The questions which follow provide a basic knowledge test of selected concepts covered in this learning pathway:
Mass media.
The questions published at the end of each learning pathway are re-used for the knowledge test for learners interested in earning a digital badge or certificate of participation for the Critical Media Literacies and Associated Digital Skills (LiDA104) micro-course. Please consult the Certify participation page for more information.
Indicate whether the following statements are true or false:
- Social media not only convey news but also influence it through participation and engagement.
- True
- False
- No. Have another look at the page on Social Media, Internet and Society.
- ‘Internet activism’ is a protest movement aimed at protecting the freedom of the internet.
- True
- No. That is not the correct definition.
- False
- A ‘walled garden’ is an environment that controls the user’s access to Web content and services.
- True
- Yes. That is a good definition in the context of digital literacy.
- False
- No. Have another look at the page on Social Media, Internet and Society for some useful definitions.
- ‘Fake news’ is a type of satire.
- True
- No. Fake news is deliberately created to confuse people about what has really happened, whereas satire is designed to entertain.
- False
Multiple choice questions
- Which of the following media technologies was the quickest to reach 100 million users after its launch?
- Telephone (landline)
- World Wide Web
- No, that took seven years.
- Facebook
- No, that took four years and six months.
- Whatsapp
- Yes, that took only three years and four months.
- Which of the following is a correct list of the ‘five filters’ of mass media according to Chomsky and Herman’s “Manufacturing Consent: The Political Economy of the Mass Media”? (Select one.)
- Media ownership, advertising money, media elite, flak, the common enemy
- Censorship, state ownership, the military, security services, government
- That’s not right - look again at the resources on the ‘Manufacturing consent’ page.
- Education, democracy, equality, freedom, accessibility
- That’s not right - look again at the resources on the ‘Manufacturing consent’ page.
- Transparency, accountability, responsibility, honesty, respect
- That’s not right - look again at the resources on the ‘Manufacturing consent’ page.
- Which two of the following are citizen journalism sites? (Tick two.)
- GlobalVoices
- Twitter
- No - Twitter is a primarily a social media site, though it is used by some citizen journalists.
- Wired
- No - this is a technology magazine.
- Wikinews
- Which of the following are recommended methods to help a reader determine whether an item of news on the internet is fake or not? (Tick all that apply - there are 3 correct answers.)
- Check whether the url for the website is genuine
- That’s right. By looking carefully at the url and the design of the website you may be able to spot an attempt to mimic a legitimate site.
- Run a google search to see how many times the same story is appearing across the internet
- No, by itself this is not reliable, as a story can easily go viral without being verified.
- Check the details of the story across several different reputable news sources
- Correct - reading laterally across multiple reputable news sources is a strategy to verify the reliability of a news item
- Check whether the ‘about’ page of the source website looks credible
- Yes - that can be a useful guide to the reliability of the source.
