Abstract
In this essay, we introduce media quiteracy, which we use to conceptualize and describe the valuable learning that can happen through the refusal to take up new media or the act of pausing or ceasing its use. We see media quiteracy as an active and generative approach to learning and argue for its inclusion in the media literacy curriculum. We trace the history of critical engagement with technologies within education and then articulate what media quiteracy can look like in practice. We surface and discuss three potential obstacles to teaching media quiteracy, which include the ways in which it problematizes assumptions around participation, progress, and efforts to limit tech use. Ultimately, we argue that media quiteracy can be an act of not only individual learning but of collective action and social transformation in a heavily mediatized, commercialized, and digitized information environment.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Recommended Citation
Good, K. D., & Ciccone, M. (2025). Media quiteracy: Why digital disconnection belongs in the media literacy curriculum. Journal of Media Literacy Education, 17(1), 150-165. https://doi.org/10.23860/JMLE-2025-17-1-10
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