When members of social group share a lot in common, it makes that social identity super top of mind. It also makes it super easy to threaten. Social identity THREAT is a GREAT mobilizer. Easy attention-getter. Great for political mobilization. Also Great for Clicks! Likes! Shares! and Voila.

In other words, traffic deaths are a policy choice

Um so that is very bad. For many reasons, but perhaps the most obvious end-game of this new development is if you people are just reading AI summaries of original content, but that kills how we fund original content... eventually you won't have original content for AI summaries to draw on. 12/

Do you all know about Uvagut TV? It's Canada's first Inuktut television channel. There's lots of great stuff on here. Check it out! www.uvagut.tv

In what ways can animals vary in their reproductive adaptations? This gallery walk radically broadens of the idea of reproductive adaptations as students learn sex-changing clownfish, "sperm-stealing" all-female salamander populations, and more. www.genderinclusivebiology.com/newsletter/d...

muppetized book covers: thread

7/🧵 The loudest voices aren't the most representative. Every generation has extremists, but social media amplifies fringe movements beyond their size. A handful of young white nationalists create viral moments that crowd out broader trends. We mistake the exception for the rule.

I know I say this a lot, but this is one of my favourite MediaSmarts lessons:

✨ New Research Spotlight ✨ How do celebrity bodies shape the way young Black and Hispanic women see themselves? Our recent study in Feminist Media Studies dug into this question by analyzing how women ages 18–29 describe the celebrity bodies they admire. The findings were powerful:

Day 315: I swear to god, I've never seen or heard of a quoll before it went on this list. It just sounds like such a small rodent, doesn't it? 10/10 job naming this one, zoologists. You fuckin' did it.

TV conspiracies: we’ve hacked their computers but they’ve perfectly cleaned up the evidence! Real conspiracies: To: conspirator From: famous person Attachment: evidence.png

I wanted to do some little tip sheets on quick-sketching people from life. So here you go! First, an introduction to my outline-centric approach -- I'll get into technique points later. (1/3)

Picts or it didn't happen

Audiences negotiate meaning #DMLKeyConcepts

November 13 is World Kindness Day! Here’s a free lesson plan to teach Grade 7-9 students practical strategies for positively intervening when they witness bullying online: https://ow.ly/VaQ750XojBc

BBC really burying the lede there

As online spaces grow more hostile, our stories of joy, connection, and community matter more than ever. 💻❤️ 💌 Share your story here: tr.ee/digitaldelights or drop it in the comments below! #2SLGBTQIA #QueerJoy

It’s #StressAwarenessWeek! Help your kids and teens develop healthy media habits with these helpful tips: https://ow.ly/xP3E50XnPOw#StressAwarenessWeek

Art becomes life becomes art

Try to remember, the fifth of November Gunpowder, treason and plot I see no reason why gunpowder treason Should folllow Follow follow follow follow From "F for Fantastick"

Research opportunity! I’m studying how traditional media literacy instruction adapts to digital challenges like memes & algorithms. Seeking librarians & educators with media literacy experience for a short confidential interview. Interested? forms.gle/bZs7JfVxCfeN... #MediaLiteracy TC IRB 25-496

"You will be haunted," resumed the Ghost, "by three spirits."

Fake authors. Fake books. Fake remedies. Detection firm finds 82% of herbal remedy books on Amazon ‘likely written’ by AI www.theguardian.com/books/2025/o... Study finds "AI 'slop' has come for herbalism." "...damning revelation of the sheer scope of unlabelled, unverified, unchecked..."

MORE GOOD NEWS ON CRIME. It’s hard to fight the vibes on crime that so many fight to make as dour as possible. But the reality, however much it gets under-reported when it isn’t bad, is that HUGELY HISTORIC DROPS IN VIOLENCE ARE CONTINUING.

This is one of the activities that makes up a general arc of things I do in workshops. You can see all those activities with explanations and examples to do on your own here spinweaveandcut.com/comics-works...

I heard there were some trunkless legs That stood in sand like stony pegs But you don't know whose shattered visage it was With wrinkled lip, commanding sneer On pedestal, these words appear, Now look upon the works of Ozymandias Ozymandias, Ozymandias, Ozyma-a-a-ndias

This ZOT! ad is almost a one-page Understanding Comics by @scottmccloud.bsky.social

Today is #DigitalCitizenDay, a reminder that being digitally responsible starts with being digitally aware. Our Commissioner shares simple but powerful tips to help kids (and adults) protect their privacy online: youtu.be/cuBQe4spMuk

We are notifying the community of additional public exposure locations for measles. Two new confirmed measles infections in Ottawa residents are linked to the previously reported ones. Please read the full PSA, including detailed exposure locations, dates, and times at ottawa.ca/en/city-hall...

Happy #MediaLiteracyWeek! Check out this adorable House Hippo by ceramic artist Naomi Frohlich! @mediasmarts.bsky.social #MediaLiteracy #misinformation @kidscanpress.bsky.social @owlkids.bsky.social @jandolby.bsky.social #criticalthinking #DigitalLiteracy #NationalInternetDay

I never saw myself as the kind of SF writer who moonlights as a futurist, but it's funny how my stories keep coming true... www.wsj.com/tech/persona...

Do you open your phones to do one thing and get sucked in? Try the 'do-just-one-thing' challenge! Learn more ways to improve your family's relationship with devices this #MediaLiteracyWeek. Get started with our brand new self-guided workshop, sponsored by Bell! https://ow.ly/Pg5h50Xjj05

Today at 12pm EST! Join MediaSmarts and Canadian Sociological Association to learn about Canadians’ responses to online misinformation, the impact of the digital divide and evidence-based recommendations to address misinformation in Canada. Register now: https://ow.ly/ubIV50Xj3XN #MediaLiteracyWeek

One of the most important things you can do to raise media-savvy kids is to watch along with them and engage in the media they love. For #MediaLiteracyWeek, learn about co-viewing with your kids: https://ow.ly/T3CR50XisZB#MediaLiteracyWeek

I suppose it's been a while since I posted this, so.... SF fandom was not the first pop fandom. And SF fandom took their cues from Westerns fandom, which was women's thing.

Fandom as we know it exists today because of female Star Trek fans. It’s just so frustrating to have women’s roles in sci-fi history denied, because it extends well beyond fandom and creates the perception that women haven’t contributed as much to society at large as men, which is violent erasure

I’m not a Trekkie but I’ve done enough basic research into the Star Trek fandom to know women basically invented it, and are why the show even continued to exist. This kind of writing is part of institutional sexism that denies women’s accomplishments and role in history and it infuriates me

A BIG project I've been working on has just been launched - four free online textbooks covering every aspect of digital media literacy, from grades 1 to 9. They were designed to support the recently updated Ontario curriculum but can be accessed and used by anyone: mediasmarts.ca/ontario-digi...

If you think mis- and disinformation is no big deal , read this: www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Parents Are You Tired Of Your Child Doing This?

10/10 reminder. Check out our handy factsheet if you're curious about booster dose recommendations: www.ottawapublichealth.ca/en/public-he...

If you (like me) are a Gen Xer and are not 100% sure you got two doses of measles vaccine, talk to your doctor about getting a booster. A lot of us have lost immunity and you REALLY, REALLY do not want to get measles.

That's right, my free covid science zine is BACK for 2025 baybee, because respiratory viruses sure didn't go anywhere! Biggest change: I simplified ALL the dang text to make everything easier to follow. READ ON to learn WHY WE MASK, then print & share to your heart's delight!

The time is right for an X-Files reboot in which Mulder is always wrong.

"WHY IS THE MEDIA NOT COVERING THIS?" followed by a screenshot of a New York Times article will never not be funny to me

Okay, for the folks who asked: here's the majority AI view, writing up the reasonable, thoughtful view on AI that the vast majority of people in tech hold, that gets overshadowed by the bluster and hype of the tycoons trying to shill their nonsense. anildash.com/2025/10/17/t... Please share!

New K-5 curriculum on disinfo is now live online for free! To learn all the best tricks about how to use it, join us Oct 27, 10:00-11:30 ET. Spread the word to the K-5 librarians & teachers you know! Everybody welcome. See ALT text for more detail. To Register: tinyurl.com/MLWevent. 🍎 #SSChat 📚

We need to talk about how social media algorithms push moms down a slippery slope of distrust. From "Are my kids getting enough support in school?" To "Maybe I should homeschool." To "Maybe modern medicine is bad." I've seen this first-hand in research I'm doing on parenting apps. 1/🧵

🚨 out at @apsrjournal.bsky.social 🚨 ➡️ We ran a large media literacy experiment to fight misinformation ➡️ 13,500 students, 583 villages in Bihar, India ➡️Created custom misinfo curriculum of 4 months ➡️Partnered w the government to roll it out as an official course in classrooms hopeful findings👇🏽

This study found that kids aged 9-13 whose social media use increased over time did worse in one cognitive development test and better in another, with non-significant differences in other tests (and overall). Want to guess how the results are framed in the press release and news coverage?