Rulemaking on Exemptions from
Prohibition on Circumvention of
Technological Measures that
Control Access to Copyrighted
Works
Testimony of Renee Hobbs
Temple University
Philadelphia PA

What is Media Literacy?

Media Literacy
is an Expanded
Conceptualization of
Literacy
SPEAKING & LISTENING
READING & WRITING
CRITICAL VIEWING & MEDIA COMPOSITION
--Aspen Institute Leadership Forum on
Media Literacy, Washington DC (1993)

Media Literacy
Offers
Powerful Authors &
Conceptual
Audiences
Themes for
Exploring
Messages &
Multimedia
Meanings
Genres
Representations & Realities

Key Concepts of Media Literacy
1. All media messages are constructed.
2. Media messages are produced within economic, social,
political, historical and aesthetic contexts.
3. Interpretative meaning-making processes consist of an
interaction between the reader, the text and the culture.
4. Media have unique 'languages,' characteristics which
typify various forms, genres and symbol systems of
communication.
5. Media representations play a role in people's
understanding of social reality, affecting behaviors,
attitudes and values.

Instructional Methods for
Integrating ML
Across the Curriculum
1. Teaching With Media & Technology
2. Making Connections with Out-of-School Literacies
3. Developing Information Access & Research Skills
4. Strengthening Message Analysis Skills
5. Composing Messages using Multimedia
6. Exploring Media Issues in Society
7. Sharing Ideas and Taking Action

Organizations Supporting the Code of
Best Practices
Association for College and Research
Libraries (ACRL)
National Association for Media Literacy
Education (NAMLE)
Action Coalition for Media Education
(ACME)
Visual Studies Division
National Council of Teachers Of English
International Communication Association
(NCTE)
(ICA)

Components of 21st Century Skills
Tool Competence
Analysis, Critical Thinking and
Ethical Judgment
Creativity and Expression
Teamwork and Collaboration

Education: Preparing Young People for
Life in Contemporary Culture
Functional Use-Based
Exemption of
CSS Circumvention
is Essential for Media Literacy
Education to Thrive

Proposal:
Exemptions for Teachers
and Students Using DVD
Clips for Teaching and
Learning of Media
Literacy Education

Critique #1:
Class of Users is too Broad
Number of college graduates by discipline in 2006:
73,000 Communication/Film Majors
318,000 Business Majors
107,000 Education Majors
161,000 Social Science/History Majors

Critique #1:
Class of Users is too Broad
Number of college graduates by discipline in 2006:
73,000 Communication/Film Majors
318,000 Business Majors
107,000 Education Majors
161,000 Social Science/History Majors
Number of high school dropouts in 2006:
3,500,000
Houston, Atlanta, Detroit, Chicago, Philadelphia, New
York, Washington DC, Los Angeles, Phoenix

Critique #1:
Class of Users is too Broad
Number of college graduates by discipline in 2006:
Everyone
73,000 Communication/Film Majors
318,000 Business Majors
needs media literacy
107,000 Education Majors
education!
161,000 Social Science/History Majors
Number of high school dropouts in 2006:
3,500,000
Houston, Atlanta, Detroit, Chicago, Philadelphia, New
York, Washington DC, Los Angeles, Phoenix

Critique #2: There are other options
besides CSS circumvention

Lost Opportunities: Mrs. Scheffler’s
High School English Class
Goal: explore how depictions of romance in mass media shape
people’s expectations about social relationships
Learning Outcomes:
1. Recognize formulas, tropes and stereotypes about romance as
presented in contemporary film and television
2. Identify formulas and stereotypes present in classic and
contemporary literature
3. Reflect on how media may influence personal expectations about
social relationships
4. Strengthen written expression and public speaking by responding
to a personally meaningful film

Lost Opportunities: Mrs. Scheffler’s
High School English Class
Goal: explore how depictions of romance in mass media shape
people’s expectations about social relationships
Instructional Practices:
1. Students view and discuss teacher-created video which introduces
the formulas, tropes and stereotypes about romance as presented
in contemporary film and television
2. Teacher models an the practice of critical analysis using a
contemporary film excerpt and an example from literature
3. Students select a personally meaningful film excerpt that depicts
stereotypes about romance. They compose an analytic essay and
make an oral presentation that comments on the film excerpt.

Mrs. Scheffler Can’t Teach this
Lesson Anymore
Her students don’t get the chance to
reflect on how media depictions of
romance shape their own
understanding of social relationships

“The language of the
image must be a
stimulus for critical
reflection, not an
invitation to
hypnosis.”
-Umberto Eco