We are a multidisciplinary team of researchers at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL) leading a UNL Grand Challenges planning project to address the challenges of public media literacy in the age of budding artificial intelligence. This project seeks to develop an evidence-based media literacy curriculum that will equip the public with the skills and knowledge needed to navigate the complex landscape of digital media increasingly shaped by artificial intelligence.
Our vision for the project is to equip a diverse range of publics in Nebraska (including college and K-12 students, rural residents, senior residents, and media, marketing, and technology industry professionals) and beyond with the necessary knowledge and skills to navigate the complexities of an algorithmic media environment.
Our long-term goal of this project is to implement a scalable evidence-based media and information literacy program to bolster public resilience against adverse algorithmic impact on digital media to tackle the science and technology literacy for society Grand Challenge. This program will promote an understanding of the algorithmic impact of artificial intelligence on digital media. It will explore how algorithms shape the content we see and the information we consume, and how this can lead to issues such as filter bubbles, misinformation, and polarization. This is significant work because a media and information literate public contributes to an informed and responsible citizenry in a democracy, combats algorithmic harms on vulnerable populations, and promotes a healthy and socially responsible digital media environment.
This project is supported by a UNL Grand Challenges planning grant.