Global Media and Information Literacy Week: HaDEA-managed projects supporting people in the digital ecosystem

The Global Media and Information Literacy Week, running from 24 to 31 October, highlights the importance of equipping people with critical thinking skills in the current digital ecosystem. This year’s theme is “The New Digital Frontiers of Information: Media and Information Literacy for Public Interest Information”. AI-generated content has revolutionised digital platforms, as well as the creation, consumption, and sharing of information for public interest purposes, thereby heightening the need for media and information literacy. 

Through the Digital Europe Programme, HaDEA plays a key role in promoting media and information literacy by working towards responsible internet daily use and tackling disinformation in digital media ecosystems, thereby protecting the rights of users and creators.  

Learn more about some HaDEA-managed projects active in this field: 

The European Digital Media Observatory (EDMO) Ireland Hub is one of fourteen hubs established as part of the European Digital Media Observatory (EDMO). Co-financed under CEF Telecom and the Digital Europe Programme, it supports the implementation of the European Digital Media Observatory Core Service Platform and it sustains a multidisciplinary community of Irish and European stakeholders committed to countering disinformation. To this end, the Hub monitors and analyses disinformation; conducts factchecks and investigations; develops media literacy resources; and increases capacity among the community of Irish stakeholders.  Among its tasks, the EDMO Ireland Hub has been actively working on developing a wide range of strategies in the field of Media literacy, targeting Irish primary and secondary schools, students, teachers, educators and learners.  

The Bulgarian-Romanian Observatory of Digital Media (BROD) focuses on establishing a multinational, multi-stakeholder, and multidisciplinary hub for the detection, analysis, and combating of disinformation in Bulgaria and Romania. BROD unites researchers, media literacy advocates, journalists, and policy partners active in the region. Leveraging expertise and research excellence in digital media, BROD enhances efforts to combat disinformation through national and regional fact-checking, media literacy initiatives, and policy measures that address both immediate and long-term challenges in this EU area. The project has made substantial strides in enhancing media and information literacy and combating disinformation through comprehensive training campaigns and the development of high-quality educational materials targeting multiple groups and regions.  

The Danish Safer Internet Centre (SIC DK) is a consortium of three organisations with each their primary work task as respectively awareness centre (Media Council for Children and Young People/MCDK1), hotline (Save the Children Denmark/SCDK) and helpline (Centre for Digital Youth Care/CDYC). One of their initiatives in media literacy is 'The First Digital Steps', a toolkit that contains videos, different materials and guides for daycare and kindergarten professionals, children, parents and carers, and health visitors. The goal is to strengthen children’s critical approach, confidence, sense of online safety, creativity, and awareness in the use of digital technology in their future life. 

Background  

In 2021,the resolution by the UN General Assembly decided to commemorate Media and Information Literacy (MIL) week, for the need to disseminate factual, timely, targeted, clear, accessible, multilingual and science-based information.  

The Digital Europe Programme aims to build the strategic digital capacities of the EU and to facilitate the wide deployment of digital technologies. With an overall budget of €7.59 billion, out of which €0.8 billion is managed by HaDEA.