Information Literacy Commons^™

"I Don't Think Librarians Can Save Us": The Material Conditions Of Information Literacy Instruction In The Misinformation Age, Amber Willenborg, Robert Detmering

Faculty Scholarship

This national qualitative study investigates academic librarians’ instructional experiences, views, and challenges regarding the widespread problem of misinformation. Findings from phenomenological interviews reveal a tension between librarians’ professional, moral, and civic obligation to address misinformation and the actual material conditions of information literacy instruction, which influence and often constrain librarians’ pedagogical and institutional roles. The authors call for greater professional reflection on current information literacy models that focus on achieving ambitious educational goals but which may be unsuitable for addressing the larger social and political crisis of misinformation.

Understanding How Regulatory And Ethical Principles Mitigate The Spread And Propagation Of Harmful Health Information: A Successful Fulbright Scholar Award Narrative, Bethany S. Mcgowan

Libraries Faculty and Staff Creative Materials

I used a Fulbright Scholar Award to work with librarians, information studies scholars, and policymakers in Finland to investigate what policies or policy tools were available to help balance the need between propagating accurate information, curbing dis/misinformation, and ensuring human rights of access to information. This policy assessment helped me understand how regulatory and ethical principles can mitigate the spread and propagation of harmful health information.

Werewolf On Campus: A Case Study In Inoculation Theory And Gamified One-Shot Library Instruction, Abigail Adams

University Libraries Faculty Scholarship

This case study details the development and results of an information literacy game in which undergraduate students evaluated fictional sources to learn how to recognize a werewolf on campus. The game relied on inoculation theory and fiction to teach students to identify indicators of mis and disinformation outside of any real-world examples that might affect their learning experience. The game showed promise as students were far more engaged and demonstrated better retention later in the semester than students who received a more traditional lecture about disinformation and source evaluation. However, the game would likely be more effective if it were …

Identifying Dis/Misinformation On Social Media: A Policy Report For The Diplomacy Lab Strategies For Identifying Mis/Disinformation Project, Bethany S. Mcgowan, Matthew Hannah, Sofia Babcock, Katelyn Biggs, Lara Chuppe, Christina Galiatsatos, Jannine Huby, Michael Kuczajda, Bennet Miller, Stephanie Perun, Amanda Shie, Alicia Stevance, Andrew Yason, Charlotte Yeung

Libraries Faculty and Staff Scholarship and Research

Dis/misinformation was a major concern in the 2016 U.S. presidential election and has only worsened in recent years. Even though domestic actors often spread dis/misinformation, actors abroad can use it to spread confusion and push their agenda to the detriment of American citizens. Even though this report focuses on actors outside the United States, the methods they use are universal and can be adapted to work against domestic agents. A solid understanding of these methods is the first step in combating foreign dis/misinformation campaigns and creating a new information literacy paradigm.

This report highlights the primary mechanisms of dis/misinformation: multimedia …

Ils 490: Diplomacy Lab: Strategies For Identifying Mis/Disinformation Course Syllabus (Fall 2022), Bethany S. Mcgowan, Matthew Hannah

Libraries Faculty and Staff Creative Materials

Course syllabus for the Diplomacy Lab: Strategies for Identifying Mis/Disinformation student-driven project, a collaboration between Purdue University and the U.S. Department of State, supervised by Professors Bethany McGowan and Matthew Hannah.

Debunking & Prebunking: Strategies For Librarians To Eradicate Misinformation, Evan Meszaros, Mandi Goodsett

Michael Schwartz Library Publications

No abstract provided.

Diy Disinformation: Using Fake Crafting Videos To Combat Fake News, Elizabeth M. Downey

University Libraries Publications and Scholarship

When Ann Reardon started her YouTube channel How to Cook That, she likely didn’t expect to spend a bulk of her time debunking so-called “cooking hack” videos. Amateur bakers and other viewers would ask her why the so-called easy recipes from channels like So Yummy didn’t work for them. As a service. she would demonstrate the so-called “shortcuts,” explain why they didn’t work, and then show how to execute a similar recipe the right way. With her willing husband serving as the unfortunate taste-tester, the videos gained popularity followed by requests for similar content, expanding to crafting and other “lifehack” …

How Do You Meme?: Using Memes For Information Literacy Instruction, Christina Boyle

Publications and Research

Memes, or image macros, have become a standard method of digital information sharing. This is especially true during times when current events ignite a heightened desire for information seeking among students. Memes can be sources of misinformation, such as during events of the past decade, including recent presidential elections, social justice movements such as Black Lives Matter, and the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Librarians need to address this format in their information literacy teachings. In this article, the author briefly outlines the rise of internet memes, discusses how higher education students are engaging with them, and highlights some problematic meme-sharing throughout …

Strategies Used By Academic Libraries To Manage Information Crisis In The Pandemic: The Study Of The Fiji National University Library, Udya Chandra Shukla, Sandhya Deo

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the entire world, affecting the economy, businesses, jobs, education, health, and many other things among it. Many businesses and organizations went virtual to survive the disease and reduce the losses. The crisis encountered during the pandemic enabled people to reinvent plans and convert threats into opportunity to overcome the challenges. The study aims to analyze Fiji National University Library’s response during the COVID-19 pandemic and measures enforced to tackle the pandemic and lockdown situation for smooth operation of the online services provided to the undergraduate and postgraduate students, teaching-learning faculties, higher degree researcher’s (HDRs) and …

Media And Information Literacy And Academic Libraries, Philip Russell

Conference Papers

Media and information literacy and Libraries: on the frontline of the battle against misinformation which explored how library staff in various sectors are combatting the growth of misinformation.

The Misinformation Pandemic: Who Can You Trust?, Elisa Acosta, Susan Archambault, John Jackson, Alexis Weiss

LMU Librarian Publications & Presentations

During the Trump presidency, “fake news” was a term often used as a synonym for “news that comes to a conclusion that I disagree with.” The focus of this session is not fake news, but rather how to spot the news misinformation and disinformation that students are so vulnerable to. Today’s news landscape is complex and largely unregulated, and students need to learn how to critically analyze the news they receive in order to make informed decisions and participate in the sharing of information in a responsible and ethical way. Presenters will share the lesson plan from an interactive workshop …

Roles Of Librarians In Combating Misinformation On Corona Virus Disease (Covid-19), Grace D. Pelemo Mrs., Millie Horsfall Phd, Onyinye Alexander Osedo

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

The outbreak of the Corona Virus Disease (COVID-19) in Wuhan, China and the attendant explosion of “fake news” brings to the fore the need for Librarians and Libraries as well as other information providers to offer access to dependable information resources for the consumption of their patrons and users. Giving access to reliable sources of information and resources with minimal barriers comprises cooperation among Librarians and Libraries. This article surveyed the roles of Librarians and Libraries in response to the problems of fake news and misinformation arising from the outbreak of COVID-19 focusing on how librarians and other information professionals …

Be Media Smart: A Collaborative Media Literacy Initiative For Ireland, Philip Russell

Conference Papers

This paper presents Ireland’s public awareness campaign – ‘Be Media Smart’- which was launched in Spring 2019 to combat misinformation and fake news and encourage people of all ages to stop, think, and check that information they see, read or hear across any media platform is reliable. Be Media Smart is an initiative of Media Literacy Ireland (MLI), an independent group facilitated by the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland (BAI) to enhance Irish people’s understanding of, and engagement with, media. Group members include large media and social media companies, Government bodies, libraries, academia and voluntary sector organisations.

The paper will provide …

Research On The Cultivation Of False Information Identification Ability Of Users By University Libraries At Home And Abroad, Yan-Ping Jiang, Xiao-Hong Chen, Jane Wu, Wanjun Xia

Otterbein China Librarians Exchange Program Documentations and Publications

With the rapid development of new media on the Internet and the proliferation of misinformation/disinformation, the academic libraries, as the information resource center, has the responsibility and obligation to cultivate the user's information identification ability. However, compared with foreign university libraries, the guidance of domestic university libraries to identify false information is not systematic and explicit. Therefore, we must improve the users' interest, practicality, and depth of training practice activities. This paper analyzes, contrasts, and summarizes the relevant research and practice results of the false information identification training of domestic and foreign well-known university libraries through literature and network research. …

Librarians’ Experiences With Social Media And Covid-19 Misinformation, Kacy J. Lovelace, Sabrina Thomas, Lindsey M. Harper

Librarian Research

This article explores our personal experiences with combating misinformation and disinformation about COVID-19 via social media platforms. Next, we describe how sharing our experiences with one another led to the motivation of the current study. Then, we describe the methodology of the present study and examine some of the preliminary results and analysis. Finally, we explore strategies and best practices to mitigate burnout associated with combating COVID-19 misinformation.

Stop, Think, Check: Ireland's Be Media Smart Campaign, Philip Russell

Articles

‘Be Media Smart’ is an Irish public awareness campaign calling on people of all ages to ‘Be Media Smart’ and ‘Stop, Think, and Check’ that information they see, read or hear across any media platform is accurate and reliable. This national media literacy campaign was aimed at enhancing people’s understanding of, and engagement with, media, while also empowering them with the skills to evaluate content across all platforms.

Framing Fake News: Misinformation And The Acrl Framework, Allison Faix, Amy F. Fyn

Library Faculty Publications

To address the growing problem of misinformation, librarians often focus on approaches tied to the frame “Authority Is Constructed and Contextual” from the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education. The Framework, however, encompasses a much wider range of skills, abilities, knowledge practices, and dispositions that can be used to recognize and avoid misinformation in today’s complex media environment. This article does a close reading of the Framework to examine how librarians can apply it more fully when teaching research strategies, especially source evaluation. The authors propose that librarians take a holistic approach …

Fighting Infobesity: Creating A Healthy News Diet, Aisha Conner-Gaten, Jennifer Masunaga, Elisa Acosta

LMU Librarian Publications & Presentations

We live in a continuous news culture where the average consumer must learn how to deal with information overload. We have plenty of information, but not all of it contributes to a healthy, balanced news diet. In addition to snacking on morning news and grabbing afternoon sound bites, there’s misinformation and fake news, packaged and sold in confusing ways. How can we get the news we need to become informed and engaged? In this activity, students are tasked with (a) placing a range of media sources on a grid whose axes are reliability and type of sources, and (b) articulating …

Be Media Smart: A National Media Literacy Campaign For Ireland, Philip Russell

Articles

‘Be Media Smart’ is an Irish public awareness campaign calling on people of all ages to ‘Be Media Smart’ and ‘Stop, Think, and Check’ that information they see, read or hear across any media platform is accurate and reliable. This national media literacy campaign was aimed at enhancing people’s understanding of, and engagement with, media, while also empowering them with the skills to evaluate content across all platforms.

Media Literacy Ireland And The Be Media Smart Campaign, Philip Russell

Articles

‘Be Media Smart’ is an Irish public awareness campaign calling on people of all ages to ‘Be Media Smart’ and ‘Stop, Think, and Check’ that information they see, read or hear across any media platform is accurate and reliable. This national media literacy campaign was aimed at enhancing people’s understanding of, and engagement with, media, while also empowering them with the skills to evaluate content across all platforms.