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MediaLiteracy.com
Site of the Week Archive

Here are sites we've featured over the past years, roughly grouped by topic area (some listed under more than one topic). In most cases, descriptions are those written by the site creators.

Jump to Sites of the Week related to:
Advertising, Public Relations, Consumerism
News & Journalism
Children, Families & Media
Health (Body Image, Substances, Violence) & Media
Media Democracy, Media Economics
Representation
Media & Culture, Technology
Making Media, Independent Media
Religion & Media
Visual & Aural Literacy

Media Literacy Education, Teaching

Digital Media: New Learners of the 21st Century A terrific PBS documentary, streaming online. DVDs available for raising awareness about the benefits of teaching with digitial media.
Free Technology for Teachers is a great blog written by Google Certified Teacher Richard Byrne. Outstanding resources and links.
The Future of Education: Charting the Course of Teaching and Learning in a Networked World. A Ning community featuring ongoing conversations on the use of technology in the classroom.
The New Media Consortium - A 15-year-old international not-for-profit consortium of learning-focused organizations dedicated to the exploration and use of new media and new technologies. Their Horizon Reports are "regarded worldwide as the most timely and authoritative sources of information on new and emerging technologies available to education anywhere."
Making Curriculum Pop - A resource-sharing community for educators interested in better practices and teaching with pop culture.
Media Art by Students - Very impressive student productions of sound, animation, remix and film, created in Margaret Noble's class at High Tech High Media Arts in San Diego, California. The site is an archive of their work and student experience.
Digital Culture & Education -An international, interactive, peer-reviewed online journal.
Center for Digital Storytelling - An international nonprofit that assists youth and adults around the world in using digital media tools to craft and record meaningful stories from their lives and share these stories in ways that enable learning, build community, and inspire justice.
Library 2.0: The Future of Libraries in the Digital Age is a Ning community with interest groups such as "Government Documents" and "Twitter as a Tool."
New Media Literacies Community - A Ning community, open to all, based on the research initiative of the same name within USC's Annenberg School for Communication.
Classroom 2.0 - a Ning community for educators using Web. 2.0 and collaborative technologies
MediaLiteracyToolbox.com - resources from the Media Literacy Project (formerly New Mexico ML Project)
Mypopstudio.com - a creative play experience that strengthens critical thinking skills about television, music, magazines and online media directed at girls
Media Education Lab at Temple University - outstanding resources for K-12 media literacy education
Educational Video Center - Teaching documentary video as a means to develop the artistic, critical literacy, and career skills of young people
Cable in the Classroom - resources for parents, teachers and administrators
Curriki.com - Mission: to provide free, high-quality curricula and education resources to teachers, students, and parents around the world.
UnderstandMedia.com - "media education on the web"
PBS TeacherSource: Media Literacy - a quiz, activity ideas and resources
TeachingMediaLiteracy.com - designed to support the book Teachingmedialiteracy.com: A Web-Linked Guide to Resources and Activities.
NetManners.com - Using technology with knowledge, understanding and courtesy.
International Education & Resource Network - non-profit global network that enables teachers and young people to use the Internet and other new technologies to collaborate on projects
The Director in the Classroom - professional development and resources for filmmaking in the classroom
TeachWithMovies.com - Lesson Plans and Learning Guides Based on Movies and Snippets
The Norman Lear Center - outstanding site "exploring implications of the convergence of entertainment, commerce, and society"
November Learning.com (Alan November) - consulting services, workshops, conferences, online courses and resources "empowering educators to apply powerful tools and strategies across the curriculum"
Center for Media Literacy - consulting company providing professional development training, curriculum products and more. Website has excellent Reading Room.

Advertising, Public Relations, Consumerism

Full Frontal Scrutiny - a joint project of Consumer Reports WebWatch and the Center for Media & Democracy
DigitalAds.org Interactive Food & Beverage Marketing: Targeting Children and Youth in the Digital Age - excellent report
The SPIN Project - resources "for organizations working to build a fair, just and equitable society that want to be heard in today’s crowded media environment"
Don't Buy It (PBS) - " encourages young people to think critically about media and become smart consumers"
Dissect an Ad (PBS)
Ad Council- public service advertising "addressing critical social issues"
MediaTransparency.org (project of Media Matters for America) “a progressive research and information center dedicated to analyzing and correcting conservative misinformation”
SourceWatch - profiles the activities of "front groups, PR spinners, industry-friendly experts, industry-funded organizations, and think tanks trying to manipulate public opinion on behalf of corporations or government"
Commercial Alert - "protecting communities from commercialism"
New American Dream - Mission: to help Americans consume responsibly to protect the environment, enhance quality of life, and promote social justice
Stop Drug Ads.org - educational/advocacy site by Commercial Alert on the ramifications of prescription drug marketing

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News & Journalism

Reporters without Borders
Knight Science Journalism Tracker - "peer review within science journalism"
Center for Public Integrity Investigative Journalism in the Public Interest
KnowtheNews.tv (LinkTV) - "a learning tool that promotes media literacy"
The Real News Project - "a form of investigative reporting [that we call] forensic journalism"
New America Media Expanding the news lens through ethnic media
SheSource.org (a project of the Women's Media Center) Source for women experts on all topics for journalists, producers and bookers who need female guests and sources
Youth Media Reporter - the professional journal of the youth media field
The Center for the Digital Future (USC Annenberg School)
Grade the news.org - evaluating print and broadcast news in the SFBay area from A to F
Media Access Project - non-profit law firm and advocacy organization
Institute for Public Accuracy - promotes the inclusion of perspectives that widen the bounds of media discussion and enhance democratic debate
Public News Service .org - news in the public interest
FactCheck.org - aims to reduce the level of deception and confusion in U.S. politics

Children, Families & Media

CommonSenseMedia.org - information and tools so that families can have a choice and a voice about the media they consume
Children Now (Children & the Media)
Teen Health & the Media - uses the power of media literacy [to] encourage young people to make healthy choices and to interact with the media both as critical viewers and creators
Connect With Kids - "a multi-media education company focused on improving the social and emotional well-being of children and teens."
Don't Buy It: Get Media Smart(PBS) is "a media literacy Web site for young people that encourages users to think critically about media and become smart consumers."
Reelgrrls.org - empowering young women from diverse communities to realize their power, talent and influence through media production
Centre for the Study of Youth, Children, and Media at the London Institute of Education
TheTVBoss.org - industry-sponsored site which frames the responsibility for what children watch as solely the parents' job
Youth Media Reporter - the professional journal of the youth media field
TRUCE (Teachers Resisting Unhealthy Children's Entertainment) <> Toy Action Guide
Center for Screen-Time Awareness (formerly TV Turn-Off Network)
DigitalAds.org Interactive Food & Beverage Marketing: Targeting Children and Youth in the Digital Age - excellent report

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Health (Body Image, Substances, Violence) & Media

MedialitPA.org - Drug Free Pennsylvania's website dedicated to media literacy education for substance abuse prevention.
About Face - Mission: to equip women and girls with tools to understand and resist harmful media messages that affect self-esteem and body image.
Stop Drug Ads.org - educational/advocacy site by Commercial Alert on the ramifications of prescription drug marketing
Kaiser Family Foundation Study of Entertainment Media & Health - outstanding research and reports, all free
Campaign for Alcohol-Free Sports TV - a project of Center for Science in the Public Interest, seeks to reduce the amount of alcoholic-beverage advertising to underage children and young adults who tune into televised sports.
Teen Health & the Media - uses the power of media literacy [to] encourage young people to make healthy choices and to interact with the media both as critical viewers and creators
Miss Representation is a new film which "brings together...influential women in politics, news, and entertainment [to explore] women's underrepresentation in positions of power [and] challenge the limited and often disparaging portrayal of women in the media.

Media Democracy, Media Economics

Free Press - media reform through education, organizing and advocacy
HearUsNow.org (Consumers Union) - consumer voice for communications choice
Center For Digital Democracy - advocacy for ensuring that the public interest is a fundamental part of the new digital communications landscape
InternetforEveryone.org - national initiative to bring the benefits of a fast, affordable and open Internet connection to everyone in America
Election Protection Wiki - collaboration of citizens, activists and researchers to build a one-stop-shop for reports of voter suppression and the systemic threats to election integrity
American Presidency Project at UCSB
Congresspedia - now merged with OpenCongress, tracks actions of Congress for greater transparency.
OpenNet Initiative - documenting Internet filtering and surveillance
Pew Research Center for the People and the Press - studies attitudes toward politics, the press and public policy issues. Outstanding resource.
Defend the Press - project of the Center for Media & Democracy; site set up to defend a journalist's right to not testify against politica speech
Center for International Media Action
Media Giraffe Project to foster participatory democracy and community by celebrating innovative use of media
MediaChannel.org - "as the media watch the world, we watch the media"
IndustryEars.org A New Generation think tank dedicated to promotion justice in media.
MediaOwners.com See who owns USA newspapers, magazines, TV stations & networks
Allied Media Conference
The Norman Lear Center - exploring implications of the convergence of entertainment, commerce, and society
Benton Foundation - The Benton Foundation works to ensure that media and telecommunications serve the public interest and enhance our democracy.

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Representation

Miss Representation is a new film which "brings together...influential women
in politics, news, and entertainment [to explore] women’s underrepresentation in positions of power [and] challenge the limited and often disparaging portrayal of women in the media."
Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media
Reelgrrls.org - empowering young women from diverse communities to realize their power, talent and influence through media production
New America Media    Expanding the news lens through ethnic media
Girls, Women + Media Project
About Face - Mission: to equip women and girls with tools to understand and resist harmful media messages that affect self-esteem and body image.
Muslims on Screen & Television is a resource service to help the entertainment industry present "multidimensional characters and stories that transcend stereotypes. "
The "Sexy or Sexism?" Campaign, a project of Women’s Media Center and MissRepresentation.org, aims to "redefine sexy and identify sexism in popular culture."

Media & Culture, Technology

Social Media and Cultural Communication (blog) Research, strategy and ideas for digital cultural participation
Media Fix (blog) - Opinion and analysis on the entire media spectrum—MSM, blogosphere, cable news and alternative media from Greg Mitchell, former editor of Editor & Publisher
The Norman Lear Center - exploring implications of the convergence of entertainment, commerce, and society
International Education & Resource Network - non-profit global network that enables teachers and young people to use the Internet and other new technologies to collaborate on projects
PopAndPolitics.com - articles and video on popular culture
Center for Social Media "showcases and analyzes media for public knowledge and action—media made by, for, and with publics to address the problems that they share."

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Making Media, Independent Media

Animoto Makes "killer video from your images automatically." Free for personal use
Reelgrrls.org - empowering young women from diverse communities to realize their power, talent and influence through media production
Center for Creative Voices in Media
MediaBloggers.org - media bloggers association
IndyLink - "your independent alternative for Internet access"
Youth Media Reporter - the professional journal of the youth media field
Educational Video Center - Teaching documentary video as a means to develop the artistic, critical literacy, and career skills of young people
Media Art by Students - Very impressive student productions of sound, animation, remix and film, created in Margaret Noble's class at High Tech High Media Arts in San Diego, California. The site is an archive of their work and student experience.
The Independent Television Service (ITVS) funds, presents, and promotes award-winning documentaries and dramas on public television and cable, innovative new media projects on the Web, and the weekly series Independent Lens on PBS.

Religion & Media

ChurchMedia.Net - "equipping you to communicate effectively"
ChurchMarketingSucks.com - part of the Center for Church Communication
FoxFaithChurches.com - film guide for people of faith
The Center for Religion and Media - seeks to develop interdisciplinary, cross-cultural knowledge of how religious practices and ideas are shaped and spread through a variety of media

Visual & Aural Literacy

Seeing the Future! A Guide to Visual Communication Great example of using comic book format for engaging and teaching kids.
UCSB Educational MultiMedia Visualization Center
Visual-Literacy.org - an e-learning site on visualization for communication
Worth1000.com  - learn visual literacy skills in these often-hysterical galleries of altered images
Media Art by Students - Very impressive student productions of sound, animation, remix and film, created in Margaret Noble's class at High Tech High Media Arts in San Diego, California. The site is an archive of their work and student experience.

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