John Pungente:
Articles On Media Literacy
The Media Literacy Online
Project is pleased to present selected articles by John Pungente, S.J.
Father Pungente is the founder of the
Jesuit Communication Project in Toronto, Canada. He is an educator
and international consultant on issues related to children, youth, and
the media. He is on the Board of Directors for the Association for Media
Literacy.
Father Pungente is currently
host of Screening
The Movies a series devoted to giving audiences new ways of
appreciating and crtically understanding movies. He is also a co-author
of the award wining Scanning
Television a multi-media resource kit for educators.
Live
Long And Prosper: Media Literacy in the USA. Provides a comprehensive
overview of media literacy organizations and leaders in the United States.
To
Morph Or Not To Morph In early November, the Ontario Branch
of the Canadian Broadcast Standards Council (CBSC) declared that Mighty
Morphin Power Rangers - a television show aimed at 9 to 12 years olds
- was too violent for Canadian television. This article explores the
decission making processes involved in that the CBSC declaration.
The
Second Spring: Media Literacy in Canada's Schools "Media literacy
in secondary schools has begun to develop in the western Canadian
provinces. There is also some interest being shown in the subject
in the Atlantic provinces. Quebec has its own stand on Media literacy.
In Ontario - where more than one third of all Canadians live - Media
literacy is very much alive. The Ontario government has mandated the
teaching of media within the English curriculum for grades seven through
twelve. There are a number of resources available for teachers and
the Association for Media Literacy provides information, workshops,
summer schools, a newsletter, and in-service training in media."
Windows
on the Landscape - Taking Television Seriously "Perhaps it
is time to stop the television-bashing which is so very easy to do
and see what we might have missed in joining the general rush to judgement.
Too often we look to the past with nostalgia, to the future with hope,
and to the present with gloom. There is nothing wrong with getting
excited about shows like ER, The X-Files or Picket Fences. But there
is a difference, as David Bianculli points out, " . . . between seeing
a medium's potential and being its cheerleader, between admiring its
finest achievements and embracing everything with equal enthusiasm."