The School Buzz: KRDO13’s Josh Helmuth continues media literacy session at D20 middle school
Josh Helmuth
EL PASO COUNTY, Colo. (KRDO) — With disinformation spreading online and now aided by artificial intelligence, it’s as important as ever for people, especially students, to develop media literacy. KRDO13’s Josh Helmuth spoke to students at Chinook Trail Middle School about the topic for the fourth straight year.
Helmuth, a 15-year veteran of the TV news industry, spent an hour going over how to spot media bias, how to find reliable news sources, why freedom of the press is so important, and the threat of disinformation because of artificial intelligence.
Luke Anliker is an English teacher at Chinook Trail Middle who invites Helmuth to speak each Fall. Helmuth’s presentation kicks off his class called “My News Network.” Students work in groups to choose a United Nations Sustainable Development goal– like ending hunger or protecting the planet — then create news stories around that topic.
They build their own news websites, podcasts, and broadcasts, and get feedback from local journalism professionals. In the end, judges select winners who get featured on the D20 website and get to take a personal tour of the KRDO13 newsroom and studio.
Anlicker says that the project has been wildly successful.
Would you like Josh Helmuth to speak at your school? Email him directly at SchoolBuzz@KRDO.com.