Back to Annual Meeting Page		American Public Health Association 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition December 10-14, 2005 Philadelphia, PA

Abstract #121836

Lynda Bergsma, PhD, President of the Alliance for a Media Literate, University of Arizona Mel & Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health, Rural Health Office, 2501 East Elm Street, Tucson, AZ 85716, 520-626-7946, Ext 235, lbergsma@u.arizona.edu

This multi-media presentation will focus on the role of media literacy in health promotion and prevention and examine why social marketing and media literacy must go hand-in-hand to achieve health literacy. The following four concepts will be explored and synthesized into a strategy model designed to help people critically analyze media messages and make healthy choices:

1. Impact of media on health, including an analysis of the media culture in which we live and brain responses to media messages 2. Social marketing in comparison with advertising 3. Media literacy, including a definition of media literacy and why it is important in health promotion and prevention, the five basic principles of media literacy, and empowerment through media literacy education 4. Health literacy and the relationship of social marketing and media literacy to health literacy

Successful health promotion and prevention programs must incorporate media literacy to address the influence of the media. Media literacy education gives the people they skills they need to intelligently navigate the media and filter the hundreds of messages they receive every day. When they recognize how media messages influence them, people can learn to think critically about media messages, reflect on important life choices and make more informed decisions about their health behaviors.

Learning Objectives: Participants will be able to

• Identify the impact of media on health Define media literacy and use the five basic principles to analyze health related media messages.
• Explain the relationship of media literacy and social marketing to health literacy.

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

I wish to disclose that I have NO financial interests or other relationship with the manufactures of commercial products, suppliers of commercial services or commercial supporters.

Recorded presentation