Unmask the Media Project

A Digital Generation

Twenty-first century children and youth are wired like never before. They have never known a world without cell phones, Internet access, texting, and video games. Spending an average of 53 hours a week with media and technology, this generation spends more time in front of screens than any other single activity including school, family, sports, or even sleep!*

There is no doubt that there are enormous benefits to being a member of this remarkable cohort, often nicknamed “Digital Natives.” As young people navigate this wired world, they are developing the skills that are critical to their academic success and, ultimately, their capacity to compete in the global economy.

The same electronic screens that give young people access to a world of information, friends, and entertainment also give marketers, advertisers and producers direct access to them. In addition to communicating and being entertained for 53 hours a week, children and youth are also consuming powerful messages, stories, and images that will shape their understanding of who they are, what they should have to fit in, and how they should think, look, and act.

How Young People are Taking Action

The Unmask the Media Project was developed by the Youth Philanthropy Initiative. Based in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Unmask the Media is a student-run program that addresses the issue of the media’s negative effects on teenager’s self-perceptions.

This campaign is a prime example of youth using the media for good. Watch as young people use the tools of their generation (video and images) to urge their peers to critically think about the media messages they consume. Learn more about Project Unmask >



How Adults Can Take Action

1. Reach out to Young People. Help them build the positive Developmental Assets they need to rise above the harmful effects of the media, and recognize that Search Institute’s 40 Developmental Assets offer a framework for how and when digital citizenship and consumerism supports the healthy development of young people.


  • Asset 16 – High Expectations - Both parent(s) and teachers encourage the young person to do well. Doing well not only applies in school but when in the digital community. Talking about and coming up with rules about online citizenship should be an ongoing conversation within families, schools, and communities.



  • Asset 27 – Equality and Social Justice – Young person places high value on promoting equality and reducing injustices like hunger and poverty. Young people today can utilize the power of digital media to become aware of and change inequalities around the world. Social activism and grassroots movements flourish in the digital world.



  • Asset 30 – Responsibility – Young person accepts and takes personal responsibility. Project Unmask gives young people the tools they need to accept and take personal responsibility to become savvy consumers.



  • Asset 37 – Personal Power – Young person feels he or she has control over “things that happen to me.” Young people will learn the power they have in becoming savvy consumers even when marketers are able to tailor their messages to target young consumers. Becoming aware of the issues and have the power to make choices is what Project Unmask seeks to go.



  • Asset 39 – Sense of Purpose – Young person reports that “my life has a purpose.” Project Unmask was created by and for young people to have a sense of purpose and personal power in the face of powerful marketing messages.



  • Asset 40 – Positive View of Personal Future – Young person is optimistic about her or his personal future. Advancements in media and technology have opened a new world of opportunities for young people from social activism to social enterprise.



    • 2. Reach Out to Parents

    ParentFurther.com offers free tips and tools to help parents understand and talk about both the harmful and positive effects of the media.


    3. Spread the Message

    Share the presentation below and use the arrows to zoom in and out of each text area to to find out more about the effects of media and advertising on young people.

     



    Download the Infographics from this Presentation

  • The Five Media Giants
  • Methods of the Media
  • The Media Complex



    • For more information on our project and how you can get involved, please visit www.projectunmask.com.

    ___________________________________________________________________________________

    * Gentile, Douglas; Walsh, David, A normative study of family media habits (Minneapolis: National Institute on Media and the Family, 2002).