Rethinking the Future of News Literacy Education: Results from a Mixed Methods Study

In an era where most people rely on social media for their news and claims of fake news are rampant, news literacy is seen as increasingly important. In recent years, there has been a surge in initiatives to enhance news literacy among news consumers. However, our understanding of the effectiveness of these initiatives is limited. This study presents the findings from a mixed methods examination of the effectiveness of an online, asynchronous news literacy program offered to adults across the United States. While quantitative findings show that the program made little difference in participants’ already high levels of news literacy, the qualitative findings reveal that participating in the program provided people with a more nuanced, reflective, and less normative understanding of the news. Findings also point to the affective nature of news consumers’ interaction with news content, and a need to rethink news literacy education and assessment from a more learner-centered perspective.