In August 2009, the European Commission issued a formal recommendation
on media literacy, adding to a series of initiatives underway since 2006 to build
a comprehensive European media literacy policy (Commission of the European
Communities 2009). Media literacy is now a well-established concept referring
to the ability to critically understand and use media in a variety of contexts
(Aufderheide 1997). Recognizing that the way people use media is changing
and that the volume of information received is enormous, the Commission
notes that all citizens need to have the ability to access, analyse and evaluate
images, sounds and texts on a daily basis, especially if they are to use traditional
and new media to communicate and createmedia content. As such, the recommendation
urges the media industry and Member States to do more to increase
people’s awareness of the need formedia literacy across all media forms including
advertising, cinema and online, and to ensure that citizens do not get left
behind in the fast-moving media landscape. The level of interest shown by
the European Commission in media literacy might seem surprising given that
more often than not it is seen as interested in only supporting market dimensions
of media. The following therefore asks what has prompted this interest
and identifies possible benefits to researchers and educators.