, Nosferatu. If you’ve ever seen the old or new film, you’ll know it’s a FICTIONAL Gothic Horror depiction of a tragic, traumatizing bond between a human and a vampire. What a lot of people missed and still miss is the true meaning behind it which is repression of female sexuality and how it was seen as shameful back in the day. 

*SPOILERS* 

We all know Count Orlok is the villain in the movie. We don’t actually sympathize with him and don’t want him in real life. However, when people genuinely talked about how they don’t understand it or why people are “thirsting” over Orlok, that’s when it became a debate. Many people forget that a film is a form of art (this one is FICTIONAL ART), and art has many different representations. The plot is pretty clear when you watch it, especially with the dialogue in the film and the interviews done by the actresses/ actors online. 

There is a lot of symbolism in this movie, and people are confused on why others are “shipping” the dynamic between Count Orlok and Ellen even though Ellen clearly explains IN DIALOGUE that Orlok is her most shameful, dark desire and struggles with herself in the entire movie with wanting something “romantic” and wanting something “ugly”. People watched this movie and saw what’s on the surface rather than noticing and hearing all the details to understand what is actually going on-screen. It’s way deeper than most give it credit for, showing how society shamed female sexual desire, especially back in the day.

If there’s one thing you should know about vampires, it’s that they’re a literary symbol, often tied to sensuality and used to reflect a human’s darkest desires. Orlok is a vampire, a terrible, non-forgivable character portrayed in media. He represents all things bad, and the movie is a fictional story, which people obviously forget about. Whoever watches it can find their own interpretation, but you’ve got to dig deeper and understand the true point of the movie to really understand what type of film this is and why media literacy is important when it comes to showcasing art that can be represented in ways you might not be comfortable with. 

It is the same thing that happens in reality with viral videos and trending news. People just see the surface and overlook the deeper meaning. Without understanding the context, history, and bias behind it, it’s super easy to get manipulated by what you think you should believe VS what you shouldn’t.

We need to bring media literacy back, and it starts with a few simple things. First, ask questions, don’t just take everything at face value. You want to ask “What makes them say that?” and “What are they trying to tell us?”. Make sure to check your sources. Please don’t believe everything you see online, especially from “sources” known to falsify their content and change rhetoric to fit what they think should be seen in the media. And don’t forget to get the context whether it’s a movie, book, or news, understanding the bigger picture is what really makes it all make sense.

Media isn’t just for entertainment, it truly does shape how we view the world. If we don’t start getting smarter and educated about it, we’re basically asking for a horror story to happen in real life. Given everything going on in the world, broken systems, PR stunts, and billionaires only caring about themselves and lying to us so they seem like the hero… it’s time to wake up and lock in.