Digital Literacy and Self-Isolation

If you are reading this from self-isolation, you too can relate to the insatiable need to go outside and the deep desire to return to the normal state of the world. I for one have been going absolutely bonkers over here. There's only so many times that I can clean my room, organize my shelves, and take the dogs out for a walk. My knitting project is well underway, and my books are almost finished. The problem here is that I have fallen prey to the sensational news, and panic media that has surfaced since the outbreak of this horrible virus. The good news is, is that I am taking a class where I am being reminded of digital literacy, information literacy, and media literacy. These are all skills which are meant to help us sort though and apply the information from our technological and globalized age. While Fake News and flat out lies run rampant in our media today, having the skills and knowledge to be able to find the source of these articles, tweets, and news sites is key to getting rid of biases and false information. So, in an attempt to apply what I've learned to my current situation (seeing as I have all the time in the world right now), I went through multiple articles from multiple news sites in order to distinguish the fact from the fiction. Luckily, I found that everything on these news sites could be traced to credible sources. But this skills is extremely important for any student, educator, professional, and media user. Separating the lies from the truth are the only way that we can combat mass hysteria in a time like this. As for me, I will be sitting in my house, twiddling my thumbs, and waiting for all of this to be over.