export_ofoct.com

[00:00.13] Today we are at the Newseum in Washington D.C. – where the history of free expression is explained and defended.

[00:10.49] The first printing presses arrived in the United States in the mid-1600s, marking an important step in the history of America’s free press.

[00:23.24] A free press is important in democratic society.

[00:28.28] It allows citizens to speak freely and criticize the country's leaders without fear.

[00:35.72] Some journalists have even lost their lives for that right.

[00:40.77] But, it can also lead to news that is false.

[00:48.21] Last year, a fake news story about a Washington pizza restaurant went viral, causing a gunman to open fire at the business.

[00:51.93] One of the most common terms we hear today is “fake news.”

[00:53.52] The public and politicians use it to talk about the news reports they do not think are accurate.

[01:00.96] While people have paid much attention to the term in recent years, the problem is not new.

[01:20.88] False news reports have been around since modern journalism started.

[01:33.90] Today, information moves around us in many forms, every hour of every day.

[01:42.13] Even if we do not seek out news on our own, we often receive it anyway, instantly, on our phones.

[01:50.36] So how can we manage this mountain of information so that fake news does not mislead us?

[01:59.40] We believe this requires news literacy.

[02:03.11] News literacy is the ability to use critical thinking skills to judge news reports.

[02:10.29] Are they credible? Can you rely on the reports to be true?

[02:24.36] We use real media examples to teach useful skills and methods to recognize journalism over other kinds of information.

[02:36.58] We examine the differences between facts and what people report in the media as truth.

[02:43.75] The course provides tools to identify real and reliable news sources.

[02:50.13] And, it demonstrates ways to separate news from opinion.

[02:55.97] Professors at Stony Brook University in New York created the News Literacy education program.

[03:02.88] We will share it with you in simple English on VOA Learning English.

[03:09.79] The need for news literacy is possibly greater now than ever before.

[03:16.16] Learning this important skill can give us the power to take full control of our own search for the truth.

[03:25.46] Because as we’ve seen many times before, some news presented as truth can actually turn out to be completely false.