This guide is intended to help students get to know the physical and virtual library as well as conduct research for COM 101: Intro to Mass Communication. There's a "Looking for Topics" page and page that contain quick links to useful sources such as:

Finding Information

• Books and Videos:  Search for print and electronic books (including reference such as encyclopedias and handbooks), DVDs, and streaming videos.
• Articles:  Use the library databases to find online scholarly journal, popular magazine, and newspaper articles.
• Websites: Tips on searching for reputable and reliable web info and evaluating what you find

The Center for Media and Social Impact has information on FAIR USE for journalism, online video creators, and documentary films.

The Center for Media Literacy has a great newsletter called Connections that you can subscribe to here.  Past issues have dealt with topics of interest to this class, including:

  fair use for media literacy
  globalization
  media literacy and media construction
  media literacy and video games
  media violence
  online privacy and media literacy
  reality tv and media literacy
  television and media literacy 

FYI - The 'Media Literacy Resources' at the end of each newsletter provides many good links.

Five Key Questions to Consider when Receiving a Media Message

1. Who created this message?

2. What creative techniques are used to attract my attention?

3. How might different people understand this message differently?

4. What values, lifestyles and points of view are represented in, or omitted from, this message?

5. Why is this message being sent?

Five Core Concepts to Remember

1. All media messages are constructed.

2. Media messages are constructed using a creative language with its own rules.

3. Different people experience the same media message differently.

4. Media have embedded values and points of view.

5. Most media messages are organized to gain profit and/or power.

 www.medialit.org