Shuttering the Newseum: It's Time for Big Media to Step Up

The media giants who own the news should step up After all they spend billions on marketing talent and technology to create and sell Americans their next superhero A few bucks to help the same audience learn how the Constitution and government work isn39t such a big dealThe history of the Newseum makes clear that even for good causes timing is everything Cutting the ribbon to open pricey new real estate in 2008 just as the economy tanked couldn39t have come at a worse moment Higher admission fees and leasing space failed to fill the financial hole squeezing the Freedom Forum39s support even as its endowment shrank Ironically the financial bind emulated journalism39s trajectory as bankruptcies consolidation and layoffs hollowed out oldfashioned newsrooms as well as their New Age web versions whose revenue models also went southWith deeper pockets and grand ambitions Johns Hopkins University has purchased the flashy 400000 square feet of space in the shadow of Capitol Hill Presumably its 3725 million investment in marble glass and glitz will help its professors showcase their wares Unfortunately the people who should be educated aren39t the university39s target market Washington39s policy wonks politicians and aspiring career officials who will soon have a new spot to get their academic tickets punched Rather the ones who need schooling are average citizens who were wellserved by the effort that just closed its doorExplaining why a free press is important in a democracy of course isn39t a standalone chore It39s embedded amp8212 or should be amp8212 in ensuring Americans understand how their politics and government work The Center for American Progress a Washington think tank released a report last month on that task The report quotStrengthening Democracy with a Modern Civics Educationquot digs into the state of civic education and its implications and takes a comprehensive look at why civic literacy matters Not surprisingly the authors found that knowing more isn39t only about becoming more discerning it also motivates people to be involved in their community including getting out to voteTo its credit the Center39s research went well beyond surveys of what young voters know amp8212 or don39t amp8212 about the Constitution and their government The authors evaluated civics courses in detail Their criteria included whether courses taught about topics such as the nature of democracy the Constitution public participation and voting rules and rights The researchers also reviewed graduation requirements and test results in the 50 states Most important for journalism they included whether civics courses addressed the media39s role and media literacy that is the students39 ability to deal with the rise in propaganda and bogus newsWhen it comes to whether schools are delivering what young voters need to know the findings aren39t reassuring Take the requirement to study civics Thirty states require a onesemester civics course eight more require two semesters While some states include the subject in history or social science courses overall 25 percent lack a dedicated civics program As for the substance of the lesson plans the researchers found only 26 states amp8212 barely half amp8212 met their standards for a robust course offeringThe media does get attention twothirds of the 50 states include its role and media literacy in their courses But the educational challenge outside as well as within the classroom is daunting Studies by Avaaz a nonprofit that tracks fake news the Pew Research Center and Stanford report that Americans are struggling with a fake news flood Add to their inability to tell fact from fiction their deficit in civic knowledge amp8212 according to an Annenberg Public Policy Center survey in 2016 only 26 percent could name the three branches of government amp8212 and as the researchers attest the vulnerability to disinformation is all too clearThat39s why the corporations that own the news business need to step in and civic education is a good place to start The Freedom Forum has announced that Newseum39s mission is continuing through digital outreach and webbased programs as well as online classes available to schools ABC Bloomberg Comcast Cox Hearst NBC News Corporation The New York Times and Time Warner all commendably served as the Newseum39s founding partners They and their corporate heirs should ante up again with contributions beyond moneyWith professional journalism under attack from a president intent on delegitimizing its crucial role and adversaries in Russia and elsewhere mounting their offensives against American democracy the media giants have a unique capability to help Their talent and technologies can produce and distribute educational programming in the public service They did their duty 80 years ago when Hollywood went to war educating Americans about their adversaries as well as what they could do on the home front to aid the battle abroad Boosting the country39s defenses by helping to fill the void in civic knowledge is no less important in 2020Thomas Jefferson one of the Constitution39s authors wrote in 1789 that people needed to be wellinformed to be trusted with their own government Jefferson who knew well the challenges facing the new nation also was an ardent advocate of the Bill of Rights including freedom of the press It39s a safe bet that the country39s current political perils and the findings of the Center for American Progress would raise his eyebrows if he were around todayClick the social buttons to share this story with your friends and colleaguesThe opinions and points of view expressed in this content are exclusively the views of the author andor subjects and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet Inc management or associated writers

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Shuttering the Newseum: It's Time for Big Media to Step Up

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Kent M. Harrington

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Shuttering the Newseum: It's Time for Big Media to Step Up

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