This document summarizes a presentation by Renee Hobbs on surviving "fake news" and approaches to media literacy in the 21st century. Hobbs discusses how the concept of propaganda has changed over time, from referring initially to the Catholic Church's congregation for the propagation of faith, to later definitions focusing on its strategic and intentional nature to influence attitudes. She notes propaganda can take many forms and tap into emotions, values and needs of audiences. Hobbs also outlines key features of contemporary propaganda, like activating strong emotions and simplifying information. The presentation explores using virtual exchange and digital annotation to advance media literacy skills through analysis of modern propaganda.

1. Surviving “Fake News”:
Critical Approaches to Media Literacy in
the 21st Century
National Communication Association
Baltimore MD
November 17, 2019
Renee Hobbs
Harrington School of Communication and Media
University of Rhode Island USA
Email: Hobbs@uri.edu
Twitter: @Reneehobbs
Web: www.mediaeducationlab.com

2. How Do Students Understand the Concept of Propaganda?
 It is historical
 It is evil
 It is hard to define
 It is risky to discuss in schools

3. SOURCE: Southern Poverty Law Center (2017). The Trump Effect. Teaching Tolerance.

4. https://mindovermedia.tv

5. https://mindovermedia.eu

6. www.mindovermedia.tv

8. How have ideas about propaganda changed over time?

9. Propaganda
1622
Congregatio de Propaganda Fide

10. What is Propaganda?
Propaganda is one means by which large numbers
of people are induced to act together.
-Bruce Lannes Smith and Harold Lasswell,
authors of Propaganda, Communication and Public Opinion, 1946

11. What is Propaganda?
Propaganda is a form of information that panders
to our insecurities and anxieties.
-Jacques Ellul
author of Propaganda: The Formation of Men’s Attitudes, 1962

12. What is Propaganda?
Propaganda is indifferent to truth and truthfulness,
knowledge and understanding; it is a form of
strategic communication that uses any means to
accomplish its ends.
-Walter Cunningham, author of The Idea of Propaganda, 2002

13. • Propaganda appears in a variety of forms
• Propaganda is strategic and intentional
• Propaganda aims to influence attitudes, opinions and
behaviors
• Propaganda can be beneficial or harmful
• Propaganda may use truth, half-truths or lies
• Propaganda uses any means to accomplish its goal
• To be successful, propaganda taps into our deepest
values, fears, hopes and dreams

15. …the relationship
between propaganda
and information is fluid
and varies according to
context and use”
-Auerback and Castronovo, The Oxford
Handbook of Propaganda Studies, 2013

19. Where Propaganda Can Be Found
JOURNALISM AND
PUBLIC RELATIONS
ADVERTISING GOVERNMENT
AND POLITICS
ENTERTAINMENT EDUCATION ACTIVISM

20. www.mindovermedia.tv
The Power of Crowdsourcing

21. ACTIVATE STRONG
EMOTIONS
ATTACK OPPONENTS
SIMPLIFY INFORMATION
RESPOND TO AUDIENCE
NEEDS
KEY FEATURES
OF CONTEMPORARY PROPAGANDA

22. ACTIVATE STRONG
EMOTIONS
ATTACK OPPONENTS
SIMPLIFY INFORMATION
RESPOND TO AUDIENCE
NEEDS
KEY FEATURES
OF CONTEMPORARY PROPAGANDA

24. Learning about Global Propaganda Can
Activate Intellectual Curiosity

28. https://mindovermedia.eu

29. https://mindovermedia.tv

30. Message: What is the nature of the
information and ideas being expressed?
Techniques: What symbols and rhetorical
strategies are used to attract attention and
activate emotional response? What makes
them effective?
Means of Communication & Format: How
did the message reach people and what
form does it take?
Environment: Where, when and how may
people have encountered the message?
Audience Receptivity: How may people
think and feel about the message and how
free they are to accept or reject it?
CONTEXT

32. Close Analysis of Propaganda through Digital Annotation
https://ant.umn.edu

33. Virtual Exchange as a Pedagogy of Propaganda Education
SOURCE Hobbs, R., Seyferth-Zapf, C., & Grafe, S. (2018). Using virtual exchange to advance media literacy competencies through analysis of contemporary propaganda.
Journal of Media Literacy Education 10 (2), 152 – 168
GERMANY
UNITED STATES
Virtual Exchange Dialogue to Explore Contemporary Propaganda

34. Time to Reflect

35. Professor Renee Hobbs
Harrington School of Communication and Media
University of Rhode Island USA
Email: hobbs@uri.edu
Twitter: @reneehobbs
Web: www.mediaeducationlab.com
SLIDES