Exploring critical media health literacy (CMHL) in the online classroom

Abstract

Critical media health literacy (CMHL) is concerned with identifying health-related messages in the media, acknowledging the potential effects on health behaviours, critically analyzing the content of the message, and the subsequent application of the message to one’s health behaviours (Levin-Zamir & Bertschi, 2018). This exploratory research examined the CMHL skills of students ( n = 120) in an entry-level, online asynchronous health and wellness course, by examining their ability to think critically about health-related themes presented in news media articles online and apply course-based knowledge during a Twitter event. Employing a content analysis of tweets from the event, students were found to illustrate CMHL skills when interacting with peers on Twitter, more than when directly assessing online news media. The findings suggest that the course curriculum be altered to include CMHL skills, to better equip students with the ability to identify accurate health information in the media.