The proliferation of deepfakes and visual misinformation coupled with the fast-paced nature of social media has prompted an increased need for media literacy skills among emerging citizens. The unit activity detailed in this article overviews a media literacy framework for engaged citizenship and presents media literacy strategies that emerging…

Courses: This unit activity applies critical theories from the fields of communication, sociology, and gender studies and therefore can be used in any course that discusses gender studies, qualitative research, content analysis, media effects, film analysis, or LGBTQ studies. This can be modified as an activity for graduate or undergraduate…

This activity challenges students to establish media usage rules for a 30-day digital declutter, during which time they challenge themselves to disengage from distracting digital media. Students write self-assessments about their media habits and relationship to media before beginning the declutter and after they have finished the 30-day…

This activity provides students with a way of understanding expectancy violations theory (EVT) by examining incidents that occurred during televised award shows. In this activity, in small groups, students will delve into well-known award-show incidents, such as Will Smith's slapping of Chris Rock at the 2022 Academy Awards, to understand the…

This activity highlights the concept of cultural hegemony, illustrating it by a reflection on the images of success and successful people portrayed in the media. The purpose of the exercise is to introduce students to this concept, and for them to examine how hegemonic views of others and the self affect the way they conceptualize success and…

Courses: Critically fun is a single-class activity for communication classes discussing persuasive messages, the effects of mass media, or rhetorical analysis (e.g. public speaking, communication theory, mass media, and rhetoric). Objectives: By the end of the activity, students should be able to analyze critically the rhetorical significance of…

While a new medium can enhance communication access by bringing back small group structures or access to local communities, it can also turn communal events such as dining out or drinks with friends into antisocial experiences. The social impact of a medium on the human experience is in part why McLuhan (McLuhan M. [1964b]. Understanding media:…

Courses: Media and Politics, Political Communication, Political Rhetoric, Media Effects. Objective: By taking part in a classroom activity, students will explore how cognitive frames and media frames play a role in learning from political debates.

Courses: Communication Criticism, Rhetorical Criticism, Introduction to Rhetoric, Introduction to Communication, Media Studies, and Persuasion courses. Objective: The aim of this activity is to introduce and explain the method of ideological criticism through commonplace advertising.

Courses: Media Criticism, Media and Society, and Media and Gender. Objectives: Students will gain a better understanding of how hegemony operates through culturally accepted norms that allow oppressive practices to endure in society. Students will then develop their own "culture jam" campaign to show them how counterhegemonic discourse…

According to the National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA, 2005), 10 million women and one million men struggle with eating disorders, including anorexia and bulimia. Disordered eating is most common in adolescent girls ages 15-19 and is prevalent in a diverse range of populations (NEDA, 2005). For example, African-American girls aged 11-14…

The influence of social media and technological developments has changed how groups and organizations advocating for social change generate awareness and participation in their causes. In this single class activity students will (a) analyze notions of activism and "slacktivism" from scholarly and popular sources to apply these concepts…

As one of the foundations of persuasion, fallacies should be included in the teaching of persuasive speaking. It is important that speakers avoid misleading their audience as they have an ethical responsibility to tell the truth and avoid misleading information. If discovered, fallacies in messages can damage the credibility of the speaker and…

The title and lyrics of "Video Killed the Radio Star" (VKRS) epitomize Marshall McLuhan's intricate aphorism "The Medium is the Message." A staple of many communication courses, the aphorism not only suggests that the technology used to convey information (the form) is just as important as the information conveyed (the content), but also that…

Corporate influence is a defining characteristic of mass media in the U.S. A typical introductory textbook devotes a number of chapters to the economic structure of the mass media including advertising, public relations, and corporate ownership, then also includes chapter sections on the economics of the various media (television, radio,…