News Literacy Panelists from NBC 4 New York and Telemundo 47 Provide Valuable Insights into Media Literacy and Misinformation

Before a capacity crowd in Presentation Hall today, Montclair State School of Communication and Media students learned more about the importance of media literacy and combating misinformation from a distinguished panel of media experts.

Pat Battle, Anchor and Reporter at NBC 4 New York/WNBC, Liz Gonzalez, Consumer Reporter at Telemundo 47/WNJU, Ben Berkowitz, Vice President of Digital at NBC 4 New York/WNBC and Telemundo 47/WNJU, and Dr. Bond Benton, SCM Associate Professor of Public Relations, discussed the challenges media organizations face when reporting accurate and timely news in today’s 24/7 news cycle. Dr. Keith Strudler, Director of the School of Communication and Media, moderated the discussion.

The panel shared opinions, tips and anecdotes from their professional careers. A few of the highlights from the hour-long discussion included:

• A great tip for prospective journalists on the importance of verifying information. “It’s a constant process. Double check everything,” Battle said. “Your official sources aren’t always on the money, either. If I don’t believe in the source or my information, I won’t do the story.” Gonzalez also shared that sources may have the best intentions, but they might not always be right. “People may give you information and may think it’s true, but (sometimes) it’s not.”
• On combatting misinformation to underserved communities, especially when reporting on topics such as health and politics: “We have a lot of work to do to educate our more vulnerable communities,” Gonzalez said. “We look at what misconceptions are out there. We know there is a lot of fear. We look at who we can interview and can explain why people might be confused.”
• Berkowitz shared three guidelines the organization uses to verify information: Are the people sharing the information authorized to do so, how fast is the information spreading and can you triangulate (enhance the validity) of the information?
• Berkowitz also shared his philosophy on the importance of speed vs. accuracy, which in the digital age is still paramount despite that many people, social media platforms or news organizations are not always held accountable for misinformation or disinformation: “You can never be faster than right.”
• Benton emphasized the importance of local journalism and coverage provided by outlets such as NBC 4 New York/WNBC and Telemundo 47/WNJU: “By far, the number one type of outlet people trust in the media is local news. What they are doing is making local relationships.”

The entire one-hour discussion is available on SCM’s free streaming service, Hawk+, and the NBC 4 New York website.

The event was part of SCM’s News Literacy Week February 20-24 and a larger campaign developed by a team of SCM students who are participating in the ‘22-23 Public Relations Student Society of America’s (PRSSA) Bateman Case Study Competition to support the goals of its client News Literacy Project. News literacy was recently added to the State of New Jersey’s public school curriculum for K-12 students.

The SCM Bateman team developed a dynamic “Touch Grass, Check Facts” campaign designed to educate and empower the University campus and community to spot and stop the spread of misinformation. The team also created @msutouchgrass accounts on Instagram and TikTok.

Story by: Keith Green