Are You Media Literate? Take a Test to Find Out

Posted by Brenna Coleman Oct 1, 2009

Are you media literate? Are you able to not only digest the news, but to analyze information and draw your own conclusions? Can you recognize media bias and the veiled support of corporate interests? Are you aware of the level of press freedom in the United States, or lack thereof? Do you know the history of press freedom? Can you surf the web and text message as well as any seventh grader? Can you express your own thoughts and viewpoints with more than a pen and paper? Do you know how to protect your creative expression?

There are a handful of issues addressed in media literacy tests, and you may find that you haven't mastered all of them, or even some of them. This isn't what is most important. What is, is realizing where you may be lacking, and finding out how to become more aware.

A media literate society is a strong, independent society. It is a public that knows it has a right to the truth, knows how to find the truth, and knows how to speak the truth. A media illiterate society, on the other hand, unquestionably absorbs misinformation and lacks awareness and empowerment.

American society is neither one nor the other, but somewhere in between. The goal of each individual can be to work on their own level of media literacy. A media literacy test is an interesting first step towards truth, awareness, and empowerment. PBS has a media literacy test that is designed for teachers. Even if you don't work in the education field, it is worth taking their quiz. The Common Language Project, a non-profit, independent news source, also offers a comprehensive test, which focuses on your knowledge of current affairs. The IFC Media Project's media literacy test examines how you digest popular culture. Take one or all three and find out how media literate you are.