[Commlist] New book: Media Literacy for the Communication Ecosystem

Media <https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-032-04024-4>Literacy 
for the Communication Ecosystem: A Theory of Change for a Healthier 
Future 
<https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-032-04024-4> (Palgrave / 
Springer, 2025)

"This book offers a model that will help fertilize new initiatives in 
media literacy by synthesizing wisdom acquired over the decades, where a 
combination of trial-and-error experimentation and careful documentation 
have helped to discover and learn “what works”.”  (Renee Hobbs, 
Professor of Communications, Rhode Island University, Founder and 
Director: Media Education Lab)

“Julian McDougall latest work is a tour de force for the media literacy 
community. This text gathers decades of media literacy interventions to 
connect them all around a theory of change for media literacy across 
communication ecosystems and in support of healthier relationships with 
and to media. I don't think a book in our field has been so ambitious, 
covered so much ground, and connected so many different approaches.” 
(Paul Mihailidis, Professor of Civic Media and Journalism, Interim Dean, 
School of Communication at Emerson College, Director of the Salzburg 
Academy on Media and Global Change)

“The book challenges simplistic, solutionist tendencies that position 
media literacy as an easy fix for toxic media ecosystems. At the same 
time, it makes a passionate case for why—and how—media literacy can 
change the world for the better. And for when it can’t. A brilliant, 
original, and honest piece of work—produced by a scholar who is not 
afraid to help us face the field’s limitations, but who is also brave 
enough to walk us through a journey of imagining healthier media and 
planetary futures, together.” (Andrea Medrado, Associate Professor in 
Global Communications and Research Director for Communications, 
University of Exeter)

"An absolute must-read for anyone interested in media literacy and its 
indispensable role in a healthy communication ecosystem. Mapping the 
broad and diverse field to an intellectually crafted theory of change, 
McDougall brings conceptual and empirical coherence to the multifaceted 
nature and impact of media literacy and 400 interventions in this space, 
while respecting and cherishing their complexity.” (Gianfranco Polizzi, 
Assistant Professor in the Department of Linguistics and Communication, 
University of Birmingham)

More reviews here. 
<https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-032-04024-4#about-book-reviews><https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-032-04024-4#about-book-reviews>

This book shows how media literacy can improve the health of 
communication ecosystems. It makes the case for media literacy as a 
human right and a foundation for civic resilience and curates research 
and best practices to show how media literacy can counter 
misinformation, support public health, and prepare society for 
challenges like pandemics and AI. The book is structured around a theory 
of change with four interconnected media literacy domains: Access (how 
and where we engage with media), Awareness (critical understanding of 
media), Capability (life skills for education, employment, civic and 
digital participation), and Consequences (taking actions with media 
literacy that improve communication ecosystems for everybody). It 
includes six chapters and an introduction, presenting a comprehensive 
field review which maps 400 projects from all over the world to the 
theory of change, concluding with a forward-looking chapter on the 
possible healthier future. Ideal for educators, academics and 
researchers, librarians, activists, journalists, policymakers, and 
health professionals, this book offers a timely, actionable vision for 
strengthening media literacy and building more resilient, informed 
communities.


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