Users trust in artificial intelligence (AI) based applications and services is an ethical and moral question in the current information societies within the changing digital environments. Thus, it is important to understand children’s practices with the digital media. Internet accessed via smart phones mean continual access to contents provided by content producers with their changing strategies to attract the consumers, especially children and young. Internet through mobile devices and in AI based applications are based on powerful algorithms that curate and moderate content that is provided to users. Moreover, the AI is affecting to use habits and information ergonomics and it reshapes how media is consumed. AI-based Communication landscapes call for reneweings to digital media literacies as well (e.g. Hobbs, 2017; Kotilainen et. al, 2020).
The key in this paper is to draw attention on media use focusing on personal information management together with critical digital literacy skills among young people aged 13 – 16 years. What kinds of social media services and contents young people use? How are they managing with the algorithm-based communication in these services? How are they adapting their critical digital literacy skills?
Qualitative data has been collected in January 2020 at school as written assignments titled as “One day social media”, written with paper and pen. For background questions, a short questionnaire was collected, including open-ended questions of their understandings of algorithm-based communication (N= 33).
The results open new insights on how AI moderated and curated media causes confirmation bias and, how young people manage AI-based information. In addition, the findings are reflected to general notions of being online almost constantly and what are the modes of action online. As conclusion, suggestions to develop new aspects of digital media literacy will take place.
References
Hobbs, R. (2017) Creat to Learn. Introduction to digital literacy. Wiley.
Kotilainen, S., Okkonen, J., Vuorio J., Leisti, K. (2020) Youth Media Education in the Age of Algorithm-driven Social Media, in Frau-Meigs, Kotilainen, Pathak-Shelat, Hoechsmann, Poyntz (eds) the Handbook in Media Education Research, Wiley (forthcoming)
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