Students Are Invited to Create Original Works on Media Literacy and Violence Prevention
PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Courageous RI today launched a Youth Media Contest for students from middle school, high school, and college in Rhode Island and beyond. Participants can win from a prize pool totaling $7,000, with the grand prize winner receiving $1,000.
Courageous RI is a program that counters disinformation, enhances civic participation, and improves media literacy. This competition is a culminating event for this two-year, three-part initiative funded by a grant to the University of Rhode Island from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
The Youth Media Contest builds upon Courageous Conversations, a series of free, online discussion programs that engaged more than 1,200 people in examining media messages and building media literacy skills. Fifty educators also completed a professional development program to integrate media literacy into academic programs in middle school, high school, and college.
“At a time when so many young people are exploring self-expression and creativity through video and content creation, we’re excited to see them channel that energy for social good,” said Renee Hobbs, a professor at URI and founder of the Media Education Lab. “This competition will help develop engaged student leaders who are well-equipped to understand, evaluate, analyze, and ultimately create compelling content in writing, video, audio, and graphic design.”
The contest invites students to create short media messages that explore the question: “How can media literacy, active listening, kindness, or compassion reduce the hate and fear that leads to violence?”
Submissions will be evaluated by an esteemed panel of judges including media professionals, educators, and community leaders. Among these judges are Eric Bilodeau, the director of the Providence Children’s Film Festival; emcee deejay Carlton Solomon, known as “TheGreat Doc P”; and Elizabeth “Zim” Zimmerman, director of the Providence-based Bottle Rocket Design Group.
Entries must be submitted by May 15, 2024. Contest guidelines and submission instructions can be found at CourageousRI.com. Questions about the contest can be directed to Contest Director Benjamin Thevenin, Benjamin@mediaeducationlab.com.
About the Media Education Lab: The Media Education Lab is an online learning community whose mission is to advance the quality of digital and media literacy education through scholarship and community service. Founded in 2005, the Media Education Lab includes a team of affiliated experts who represent a broad multidisciplinary network of educators, academics, and media professionals. More than 20,000 people from across the country and around the world participated in the programs and services offered by the Media Education Lab in 2023.
Click here to access all the tools you need to host classroom discussions on topics including trust, influencers, conflict entrepreneurs, free speech, hate speech, and disinformation, pathways to radicalization, and preventing extremist violence.