Analyzing the Relationship between News Consumption and Media Literacy of High School Students in Tehran

With the advent and ubiquity of modern media, the problem of fake news has become increasingly important. Younger people, especially students, are more vulnerable to cyberspace. The purpose of this study is analyzing the type and amount of news consumption and media literacy of high school students as well as their parents' caring behavior. The statistical population was high school students of Tehran from which 466 students were selected by cluster sampling method. The data were collected using a questionnaire based on Craft, Ashley and Maksl Research and James Potter's Cognitive Media Literacy Model. The results have shown that the students' media literacy is moderate. There is a relationship between the diversity and amount of news consumption, educational area and parents' occupations with students' media literacy. But no significant relationship between gender and media literacy has been detected. It has been found that 38% of parents do not do anything for protecting their children against the media, while the rest content themselves with mere talk about it. Finally, 57% of students said that their high school Thought and Media Literacy course was not helpful.