One of the easiest ways to get involved is to reach out to your elected officials and urge them to support media literacy education. We work closely with state advocates to help educate policymakers and raise awareness of the importance of media literacy, but our legislators work for YOU, so be sure your voice is heard.

We are always monitoring proposed media literacy-related bills around the country and sharing ways for individuals to take action in their state. While we aim to keep this page up-to-date with the latest, sometimes things change quickly. Please be sure to follow us on our social media channels and sign up for news in addition to checking this page frequently.

In Indiana, SB 142 would require the Department of Education to develop elementary and high school curricula on topics like thinking independently about online information before acting on it, reacting to harmful online behavior like cyberbullying or promotion of self-harm, and understanding social media platforms’ financial incentives to influence behavior.

Bill HB 492, the Media Literacy and Critical Thinking Act, would require public schools to teach students the responsible use of social media. The piloted media literacy curricula would include topics like cyber bullying prevention and cyber safety practices, protections for freedom of speech online, skills for independently evaluating messages on online platforms, and the significance of algorithms.

In New York, a package of bills have been proposed – A32, A35, A40, A94, A1452, and A1695. The bills would require teachers and library media specialists to complete professional development related to media literacy, require the staffing of a school library media specialist in each elementary, middle, junior and senior high school, and create a set of media literacy standards for students in grades K-12.