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In Focus

Media and Information Literacy (MIL)

Media and Information Literacy (MIL) is defined as the ability to access, analyze, create and reflect on media. It is a prerequisite for citizens to claim their rights to freedom of information and expression. DW Akademie creates innovative projects that promote these rights and empower people to understand and use media responsibly. Find out more about our MIL activities around the world.

Simbabwe I Kostenloses Wifi in Mutare

How MIL enables citizens to claim their digital rights

Media and Information Literacy is essential for citizens to claim their human rights, especially in the digital sphere. Zimbabwean digital rights activist Koliwe Majama explores the barriers against MIL in Africa.

DW Akademie Discussion paper

New paper: Bringing digital rights into Media and Information Literacy

A DW Akademie publication explores the relationship between Media and Information Literacy and our digital rights. It calls for further action and more projects that encourage civil society to stand up for their rights.

Online event Kambodscha MIL Journalismus

User Lab explores youth media engagement in Cambodia

"Youth Voices Matter!" is the telling title of a media project across several provinces in Cambodia. But how can we get youth to engage with their communities?

Palästina NGO Pyalara

Middle East: The first interactive MIL Center

The Palestinian NGO Pyalara is establishing the first MIL Center in the Middle East. It aims to use interactive learning activities like escape rooms to educate but also entertain youth, teachers and families.

A DW Akademie Media and Information Literacy flashcard showing the five MIL superheroes

New MIL Flashcards: Introducing the MIL superheroes

That sudden cloud of dust that you see on the horizon today? It's the MIL superheroes! DW Akademie has developed flashcards that turn the five MIL competencies into superheroes who battle MIL challenges head on.

Pakistan DW Akademie | MIL Workshop | Sobia Saleem

Pakistan: Young adults train youth in MIL

Most of Pakistan’s population is under 30 years old. DW Akademie and its project partner Indvidualland has trained young adults to teach other young people about MIL and empower them to distinguish fact from fiction.

DW Akademie | Topic game 'true or false'

Media 101: Cambodian university students explore the world of media

University students at two Cambodian universities attend the “Media 101” club in their spare time. The club aims to help students use media to participate in the public dialogue in a safe and respectful way.

DW Akademie Media and Information Literacy

The MIL Index Study: An assessment of MIL in six African countries

Research on the current state of MIL in sub-Saharan Africa is hard to come by. A new study by DW Akademie focuses on the young generation’s media-related skills in six countries.

Campus AMIL for MIL Dossier

Cyberbullying, a silent ghost

The MIL Campus brought together experts to discuss how Media and Information literacy can help protect people from cybercrime.

Youth Meets Media Forum 2020

FaMILy Quiz: Bridging the generational MIL gap

How can families better understand each other’s use of the media? To bridge this gap, DW Akademie's partners in Moldova and Ukraine have created a MIL family quiz to spark conversations about the media within families.

Illustrationen MIL

Media and Information Literacy can save lives

Global MIL week is a chance to celebrate MIL as an essential set of skills that saves lives in the pandemic and beyond. DW Akademie’s Project Manager Lena Nitsche reflects on a turbulent year for MIL.

Screenshot Zoom | MILEN Roundtable-Diskussion über künstliche Intelligenz

Roundtable: How artificial intelligence is used to debunk fake news

MILEN members and other experts met to discuss how media organizations have been using AI to fact-check misinformation. The event was co-hosted by MILEN, DW Akademie and the British University in Egypt.

USA Boston 2017 | March Against Hate

Fighting racism and hate speech with community solutions

Automation and AI are increasingly being used to spread racism and hate speech on social media. Community-based solutions should have a role in fighting online propaganda and disinformation, says Renata Avila.

DW Akademie

[email protected]: A regional network fights for women's digital rights

Online attacks against women in East Africa have resulted in many women leaving the digital sphere. DW Akademie’s [email protected] project aims to enhance women's rights and help them return to digital society.

Video still from Serbian Klikbejt“ music video (Clickbait)

In Serbia, influencers become MIL teachers

DW Akademie and its partners in Serbia are using YouTube influencers to make MIL more appealing to young people. The project turns kids’ idols into their teachers.

  • Ena Omerovic I Koordinatorin von MILEN (Hanna Hempel/DW )

    Home office realities: MIL professionals in the COVID-19 pandemic

    Ena Omerovic, coordinator of MIL expert network MILEN, Netherlands

    When Ena started working from home, she turned her walk-in closet into an office. Between the racks of clothes, she can fully focus on her work. “The increased digitalization has reinforced the importance of MIL [in] society and has given us the possibility to react faster and be more flexible,” she said. This means she often works overtime, but Balou the dog makes sure Ena takes regular breaks.

  • Alexandre Amaral I Journalist I São Paulo (Hanna Hempel/DW )

    Home office realities: MIL professionals in the COVID-19 pandemic

    Alexandre Amaral, journalist and MIL researcher, University of São Paulo, Brazil

    The pandemic forced Alex to temporarily turn his back on his travels and videographer-life. At home in Brazil, he holds virtual media trainings. “The connection between media and the offline-world has become more visible and immediate. One day, disinformation about disinfectants gets spread on Facebook and the next day people refuse to use the antiseptic in the supermarket around your corner.”

  • Patricia Elizabeth Armendariz I Project Managerin (Hanna Hempel/DW )

    Home office realities: MIL professionals in the COVID-19 pandemic

    Patricia Noboa Armendariz, project manager, DW Akademie, Germany

    Calls with colleagues in the Guatemalan time zone lengthen Patricia’s workdays, which makes her appreciate the proximity to her coffee machine. Aside from the delicious benefits of her home office, Patricia enjoys reflective moments at her kitchen table. “The ongoing pandemic and infodemic make people start to see the risks that come with technology. MIL is more important than ever,” she says.

  • Cyrille Guel I EducommunicAfrik I Burkina Faso (Hanna Hempel/DW )

    Home office realities: MIL professionals in the COVID-19 pandemic

    Cyrille Guel, founder of EducommunicAfrik, Burkina Faso

    “False advice on treatments for COVID-19 are proliferating and widely shared on social media with serious consequences for individuals,” Cyrille says during a rare visit to his office. The pandemic has meant he usually works from home. He has started a digital campaign against disinformation and hopes to get access to more modern technology to engage young groups and offer virtual MIL trainings.

  • Gilda Barrientos I Project Manager “Sónica” I ASEC (Hanna Hempel/DW )

    Home office realities: MIL professionals in the COVID-19 pandemic

    Gilda Barrientos, project manager for “Sónica” by ASEC, Guatemala

    Gilda misses teaching MIL in schools. Instead of holding in-person media literacy trainings, Gilda verifies content that Sónica listeners send her and teaches the audience how to fact-check. “We not only have to fight a pandemic, but also an infodemic!” she says. “In Guatemala, youth media are not interested in providing good information — immediacy before quality has become their rule.”

    Author: Hanna Hempel


Kambodscha WMC | MIL youth leader

Cambodia: Rural youth learn to safely navigate today's media landscape

Young Cambodians are avid users of media, especially social media. But many don’t understand how it works or what the risks can be. A rural youth project on media literacy teaches youth how to be smart while online.

Rafael Landívar University in Guatemala

MIL Campus: A click away from control

We live in the online world but know little about it. What influence do our online choices have? DW Akademie's Latin America team wants you to discuss these issues during their MIL Campus events.

Qurratulain Zaman

Digital security needs to start in your organization

Journalist and researcher Annie Zaman explains why digital security is so important for media organizations. Annie recently participated in a DW Akademie digital security training.