Media Literacy

Media Literacy (n.): the understanding, and ability to communicate with different forms of media (see also: books, magazine, films, the Internet)

Media literacy is the product of the introduction of all new kinds of media to western- and global- culture. It's ancient precursor, literacy, was a term applied to the understanding and writing of only print media, which was limiting, when media such as film, music and the internet became a more prominent way of communicating.

In my view, someone who is "media literate" is one who 1) can efficiently operate technology such as computers and televisions and 2) can easily browse the internet and find the information they need and 3) be able to make intelligent decisions about the validity of the content being presented (i.e. this person would know that the free iPad being offered to them in the ad on the side of a website is, in fact, a scam).