Thoughts and Concerns.
This week we were exploring the world of online media. I was thinking about online information and the available content. I started to think about my interactions with online content and my general opinions and feelings about the accessibility of online content.
Depending on what you are reading, the content can be fake, real, and or a bent view of the truth. The creator and author can decide what they want to explore, discuss, and leave out. Thus, online content can always be skewed.
The online server is endless with content. It is open and available to anyone and everyone.
When I was considering the type of content I read and the reliability of the sources, I thought about the importance of research. I thought about the digital research of knowing the background information and realizing the “vehicle” it pertains to, meaning, referencing the source’s relevance, appropriateness, detail, currency, authority, and bias (Caulfield, 2016).
When I thought about Caulfied’s (2016) article on digital literacy and analyzing the truth, I thought about validity. The validity in finding out and testing whether the information being stated can be backed up. Meaning is the reference reliable.
To consider digital literacy, I believe previous knowledge and or skepticism about the content must exist. I think questioning the content allows for a greater perspective on the situation. I find it allows for curiosity.
Older youth, adolescents, and adults may know to question the information online. However, young children may not have the capacity to question the online world. So, to some extent, I believe the accessibility to online content is a problem.
I know everyone has their own right and ability to explore the internet but to some point, the internet is not curated and filtered to young views. As Bridle (2017) pointed out, the internet can provide content that contains violent and sexual content that can be viewed by anyone. Random searches or ad promotions from videos can expose and desensitize children. I think this can be problematic.
I think exposure and knowledge of the dark world are important at some point. However, exposure at a young age is scary. I think children deserve to have their own blissful innocence before they are exposed to the internet.
References
Bridle, J. (2017, November). Something is wrong on the internet. Medium. https://medium.com/@jamesbridle/something-is-wrong-on-the-internet-c39c471271d2
Caulfield, M. (2016, December 19). Yes, Digital Literacy. but which one? Hapgood. https://hapgood.us/2016/12/19/yes-digital-literacy-but-which-one/
