According to the Media Literacy Project, “Media literacy is the ability to access, analyze, evaluate, and create media. Media literate youth and adults are better able to understand the complex messages we receive from television, radio, Internet, newspapers, magazines, books, billboards, video games, music, and all other forms of media. Media literacy skills are included in the educational standards of every state—in language arts, social studies, health, science, and other subjects. Many educators have discovered that media literacy is an effective and engaging way to apply critical thinking skills to a wide range of issues.” Here are some ways that you can increase your awareness, and ability to assess media.

Understand Media Corporations

All media is owned by five-to-seven large companies. These companies control all types of media, from television to radio, and music. These companies own more than 90% of all American media. So it’s important to realize that when you’re looking at something, odds are it’s owned by a much larger company.

Know the Difference Between Corporate/Mainstream and Independent News

Mainstream: ABC, NBC, CBS, CNN, FOX

• Corporately funded by large conglomerates

Independent: NPR, PBS

• Privately funded through public campaigns and donors

Realize that there is agenda setting occurring

Agenda setting is the ability of news media to influence the prominence and impact of topics in the public eye. This means that depending on the company, the powers at be have the ability to control what their conglomerates talk about, and how they talk about it.

Know that Biases Exist

One large difference between mainstream media and independent media is the amount of bias that exists in their coverage. For example, because most of mainstream media is owned by a larger company, they often report the news the way that headquarters wants them to. However, with independent media, you get a more objective view of the news. Recently, Spanish speaking news channels have seen a rise in their ratings, because many bilingual Americans are realizing that it’s much harder for them to be biased.

Mass Media Exists to Make a Profit

These industries depend on an audience of consumers, who will generate their profit. In other words, they need you. So little of American media today exists to purely inform, and it’s important to remember that.

Mass Media Reflects Societal Values

It’s a long known fact that media reflects society. Therefore, the topics that are raised in our news and music are those that the American public find most important or pressing. Often times, media reflects views of the nation.

Know the Tactics of Advertising

The advertising industry has become a master at appealing to feelings and sentiments you didn’t even know you had. They do this by several tricks up their sleeve. The first being product placement. In order to get funding for their shows, producers leave holes in the script so that a certain product can be advertised. When a company buys this slot, they are participating in product placement. This art is so subtle, that if you realize it’s an ad, it’s not working. They have also become large users of Photoshop, and have come under a lot of scrutiny for it. Retouching photos creates a false sense of reality, but subtly tells the public that that’s the ideal way to look.