The blurring of entertainment, information, and persuasion is reshaping work, life, and citizenship. As a result, our relationship to media has never been so important nor so complex. By asking critical questions about what they watch, listen to, read, and use, students can be better prepared to be responsible communicators who can use a variety of formats and genres for self-expression and advocacy.

Covering a wide range of topics including the rise of news partisanship, algorithmic personalization and social media, stereotypes and media addiction, advertising and media economics, and media influence on personal and social identity, Renee Hobbs helps students develop the lifelong learning competencies and habits of mind needed to navigate an increasingly complex media environment.

Rooted in the best practices of media literacy pedagogy, Media Literacy in Action brings an interdisciplinary approach to media studies that engages students with the following features:

• full-color layout

• engaging questions to stimulate thoughtful dialogue and reflection

• contemporary media examples designed to cultivate intellectual curiosity

• suggested activities for advancing students’ confidence in oral, written, and multimedia expression

• access to videos and multimedia resources at www.medialiteracyaction.com

Winner of the AAP 2021 PROSE Award for Excellence in Social Sciences.

Propaganda is inescapable. It’s everywhere. Students need to analyze, resist, critique—and create.

Media literacy educators have always insisted that we are both creators and receivers of media messages. The truth of this is even more apparent in today’s digital environment, with children and adults alike participating in a ubiquitous, nonstop stream of social media. Clearly, students need the tools to interpret news and information critically—not just for school but for life in a “post-truth” world, where the lines blur between entertainment, information, and persuasion.

Renee Hobbs demonstrates how a global perspective on contemporary propaganda enables educators to stimulate both the intellectual curiosity and the cultural sensitivities of students. Replete with classroom and online learning activities and samples of student work, Mind Over Media provides a state-of-the-art look at the theory and practice of propaganda in contemporary society, and shows how to build learners’ critical thinking and communication skills on topics including computational propaganda, content marketing, fake news, and disinformation.

Media literacy educators rely on the ability to make use of copyrighted materials from mass media, digital media and popular culture for both analysis and production activities. Whether they work in higher education, elementary and secondary schools, or in informal learning settings in libraries, community and non-profit organizations, educators know that the practice of media literacy depends on a robust interpretation of copyright and fair use. With chapters written by leading scholars and practitioners from the fields of media studies, education, writing and rhetoric, law and society, library and information studies, and the digital humanities, this companion provides a scholarly and professional context for understanding the ways in which new conceptualizations of copyright and fair use are shaping the pedagogical practices of media literacy.

Want to learn something well? Make media to advance knowledge and gain new ideas.

You don’t have to be a communication professional to create to learn. Today, with free and low-cost digital tools, everyone can compose videos, blogs and websites, remixes, podcasts, screencasts, infographics, animation, remixes and more. By creating to learn, people internalize ideas and express information creatively in ways that may inspire others.

Create to Learn is a ground-breaking book that helps learners create multimedia texts as they develop both critical thinking and communication skills. Written by Renee Hobbs, one of the foremost experts in media literacy, this book introduces a wide range of conceptual principles at the heart of multimedia composition and digital pedagogy. Its approach is useful for anyone who sees the profound educational value of creating multimedia projects in an increasingly digital and connected world.

Students will become skilled multimedia communicators by learning how to gather information, generate ideas, and develop media projects using contemporary digital tools and platforms. Illustrative examples from a variety of student-produced multimedia projects along with helpful online materials offer support and boost confidence.  

Create to Learn will help anyone make informed and strategic communication decisions as they create media for any academic, personal or professional project. 

Exploring the Roots of Digital and Media Literacy through Personal Narrative provides a wide-ranging look at the origins, concepts, theories, and practices of the field. This unique, exciting collection of essays by a range of distinguished scholars and practitioners offers insights into the scholars and thinkers who fertilized the minds of those who helped shape the theory and practice of digital and media literacy education. 



Each chapter describes an individual whom the author considers to be a type of “grandparent.” By weaving together two sets of personal stories—that of the contributing author and that of the key ideas and life history of the historical figure under their scrutiny—major concepts of digital media and learning emerge. 

Give digital kids a voice!

Today’s kids are digital natives, but what’s the best way to help them become empowered, creative and responsible communicators across different media? Discover insights and strategies specific to children ages 5-12 in this guide from an acclaimed media literacy program: Powerful Voices for Kids. Readers will find

• Thought-provoking lesson plans that reach students of all backgrounds and abilities


• Use of a wide range of technology tools, including the Internet, video, and mobile apps, combined with an emphasis on online safety and development of essential critical thinking skills


• Materials for teacher professional development

This innovative book is equally valuable as a resource for lesson planning or for developing a full media literacy program.



"Many professional books talk about digital and media literacy, but this text addresses the complete continuum—from television to technology—and guides teachers to think deeply about their own preferences and beliefs, as well as those of their students to develop knowledgeable, informed media users and consumers for the 21st Century."

—Kristin Ziemke Fastabend, First Grade Teacher

Chicago Public Schools

"This book cuts to the heart of uncertainties about how copyright and fair use apply in the classroom, addressing common misperceptions and laying out the current understandings of intellectual property law in clear engaging prose."
—Henry Jenkins, Provost′s Professor of Communication, Journalism, and Cinematic Art
University of Southern California

"This long-awaited book relieves educators′ anxieties about the legality of using copyrighted materials during instruction and presentations. In addition to answering questions about fair use practice in an easy-to-understand manner, Hobbs offers examples of how technology supports essential literacy and communication skills in 21st-century classrooms."
—Diane Lapp, Distinguished Professor of Education
San Diego State University

Finally, a book that dispels confusion around the use of copyrighted materials in the classroom!

Today, educators and students have access to a vast, rich array of online materials that can be used for instruction, but these resources often remain untapped because of confusion over copyright laws.

In this slim, jargon-free guide, media literacy expert Renee Hobbs presents simple principles for applying copyright law and the doctrine of fair use to 21st-century teaching and learning. Complete with a ready-to-go staff development workshop, this book explores:

• What is permissible in the classroom
• Fair use of digital materials such as images, music, movies, and Internet elements found on sites such as Google and YouTube
• Trends in intellectual property law and copyright practices
• Classroom projects using copyrighted materials

Copyright Clarity helps educators unlock Internet and digital media resources to classrooms while respecting the rights of copyright holders.

For supporting videos, slide presentations, and curriculum materials, see also www.mediaeducationlab.com/copyright.