Media Literacy Terms

A non-verified belief that a secret group is causing, manipulating, or hiding important information or events.

• Conspiracy theory

• Disinformation

• Information pollution

• Claim

False information is deliberately created and shared to cause harm or achieve a goal.

• Disinformation

• Hoax

• Misinformation

• Opinion

A deliberate falsehood designed to trick people into believing something.

• Hoax

• Agenda

• Bias

• Verify

The total amount of false, misleading, or otherwise low-quality information that is circulated online. This makes it difficult for people to determine what information is reliable or true.

• Conspiracy theory

• Information pollution

• Claim

• Fact

Information that is false, but that is created and/ or spread without the intent to cause harm or achieve a goal.

• Misinformation

• Fact

• Opinion

• Disinformation

A list of things to do. In the context of media literacy, ‘agenda’ refers to what a person or group is trying to do.

• Agenda

• Bias

• Altered

• Distorted

The favouring of one point of view over another., (we all do this).

• Bias

• Source

• Opinion

• Verify

A group of people who try to influence public opinion and government policy. Usually focuses on a single topic or represents a specific industry.

• Lobby group

• Conspiracy theory

• Hoax

• Agenda

The location from where something originates.

• Source

• Claim

• Verify

• Misinformation

A statement of truth. Evidence is not always given.

• Claim

• Conspiracy theory

• Fact

• Information pollution