Belgian expert calls for efforts to strengthen media education

BRUSSELS, April 8 (Xinhua) -- The Facebook data scandal that erupted in the media in recent weeks has added fuel to a heated debate about the effects of "new media" on contemporary society.

In an interview with Xinhua, Patrick Verniers, Professor of Advanced Social Studies in Belgium and President of the Higher Council for Media Education, explained that due to the many "side effects" presented by new forms of media such as social networks, it becomes "very urgent to focus on educating people about media".

Since the age of the internet, the media landscape has shifted drastically from a time when news was delivered by a narrow band of professional journalists to a new digital era with a plurality of sources, and Verniers believes that, in this context, it is important to cultivate the ability to distinguish right from wrong and think critically about the wealth of information that circulates.

"Media education can help people improve their ability to understand, select, question, judge, and think about reactions in the face of media information," he explains.

Cultivating the ability to use the mass media constructively is the purpose of media literacy education. Verniers also believes media education should apply to "news providers" as well as "consumers".

"One of the duties for professional journalists is to clearly explain where their information was sourced, and to review and reflect on flaws, mistakes, and even inaccuracies in reports, earnestly learn lessons, and improve the work flow so as to maintain credibility."

He said one of the reasons media education has grown awareness in recent years is due to the popularization of smart phones and finding ways to improve children's network security.

To this end, "schools and other public institutions should become the main drivers behind the media education of young people", said Verniers, who is also an expert consultant at the European Council and the European Commission. For him, schools should continue to promote an agenda of media education.

Currently, Belgium has established the Higher Council for Media Education to coordinate work across the country, and classes on media education have entered some schools in southern Belgium.

However, although the demand is very urgent, media literacy education is still far from being fully implemented in Belgium, and more coordinated work needs to take place at the national and European level, according to the expert. Enditem