media literacy

Background: Media content plays a significant role in shaping behaviors, attitudes, and lifestyle choices, especially among children, a demographic that is highly impressionable and actively engaged with various media platforms.Aims: This article explores the role of media literacy in equipping children to critically evaluate media content that promotes unhealthy lifestyles, including poor dietary choices, sedentary behavior, celebrity worship and unrealistic body ideals.Methodology: This study employs a qualitative approach, synthesizing data from case studies, government reports, and peer-reviewed academic literature to explore the role of media literacy in fostering healthy lifestyle choices among children.Findings: The findings indicate that current media literacy education programs for children are insufficient, largely because they often fail to include parental education. Parents play a pivotal role as mediators of children’s media consumption, and their active participation in media literacy education strengthens the impact of such interventions. The article argues for an integrated media literacy curriculum targeting both children and parents to create a more comprehensive understanding of healthy lifestyle practices and critical media engagement. Recommendations for policy, educational frameworks, and family-centered interventions are proposed to address these gaps.Conclusions: We emphasize the importance of a holistic approach to media literacy that includes all involved people and bodies in promoting healthier lifestyle choices among children.

In 2022, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported 5,486 fatal work injuries, reflecting a 5.7% increase from 2021. This alarming trend highlights the persistent dangers associated with hazardous occupations, with the fatal work injury rate rising to 3.7 fatalities per 100,000 full-time equivalent (FTE) workers. This article contends that traditional risk management approaches are inadequate to counter this trend and advocates for the integration of media literacy as an essential component of workplace safety. Media literacy equips workers to critically analyze and resist the influence of media narratives, particularly those on visual platforms such as Instagram and TikTok, that glamorize high-risk behaviors. Such narratives can promote unsafe workplace practices by encouraging employees to engage in dangerous activities to showcase exceptional skills. The article argues that corporations in construction sector and other hazardous industries bear the responsibility of organizing media literacy workshops for their employees. These programs can further critical awareness and encourage safer decision-making to help reduce the occurrence of workplace fatalities.

The increasing integration of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) in children's lives necessitates a continuous emphasis on media literacy. As digital environments become intrinsic to education, entertainment, and social interaction, children are exposed to vast amounts of content, unfiltered, complex, and often harmful. This paper explores the imperative role of media literacy in equipping children with critical thinking skills to experience the digital landscape responsibly. By analyzing contemporary challenges, including misinformation, cyberbullying, and digital addiction, this study highlights how media literacy fosters cognitive resilience and ethical engagement online. Furthermore, the paper emphasizes the role of educators, parents, and policymakers in furthering a collaborative approach to digital education. Media literacy is positioned not as a singular skill but as an evolving competency, integral to ensuring children's empowerment and safety. The findings show that there is an urgent need for structured media literacy programs, tailored to the cognitive and emotional development of children, to mitigate risks and harness the opportunities presented by ICT. We also recommend that children’s use of ICT should be kept as minimal as possible.