MEDIA AND

INFORMATION
LITERATE CITIZENS

THINK
CRITICALLY,
CLICK WISELY!

Module 2
Part
Understanding Information
2 and Technology

Media & Information Literacy Curriculum

for Educators & Learners
Published in 2021 by the United Nations Educational, Scientific
and Cultural Organization, 7, place de Fontenoy, 75352 Paris 07 SP,
France

© UNESCO 2021

ISBN 978-92-3-100448-3

This publication is available in Open Access under the Attribution-

ShareAlike 3.0 IGO (CC-BY-SA 3.0 IGO) license (http://
[Link]/licenses/by-sa/3.0/igo/). By using the content
of this publication, the users accept to be bound by the terms of
use of the UNESCO Open Access Repository ([Link]
open-access/terms-use-ccbysa-en).

The designations employed and the presentation of material

throughout this publication do not imply the expression of any
opinion whatsoever on the part of UNESCO concerning the legal
status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or
concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries.

The authors are responsible for the choice and the presentation
of the facts contained in this book and for the opinions expressed
therein, which are not necessarily those of UNESCO and do not
commit the Organization.

Authors
Alton Grizzle, Carolyn Wilson, Ramon Tuazon, C.K. Cheung, Jesus
Lau, Rachel Fischer, Dorothy Gordon, Kwame Akyempong, Jagtar
Singh, Paul R. Carr, Kristine Stewart, Samy Tayie, Olunifesi Suraj,
Maarit Jaakkola, Gina Thésée, Curmira Gulston

Edited by Alton Grizzle, Carolyn Wilson, Dorothy Gordon

Graphic design by UNESCO/Katharine Mugridge

Cover design by UNESCO/Katharine Mugridge

Typeset by UNESCO
Printed by UNESCO

Printed in France
TABLE OF CONTENTS

MODULE 2: UNDERSTANDING INFORMATION AND TECHNOLOGY 90

Background and Rationale 91

UNIT 1: TECHNOLOGY, MEDIA AND SOCIETY 94

Key Topics 94

Learning Objectives 94

Pedagogical Approaches and Activities 96

Assessment & Recommendations 98

UNIT 2: FREEDOM, ETHICS AND SOCIAL ACCOUNTABILITY 98

Key Topics 98

Learning Objectives 98

Pedagogical Approaches and Activities 100

Assessment & Recommendations 102

UNIT 3: WHAT MAKES NEWS: EXPLORING THE CRITERIA 102

Key Topics 102

Learning Objectives 102

Pedagogical Approaches and Activities 103

Assessment & Recommendations 105

UNIT 4: THE NEWS DEVELOPMENT PROCESS: GOING BEYOND THE 5WS AND 1H 106

Key Topics 106

Learning Objectives 106

Assessment & Recommendations 109

MODULE 2:
UNDERSTANDING
INFORMATION AND
TECHNOLOGY
 “A strong democracy requires
access to high-quality information
and an ability for citizens to come
together to debate, discuss,
deliberate, empathize and make
concessions.”
– Samantha Bradshaw and Phillip Howard,
2019 Global Inventory of Organized Social Media Manipulation

BACKGROUND AND
RATIONALE
With the exponential growth of information and
communication technologies in the past two decades, the
reach and impact of traditional media (radio, television
and newspaper) have been expanded and transformed,
and information and news have thus become more widely
available than ever before. In this information age, journalists
and information professionals play a pivotal role in providing
access to information beyond their immediate audience,
and in facilitating citizen participation in governance toward
democratic societies, peace, and sustainable development.
This module discusses the roles and functions of traditional
and online news content providers. Such roles and functions
include empowering individuals and societies to exercise
their freedoms of expression and information, enabling
individuals to recognize falsehood, build civic agency and

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citizenship, demand transparency and accountability, and
practice information ethics. It also considers how technology
can contribute to social transformation in societies. All these
are basic normative conditions for a democratic society. The
module further gives an overview of the roles of the news
media, then and now: to seek and speak the truth, make
sense of issues and events, serve as a watchdog against
abuses, work as an enabler of public debate, facilitate citizen
participation, and amplify people’s voices.
The module enables educators to further explore issues
such as freedom of information and freedom of expression
(including press freedom), as well as the importance of utility,
inclusiveness, accuracy, accountability and transparency in
news reporting. Finally, dimensions of social autonomy and
agency are also examined.
The concept has arisen that many people today live in a
post-truth era, partly characterized by the proliferation of
false or manipulated content. The module examines this
phenomenon and the discipline of fact-checking. It further
explains how verification, independence and accountability
are what sets journalism apart from the other forms of
information exchange.
With new technologies largely availed by massive digital
communications companies, we are also witnessing the
advent of user-generated content and participation in citizen
journalism. While this phenomenon presents us with diverse
voices and perspectives, it also reinforces the need to
critically evaluate the many sources of content. As media
and information literate individuals, educators and learners
are able to analyse and evaluate in particular the news
they receive, exercise critical civic engagement to demand
fair and accurate news reporting, and advocate for free,
independent and pluralistic media.

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 UNIT

UNIT 1:
TECHNOLOGY, MEDIA
AND SOCIETY

UNIT 2:
FREEDOM, ETHICS AND SOCIAL
RESPONSIBILITY

UNIT 3:
WHAT MAKES NEWS:
EXPLORING THE CRITERIA

UNIT 4:
THE NEWS DEVELOPMENT
PROCESS: GOING BEYOND
THE 5WS AND 1H
1

1. The Right Questions [Link]

questions-as-a-philosopher-answer-as-a-visionary/
See also, Waisbord, Silvio. (2019). The 5Ws and 1H of Digital Journalism.
Digital Journalism. 7. 351-358. 10.1080/21670811.2018.1545592.

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UNIT 1: TECHNOLOGY, MEDIA AND
SOCIETY
DURATION: 2 HOURS

Key Topics
● Evolution of the concept and practice of freedom of expression and press freedom
● Digital communications and human rights
● Purpose of journalism in society and its role in the architecture of democracy (e.g.
freedom, civic agency, transparency, accountability)
● Technology in society
● Role and accountability of journalists in the 21st century in the national and global
arena (e.g. mirror, gatekeeper, watchdog, enabler, facilitator)
● Public-interest journalism, editorial independence vis-à-vis ownership influence
● Role of information ethics.

Learning Objectives
After completing this unit, educators will be able to:

● Trace the evolution of the concept and practice of the concepts of freedom of
expression and press freedom
● Delineate the normative purpose of journalism and its role in strengthening and
pursuing good governance, democracy, and sustainable development
● Evaluate the evolving role and accountability of journalists and information
professionals, both in the national and global arena, in the context of evolving
technology, in the context of digital communications companies, and in the
public interest.

“Civilization has produced one idea more powerful than the other – the notion
that people can govern themselves. And it has created a largely unarticulated
theory of information to sustain that idea, called journalism. The two rise and fall
together.”

– Bill Kovach and Tom Rosenstiel,

The Elements of Journalism

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 Digital Communications Companies and Human Rights
Freedom of expression has long been regarded as a fundamental right, essential to the
realization of our full human potential. It is the foundation of other rights and freedoms,
underpinning social and economic development. The exercise of freedom of expression
requires public platforms that permit the exchange of information and ideas. The
media and digital communications companies, though not one and the same, play an
important role in providing such platforms. In order to fulfil this function, however, the
media must be independent of state, corporate or government control. This freedom in
turn places an obligation upon journalists to behave ethically, hence the development
of professional codes that deal with journalistic standards and based on accountability
to citizens. Digital communications companies are expected to support human rights
and avoid abuses, but like the media they often fall short of normative ideals.

The benefits of digital technology to society are well documented and numerous. They
go beyond giving a voice to the voiceless and serving as a vital lifeline of people’s
access to information and engagement in sustainable development. The benefits of
technology include enabling information processing and verification, research, people’s
access to education, better health, clean water, agriculture, cleaner environment,
more fair and transparent democratic processes, the preservation of information and
knowledge, more interaction with people from other cultures and thus increase in social
interaction, tolerance and mutual respect, and creating new jobs and entrepreneurial
opportunities. The list goes on. We have seen how the technology kept societies
going during the unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic. The more recent developments
of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Blockchain technologies hold much potential for
sustainable development and economic development because of the new, efficient,
stable, and more powerful ways that allow for the storing, processing, managing,
and protection of data and information for decision-making (see Module 11 for more
information about AI). In parallel to these benefits, there are also harms. Dependence
on technology means dependence on the institutions whose curation of expression
can unduly limit content - or enable expression that abuses rights such as the rights
to dignity or public health. This dependence can frequently expose users to privacy
invasion and attempted manipulation through data-driven targeting.

The growth, influence, and dependence of people on social media for news and
information in general is evident today. There is also the rise in misinformation that
some attribute to a lack of care by companies and the use of algorithms that fuel the
prominence of such content, as well as to expansion of such social media, and to the
lack of MIL competencies among users.

Finally, among many other developments, there is much debate about competition
between traditional media and digital communications companies for advertising
revenues. Some are calling for the regulation of these latter companies in the same
way that media are regulated. For example, media companies are legally liable for
defamatory content, yet the digital communications or Internet companies say they are
platforms, not publishers, and that the actual person doing the defamation should be
liable, not them. One consequence is that they do not have a legal incentive to prevent

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the same material from being circulated, unless ordered to take action by court. This
is a complex issue; meanwhile, there are also calls for the Internet companies to be
more tightly regulated in terms of their extraction and use of data as it affects privacy
issues. Others say that these companies have become too powerful and interlinked,
and want to see conglomerates broken up through regulation. A further case is made
for companies to be regulated for transparency – thereby affording more evidence-
based governance of these entities; for better consumer rights protection and due
process such as having to provide effective opportunities to appeal against corporate
decisions; and for inter-operability between different entities to enable individuals
to have more choice rather than being “held hostage” with their personal data and
contacts being restricted to a “walled garden”. This means that there is not the
portability of data (unlike where regulation has enabled one’s cell phone number to be
portable across different companies). Some lobbies seek more effective taxation of
the digital communications companies, and also regulation that requires these entities
to compensate media institutions for content that appears on the digital services and
helps to make money for the platforms.

Taken together, these different regulatory possibilities have varying implications for the
freedom of information, freedom of expression, the circulation of news, and corporate
ethics (See the UNESCO resource, What if we all governed the Internet? Advancing
multistakeholder participation in Internet governance2).

In considering these issues, the training facilitator may choose from the approaches
and activities outlines below.

Pedagogical Approaches and Activities

As discussed earlier in this Curriculum (Part 1), various pedagogical approaches to
teach and learn MIL are possible. Please review the list in Part 1 to decide which
approach is most suitable to apply to the suggested Activities below, and to other
activities that you may develop.

The educator could organize a classroom debate on the benefits and challenges of digital
technologies. This could be a discussion around the possible negative outcomes and
challenges to regulate social media or search companies in the same way that the media
is regulated (keeping in mind, also that services like Youtube and VK, as well as Baidu
Tieba, are also often used as search engines by people looking for particular content).
Learners are assigned to research and report on the evolution of freedom of expression
and press freedom in their country. The report will include a visual timeline of milestones,
such as:
● Historical developments in the evolution of the theory and practice of freedom of
expression and its correlative of press freedom
● Journalists and/or media agencies that have made specific contributions to press
freedom and democracy

2. W
 hat if we all governed the Internet? Advancing multi-stakeholder participation in Internet governance,
[Link]

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 ● Events in democratic movements where news media and news reporting played a
significant role.

If feasible, the training facilitator assigns participants to interview journalists on their

views of the role of journalism in promoting or pursuing democracy. The interviewees
will be requested to cite specific instances when media coverage played a key role
in the national or international landscape, as well as managing potential tensions
between ownership interests and the public interest. The educators then write a two-
page reflection paper based on the interview, indicating the specific function of the
media, the ways in which the media operated, and the key issues that were addressed.

How journalists expose the inadequacies or failures of digital companies to address

hate speech and misinformation could be one example. The suggested activities below
illustrate the point.

● Consider the role of media and digital communications companies in various

aspects of social life such as gender equality, peace, health, environmental issues,
education, and the sustainable development goals in general. Investigate and
discuss the pros and cons. See Modules 4, 5, 6, 11, 13, and 14 for more on these
topics and other suggested activities.

● Consider using the below UNESCO markers to classify the contribution of activities
to gender equality. These can be a useful and relevant tool when assessing the
extent to which policies, activities, and programmes in general, including in the fields
of media and digital communications, address or tackle gender equality issues:

• Gender-blind: Not acknowledging nor addressing the existing differences and

inequalities between women and men (is gender-unaware)

• Gender-sensitive: Activities that identify and acknowledge differences and

inequalities between women and men, and highlight these as requiring attention

• Gender-responsive: Activities that identify and acknowledge differences and

inequalities between women and men and articulate policies and initiatives which
address the different needs, aspirations, capacities and contributions of women
and men

• Gender-transformative: Activities, policies and initiatives that challenge the root

causes of existing and biased/discriminatory policies, practices, programmes
and affect change for the betterment of life for all3.

Discuss these concepts and how they are related. Organize group work where each
group is asked to identify and select a piece of news. Guide the groups to assess
the extent to which and why the content may be classified as gender-blind, gender-
sensitive, gender-responsive, or gender-transformative.

3. W
 omen Make the News 2019, [Link]
enmakenews/2019/gendersensitiveresources

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Assessment & Recommendations
● Reflection paper on results of readings and/or interviews
● Essay or blog on issues related to media, democracy and misinformation
● Participation in group learning activities (e.g. workshops, class discussions).

Topics for Further Consideration

● Case studies on a controlled or captured4 media outlets
● Propaganda vs. journalism.

UNIT 2: FREEDOM, ETHICS AND

SOCIAL ACCOUNTABILITY
DURATION: 2 HOURS

Key Topics
● Freedom of expression, freedom of the press, freedom of information and
information ethics
● Codes of ethics, codes of practice and global values in the newsroom: guidelines
for media and information professionals
● Journalistic ethics in news gathering and processing (ethic committees,
ombudsman, independent press councils/press complaint commissions)
● Rights and social agency of citizens.

Learning Objectives
After completing this unit, educators will be able to:
● Describe the universal principles of freedom of the press, freedom of expression
and freedom of information, and their implications for news reporting
● Analyse how ethics applies to the practice of journalism and to information
professionals at the personal, professional and global levels
● Appreciate the role of press freedom advocates and media watchdogs in pursuing
and protecting press freedom and responsibility
● Explain the corresponding rights and participation of citizens as an enactment of
social and cognitive justice

4. D
 ragomir, M. 2020. Reporting facts: free from fear or favour. Paris: UNESCO. [Link]
org/ark:/48223/pf0000375061

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 ● Understand and analyse citizen reporting or the evolving role of citizens or non-
professional journalists as active participants in generating media content and in
the democratic process of public debate.

Accountability

“It is information that makes the subject a citizen and allows him or her to exercise
rights effectively.”

– Loiĉ Hervouet,
Journalist and former president of the School of Journalism of Lille

If the state overregulates the media, it will interfere with the independence of journalists
and their ability to cover events according to standards of professional reporting and
public interest. The media are social actors who can exert great power in society, and
it is therefore important that they live up to the expected norms for journalism. Thus, it
is believed that journalists need to regulate themselves by adopting codes of ethical
conduct or setting out professional guidelines on how stories or events should be covered.
Together with this, journalists and citizens have an obligation to ensure the distribution of
accurate information that is representative of a variety of credible perspectives.

Application: Code of Journalistic Ethics

Examine an example of a code of ethics established by international journalist associations
or national media organizations (one example is the code of ethics established by the
International Federation of Journalists; another example would be the BBC’s professional
standards). Assess the intended purpose of each element of the code.

● Discuss why a code of ethics should be developed and agreed upon by the members
of the profession themselves and not imposed by external agents or authorities
● Discuss the mechanisms needed to enforce the code of ethics
● Look for examples and examine differences between of 1) code of ethics and
2) code of conduct ethics established by international journalist associations or
national media organizations, for instance
● Discuss self-regulation, forms of co-regulation, and statutory regulation. What are
the pros and cons of each for professional, independent journalism?

Application: Code of Professional Ethics for Information

Professionals
Examine a code of ethics established by information professionals, such as librarians or
archivists, including major principles and values5). See how this code could potentially
differ from a code of conduct established by international journalist associations or
national media organizations.
5. F
 or example 1) the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions Code of Ethics for
Librarians and other Information Workers and 2) the set of ethics codes for archivists established by the
International Council of Archives or professional codes of ethics developed by individual countries for
librarians, such as the American Library Association.

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● Discuss differences between directional and aspirational codes
● Discuss differences between codes of conduct and codes of ethics
● Discuss information ethics issues related to accuracy, transparency, ownership,
access, privacy, security and community
● Discuss how information ethics influence personal decisions, professional practice
and public policy
● Discuss how evolving new information formats and needs influence ethical
principles, and how these codes are applied (e.g. social media policies, digital
preservation, privacy, access to public information).

Application: What is our Social Agency?

Visit the Digital Citizenship website and review the nine elements of digital citizenship.6
These nine elements require individuals to lead and assist others within one’s community
to become active digital citizens, recognize positive and negative consequences of
actions, and practice good habits. Cognitive justice also acknowledges the importance
of representing content from minority groups, using lesser known but valid resources
and promoting indigenous knowledge.
● Provide examples based on your personal experience related to each of the nine
elements
● Evaluate your own competency in relation to these elements and consider which
aspects require improvement
● Discuss how information and digital access influence your ability to evaluate
information.
See more on audiences and global citizenship in Module 5.

Pedagogical Approaches and Activities

In summary: as discussed earlier in this Curriculum (Part 1), various pedagogical
approaches are possible. Please review the list in Part 1 and decide which approach to
apply to the suggested Activities below and others that you may formulate.

Guide participants to discuss indexes such as Freedom of the Press Index of Freedom
House7, the Worldwide Press Freedom Index of Reporters Without Borders8, or a
relevant regional measure, such as the media Afrobarometer. The learner will: (1) explain
whether they think such indexes is relevant or useful to development; (2) identify and
explain the factors or variables that have affected the freedom of the press. Criteria
covered in these indices include the following:

• Degree of freedom of print, broadcast and online media

• Legal environment for media
• Political pressures that influence reporting
• Economic factors that affect access to information

6. [Link]
7. Freedom House, [Link]
8. Reporters Without Borders, [Link]

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 • Media ownership concentration
• Direct attacks on journalists and media
• Existence of state monopoly in media
• Existence of censorship and self-censorship in media
• Difficulties for foreign reporters
• How digital communications company curate news media content in comparison
to other content (e.g. e-personal content, entertainment, etc.).

● There are many organizations in the world that campaign to defend journalists.
Some are international, such as International Media Support in Denmark, Article
19 in London in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, the
Committee to Protect Journalists in New York, United States of America, the
Freedom of Expression Institute (FXI) in South Africa, and UNESCO, which issues
the biennial Director-General’s Report on the Safety of Journalists and the Danger
of Impunity. Consider whether there are press freedom organizations active in your
country and how these have contributed to the protection of press freedom and
freedom of expression.

● Educators could show examples of reporting that depict prejudices, including

stereotyping, mythmaking, obscenity and graphic images. Participants should be
led through a discussion on the importance of standards and general guidelines for
journalists and will submit a report on the issues presented in the examples.

● The educator can interview or invite a media ombudsman or representative of a

media watchdog organization (or similar group) to inquire about common criticisms
or complaints of alleged professional or ethical lapses of journalists and/or news
organizations. The educator guides learners to review provisions of codes of ethics
and examines whether issues raised are adequately covered in existing professional
codes. Participants call local media outlets to check if they have codes of conduct
for their journalists. They may inquire further about how provisions of these codes
are being enforced or implemented.

● The educator can guide learners to make an inventory of the coverage by citizen
reporting of an event or issue prominently covered by mainstream media. They
then check for factual errors or bias.

● Learners should be guided to maintain a journal or log-book where daily

observations on issues relevant to the topic (e.g. violations of freedom of the press/
expression/information, examples of unethical practice of journalism) are recorded
for summary and synthesis at the end of the course.

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Assessment & Recommendations
● Media log
● Research papers (e.g., press freedom rating, codes of conduct, citizen reporting)
● Reflection papers on interviews, TV/film viewing
● Participation in group learning activities (e.g., workshops, class discussions)
● Comparison tables containing differences and similarities of different codes.

Topics for Further Consideration

● Internet governance issues: should digital communications companies self-
regulate, co-regulate, or be subjected to state regulation, and on what issues?
● Public’s right to know and principles of freedom of information: Article 19 of the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights
● Freedom of information/expression: international covenants, conventions,
declarations and charters, and national laws (constitutional provisions; laws on
libel, national security)
● Access to information laws and procedures, as well as declarations, charters and
recommendations
● What constitutes an ideal freedom of information law and practice
● Self-regulation and media ombudsman
● Reporters’ rights.

UNIT 3: WHAT MAKES NEWS:

EXPLORING THE CRITERIA
DURATION: 3 HOURS

Key Topics
● Facts and verification as cornerstones of journalism and of the work of other
information professionals
● News factors or criteria in assessing news value and newsworthiness
● Considerations in making news judgements or in shaping the news.

Learning Objectives
After completing this unit, educators will be able to:

● Describe the criteria used in assessing the news value or newsworthiness of

information
● Critically discuss the basic principles in making judgements about news or in
shaping the news.

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 The Genre of News
“Critical thinking doesn’t mean we disparage everything; it means that we try to
distinguish between claims with evidence and those without.”

– Weaponized Lies: How to Think Critically in the Post-Truth Era,

Daniel J. Levitin, 2016

Journalists need to evaluate and make sense of a vast amount of content and consider
how to organize it in a way that highlights the issues that are most important so it is
comprehensible to an audience that will have very different levels of understanding of
the events in question. The judgements involved will include selecting stories deemed
to be important (newsworthy) and deciding how to present the information. Inevitably,
the form of presentation or “framing” will reflect past experience and outlook of the
journalists and media institutions. It is important for the audience to understand how
stories are framed and to think critically about the process.

Pedagogical Approaches and Activities

As suggested earlier in this Curriculum (Part 1) various pedagogical approaches are
possible to adopt when implementing the below suggested activities. Please review
the list in Part 1 and decide which approach to apply to the suggested activities below
and others that you may formulate.

Textual Analysis
The educator analyses the newsworthiness of each of the front-page stories of a major
newspaper (or its online edition), based on the criteria for assessing the news value of
a story. This typically includes such factors as:

● Timeliness
● Impact and importance
● Prominence
● Proximity
● Conflict
● Human interest
● Necessity
● Unusualness/Oddity.

Besides these normative attributes, news is often selected for its dramatic and even
entertainment value. It is also chosen based on implicit ideas about what is ‘important
for whom’ and what is the likely ’impact on whom’

They then analyse the stories based on the factors to be considered in making news
judgments or in shaping the news. These are:

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● Truthfulness: accuracy (getting the facts right) and coherence (making sense of the
facts)
● Dedication to the public interest
● Informing, rather than manipulating, the public
● Completeness/comprehensiveness
● Diversity (inclusion of news of all communities, not just targeted audiences).

These normative factors can be seen in the extent to which news items identify
their sources, reveal verification used (e.g. triangulation of sources); transparency of
journalists’ views that affect what they do – such as to what facts and voices are most
salient for them, and why. Attention should also be paid to the placement of articles,
headlines and font size used, and photographs and captions included.

Contextual Analysis
The educator reviews the coverage of a media organization of choice/relevance on a
particular topic and particular day, and compares and contrasts the angling (i.e. selling
of a particular point of view or perspective) and treatment (i.e. information performed,
sources acknowledged, interviews done, any visual support of news stories) of at least
two broadcasters’ coverages.

News Analysis and Self-Assessment

Learners are given two different pieces of news writing on the same subject and are
asked to explain which piece is stronger, which is more informative and how the other
news article could be improved in terms of its informational quality and conformance
with the news genre (for criteria to be used, please refer to Textual Analysis above.)

Ask the following question: How do editorial judgment and audience judgment affect
choices of news stories to publish? In addition, how does editorial judgment shape the
presentation of a story? Audience judgment shapes the outlet’s presentation of news
to serve an audience that supports the news outlet, although some news is tailored for
an audience of advertisers or owners - thereby deviating from the normative standards
of journalism.

Group Exercises 9

GROUP EXERCISE 1: SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS:

● Why is news important?

● What is lost when journalists or media outlets are stopped from reporting the news?

9. T
 hese are drawn from the Asian Institute of Journalism and Communication Courses, 2020-2021,
[Link]

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 GROUP EXERCISE 2: IDENTIFY THE VALUES DRIVING NEWS

● Identify the lead article or main headline story of a particular issue of a print or
online news platform
● Identify the news values that have driven the article. Explain how you identified each.
● Are there multiple values? Does the presence of more drivers make the story more
important or more interesting?
● Analyse the newsworthiness of the article. Do you think it should have been
published? Why or why not?

GROUP EXERCISE 3: BE YOUR OWN EDITOR

● The educator shows a list of 15-20 headlines then asks the learners the following:
● What are the important stories?
● If you have space/airtime for only five, which ones would you choose? Please give
reasons for your selection
● If you are from (a) a TV news channel, (b) broadsheet, (c) tabloid, (d) radio news program,
or (e) international news agency , which stories would you choose? Pick only five.

GROUP EXERCISE 4: IN THE AGE OF NEWS VIA A DIGITAL COMMUNICATIONS

COMPANY

The educator guides learners to access a series of news items from digital
communications companies and conducts an exercise around the following:

● How to tell if the news is from a trusted source?

● What are trusted sources of news? Why are they trusted?
● Is the news real or fabricated but disguised in the genre of news? How can you tell?
● Do social media platforms benefit from false information? What about search
engines?
● To what extent should digital communications companies be responsible to
manage false information on their platforms?

Assessment & Recommendations

● Reflection paper based on textual analysis/contextual analysis/news analysis
● Participation in group learning activities (e.g. workshops, class discussions).

Topics for Further Consideration

● News settings (socio-cultural, political, and economic influences on the news)
● Effects of news settings on news values (drivers) and editorial processes
● Global flow of information and shaping of the news
● Global news media organizations (e.g. CNN, Al Jazeera, BBC, Deutsche Welle, etc.).

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UNIT 4: THE NEWS DEVELOPMENT
PROCESS: GOING BEYOND THE 5WS
AND 1H
10

DURATION: 3 HOURS

Key Topics
● Identifying news and recognizing the story (the news development process)
● Verification, independence, and accountability as the essence of journalism
● Fact-checking news stories.

Learning Objectives
After completing this unit, educators will be able to:
● Describe the process of how the news story is developed from story idea to data
gathering to news writing
● Understand the core principles of the discipline of verification, as distinguished
from the journalism of assertion, and how to apply the techniques of verification to
fulfil the journalistic standard of truthfulness and accuracy
● Explain the concepts of independence and accountability as distinguishing
elements of journalism
● Illustrate fact-checking methods and tools.

News Media Organization Study Visit/Virtual Tour

“The news of the day as it reaches the newspaper office is an incredible medley
of fact, propaganda, rumour, suspicion, clues, hopes and fears, and the task of
selecting and ordering that news is one of the truly sacred and priestly offices in a
democracy.”

– in News Reporting and Writing, Walter Lippmann, (1989-1974)

A field trip to, or a virtual tour of, a media office may be arranged, including a dialogue
with the editor-in-chief or senior editor. This will allow participants to observe the news
development process at the editorial office level. Participants will be asked to write a
reflection paper on their observations and lessons learned.

10. T
 he Right Questions [Link]
answer-as-a-visionary/ See also, Waisbord, Silvio. (2019). The 5Ws and 1H of Digital Journalism. Digital
Journalism. 7. 351-358. 10.1080/21670811.2018.1545592.

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 Process Enquiry (A Day in the Life of a News Reporter)
Learners accompany a news reporter while covering his or her beat and document the
following: (a) what elements of the news were identified and written about, compared
to what happened in the field (or the process of sifting through the data gathered); and
(b) how and why the reporter told the story (put meaning to the data) the way they did.
An alternative activity is an interview with a news reporter.

Pedagogical Approaches and Activities

As discussed earlier in this Curriculum (Part 1) various pedagogical approaches are
possible. Please review the list in Part 1 and decide which approach to apply to the
suggested activities below and others that you may formulate.

Textual Analysis
● The educator analyses newspaper accounts of a major issue or event and examines
the information provided. They explain the assessment, considering the factors
and process in “identifying news and recognizing the story”:

• Elements of the news (5Ws and 1H: Who? What? When? Where? Why? How?) and
redefining them: news is data with meaning (who is about character, what is plot,
when is time, where is setting, why is motivation or causation, how is narrative)
• The notion of news has expanded over the years to include the questions: “So
what?”, meaning that the significance of the story should be explained; “What’s
the solution?” meaning that news can go beyond the important function of
exposing problems and give exposure to the range of possible solutions.
• Journalism as “storytelling with a purpose”: finding the information people need
to live good lives, and present the information in a meaningful, relevant and
engaging way
• Is it possible to assess if the news includes answers to the questions “so what?”
and “is the solution to the problem being reported?”. While not all news can
include these elements, but there is a general drive to ensure that more new
stories do so.

The educator will check for verifiability based on the core principles of verification,
which are: do not add; do not deceive the audience; be as transparent as possible
about methods and motives; rely on own original reporting; and exercise humility11.

The educator will also apply at least one technique of verification: sceptical editing,
accuracy checklist, method of verifying presumed facts, and rules on anonymous sources
a reference that can be used is The Elements of Journalism by Kovach and Rosenstiel).

Production
The training facilitator or educator coordinates with the adviser of a school publication
(or school broadcast station or library) to allow participants to come up with an issue
11. G
 lobal Media Journal African Edition 2008 Vol 2 (2), [Link]
File/29/63

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plan for the next publication/programme. The issue plan includes the line-up of articles
or stories to be written or produced and the basis for their inclusion, scope of each
story, and possible angle or treatment of each story.

Media Log
Participants are required to maintain a journal or logbook where daily observations on
the topic (e.g. news values, news judgements, criteria of verification, citizen reporting)
are recorded for summary and synthesis at the end of the course.

Group Exercises 12

GROUP EXERCISE 1: HOW IS NEWS PRODUCED?

Visit a television news organization and interview the following on their respective
duties and accountability:

● Editors - central desk (radio, online, TV)

● Reporters - assigned according to beats
● Segment producers
● Camerapersons - field and studio
● Video editors
● Executive producer
● Supervising producer
● Anchors - read from the prompter
● Others: character generator operator, researchers, engineering and personnel.

GROUP EXERCISE 2: ANALYSIS OF INFORMATION SOURCES

The group should identify a subject or story which is available in a print or online news
story as well as in a public social media post. Consider the following questions:

● Based on the journalistic process of verification, independence and accountability,

is there a difference between the two? Explain.
● Did the article and the social media post follow the process of verification? How
can you tell?
● Is the source independent and/or authoritative? Why?
● Is there accountability on the part of the source? Explain.

GROUP EXERCISE 3: VERIFICATION, INDEPENDENCE, AND ACCOUNTABILITY

Instruct participants to compare and contrast the following:

1. A press release by a government agency

2. A news article published by an established media outlet based solely on that
press release

12. Examples are drawn from the Asian Institute of Journalism and Communication

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 3. A news article published by an established media outlet based on the government
agency press release, but with clear indications from the journalist of verification of
the information put forth in the press release as well as additional information as a
result of the verification process.

After analysing the three articles, ask the participants what makes journalism different
from the press release examined here.

GROUP EXERCISE 4: FACT-CHECKING

Show a screenshot/video of a viral post on a social media platform

1. Ask the learners if the claim is fact-checkable.

• Can this claim be verified/fact-checked? Why or why not?

• If the claim can be verified/fact-checked, how would you do it? (Ask the learners
to recall the things they need to look for when fact-checking.)

2. Next, ask the learner to proceed with the actual process of fact-checking the claim.
Instruct them to document the step-by-step process, then discuss and provide
feedback on the way they conducted their research.

Assessment & Recommendations

● Media log production
● Reports on study visit, textual analysis
● Fact-checking exercise
● Participation in group learning activities, e.g. workshops, class discussions.

Topics for Further Consideration

News sources and news gathering techniques (including use of ICTs), fairness and
appropriateness in news coverage.

Resources for this Module

Article 19. (1999, June). Right to Know: Principles on Freedom of Information Legis-
lation. International Standards Series. Retrieved 27 May 2009 from [Link]
[Link]/data/files/RTI_Principles_Updated_EN.pdf

Asian Institute of Journalism and Communication. (2020). Developing champion teach-

ers in news literacy: Training module [forthcoming]. Asian Institute of Journalism and
Communication.

ASLIB Training Suite. Freedom of Information. (2004). Retrieved 15 February 2004 from
[Link]

Bertrand, Claude-Jean. (2003). Media Ethics and Accountability Systems. New York:
Hampton Press

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Bradshaw, Samantha and P. Howard. (2019). Global Disinformation Order 2019. Global
Inventory of Organized Social Media Manipulation. Working Paper 2019. 2, Oxford UK
Project on Computational Propaganda.

Burgess, JTF. & Knox, EJM. (2019). Foundations of Information Ethics. Chicago: ALA Press.

Committee to Protect Journalists, at [Link]

Digital Citizenship, Nine Themes of Digital Citizenship, at: [Link]

[Link]/[Link]

Dominic Ayegba Okoliko, Martinus Petrus de Wit. (2020) From “Communicating” to

“Engagement”: Afro-Relationality as a Conceptual Framework for Climate Change
Communication in Africa. Journal of Media Ethics 0:0, pages 1-15.

Dominick, J. R. (2007). The Dynamics of Mass Communications. 9th ed. Boston:

McGraw-Hill

Humanext. Ethics Trainings. (2009). Ankerstar and Dalke’s Balancing Personal and
Professional Ethics (programme with Trainer’s Guide, reproducible exercises, hand-
outs, case studies); Dr. Louis V. Larimer’s Seminar on Ethical Reasoning (with Ethical
Type Indicator Profile and Training Manual). Retrieved 22 April 2009 from [Link]
[Link]/[Link]

Gender Toolkit for Educators,

[Link]
pdf/Gender%2BToolkit%2Bfor%[Link]

Ireton, C. & Posetti, J. (2018). Journalism, ‘fake news’ & disinformation: Handbook for
journalism education and training. Paris: UNESCO.

Kovach, B. and Rosenstiel, T. (2014). The Elements of Journalism: What Newspeople

Should Know and the Public Should Expect. New York: Three Rivers Press of Random
House

Learning English. (2018, May 22). News literacy lesson 2: Verification, independence,
accountability. Retrieved from [Link]
cy-lesson-2-verification-independence-accountability/[Link]

Levitin, D. J. (2017). Weaponized lies: How to think critically in the post-truth era. New
York, NY: Dutton.

Mencher, Melvin. (2006). News Reporting and Writing (10th ed.). Boston: McGraw-Hill

Mendel, Toby. (2008). Freedom of Information: A Comparative Legal Survey (2nd Ed.).
Paris: UNESCO, at [Link]

MIL CLICKS. Retrieved from [Link]

j3KHxzITnAhXRyYsBHQ4fDXIQFjAAegQIAxAB&usg=AOvVaw0ne6UvMTMS9c3vTB-
j4rNbi&cshid=1579056787784

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 Ong, Jonathan Corpus and Jason A. Cabanes (2017). Architects of Networked Disin-
formation, Newton Tech4Dev Network [Link]
loads/2018/02/[Link]

Ordway, D. (2020). “Rated false”: Here’s the most interesting new research on fake news
and fact checking. Retrieved from [Link]
es-the-most-interesting-new-research-on-fake-news-and-fact-checking/?fbclid=IwAR-
2K6OPYxCwpU0m5IRkXJnoYPjww7u8h_UiHCZMoYOAk3ljiLTZIyb3wnso

Poynter Institute, at [Link]

Reporters Sans Frontières, at [Link]

Rosenstiel, Tom and A. Mitchell (eds). (2003). Thinking Clearly: Cases in Journalistic
Decision-Making. New York: Columbia University Press

Schudson, M. (2008). Why Democracies Love an Unlovable Press. In Ireton, C. & Po-
setti, J. (2018). Journalism, ‘Fake News’ & Disinformation: Handbook for Journalism
Education and Training. (pp. 40-41). Paris: UNESCO.

State of the News Media, at [Link]

Stony Brook Center for News Literacy Digital Resource Center. (n.d.). Lesson 4: What is
news and why? Retrieved from [Link]
news-and-why

Stony Brook Center for News Literacy. (n.d.). V.I.A. Retrieved from [Link]
center/content/via

The Benefits of Technology in Education: Sangmum Lee at TEDxYouth@BIS (video

resource), [Link]

Ward, S.J.A. (2005). Philosophical Foundations of Global Journalism Ethics. Journal of

Mass Media Ethics 20:1, 3-21

Watching the Watchdogs: A gender and media literacy toolkit for Southern Africa.,
[Link]
watchdogs-2009-05-28/

What if we all governed the Internet? Advancing multi-stakeholder participation in

Internet governance, [Link]

White, Robert A. (2010) The Moral Foundations of Media Ethics in Africa, Ecquid Novi:
African Journalism Studies, 31:1, 42-67, DOI: 10.1080/02560054.2010.9653411

UNESCO. (2009) Guidelines for Broadcasters on Promoting User Generated Content

and Media and Information Literacy. Paris: UNESCO, at [Link]
images/0018/001871/[Link]

UNESCO (2018). World Trends on Freedom of Expression and Media Development

2017/2018. UNESCO [Link]

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UNESCO. (2019). Belgrade Recommendations on Draft Standards for Media and
Information Literacy Curricula Guidelines (latest draft dated 12 November 2019).
[Link]
standards_for_mil_curricula_guidelines_12_november.pdf

UNESCO (2019). Journalism, fake news and disinformation: A handbook for journalism
education and training.

Yonazi, E. et al. (2013). eTransform Africa: the transformational use of information and
communication technologies in Africa. Accessed online 10/22/2013

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“… the States Parties to this Constitution, believing
in full and equal opportunities for education for all,
in the unrestricted pursuit of objective truth, and
in the free exchange of ideas and knowledge, are
agreed and determined to develop and to increase
the means of communication between their peoples
and to employ these means for the purposes of
mutual understanding and a truer and more perfect
knowledge of each other’s lives…”

– Extract from UNESCO Constitution

“Media and information literacy is an essential

dimension of moral and civic education. It is also a
fundamental right of every citizen, in any country of
the world, and thus it enables everyone to protect
their privacy and find their place in a society whose
technological environment is changing faster and
faster.”

– Audrey Azoulay, Director-General of UNESCO,

at the International Consultative Meeting on
Media and Information Literacy Curricula,
on 13 September 2019, in Belgrade, Serbia

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