Reports by EU member states on national measures to promote and develop media literacy skills have been published and Ireland’s report reveals the breadth and depth of the work in this area.
As part of an obligation stemming from the Audiovisual Media Services Directive (Article 33a(2)), EU member states have to submit periodically a report to the European Commission outlining their measures to promote and develop media literacy skills. The second set of these national reports covering the period of 2022-2025 was recently published here.
Ireland’s Media Literacy Report
Prepared by the Department of Culture, Communications and Sport, Ireland’s report notes the establishment of Coimisiún na Meán in March 2023 as the new authority responsible for overseeing the regulation of broadcasting, on-demand audiovisual media services and video-sharing platform services and its role in the development of the online safety code. Replacing the now-dissolved Broadcasting Authority of Ireland, Coimisiún na Meán has an obligation to promote media literacy and ‘encourage research, promote or endorse educational and training initiatives and activities, including in media literacy…’ under the amended Broadcasting Act 2009. As part of this work Coimisiún na Meán has run a number of media campaigns to educate people on their rights under the Online Safety Framework, including a campaign on reporting illegal content to platforms that encouraged the public to ‘Spot it, Flag it, Stop it’.
Another key aspect of Coimisiún na Meán’s work outlined in the report is the ongoing funding and facilitation of Media Literacy Ireland (MLI), an independent alliance of people and organisations working together on a mainly voluntary basis to promote media literacy in Ireland.
The report points to the wide-ranging reach of MLI, which has over 300 members drawn from many sectors, including the media, communications, academia, online platforms, libraries and civil society. In particular, the report highlights how the work of MLI is regularly used as an example of international best practice and has been recognised in national frameworks and strategies, such as the Harnessing Digital – The Digital Ireland Framework, the Adult Literacy for Life Strategy and the National Counter Disinformation Strategy.
Also cited in the report is the work of EDMO Ireland. The European Union created the European Digital Media Observatory (EDMO) in 2020 to promote scientific knowledge on online disinformation, advance the development of fact-checking services, promote media literacy programmes, and support public authorities in assessing the implementation of the EU Code of Practice on Disinformation.
The EDMO Ireland consortium includes DCU Institute for Future Media Democracy & Society (FUJO), TheJournal FactCheck and NewsWhip. As the report notes, a comprehensive system of collaboration has been established between MLI and EDMO Ireland, and they work closely together to develop media literacy resources, campaigns and insights to support media literacy in Ireland and across the EU and beyond.
The report highlights the many media literacy initiatives and events that take place across Ireland and the success of MLI’s Be Media Smart campaign – which encourages people to ‘Stop, Think and Check’ the accuracy and reliability of the information they encounter in their reading, viewing, or listening activities, from whatever source – is particularly noted.
You can download the full report here.
