Ofcom yesterday opened a consultation on a set of recommendations designed to help a broad range of services (broadcasters, streamers and online platforms) to take active steps to empower the public by giving them the skills and information needed to critically and safely engage with the content they see.

Ofcom has a statutory duty to promote media literacy and its three-year strategy outlines plans and approach in carrying out this work. As part of these duties, it is required to publish a statement recommending ways in which services might develop, pursue and evaluate activities or initiatives relevant to media literacy.

“We are today seeking views on our draft recommendations which set out a clear, ambitious and unified vision for how services can help people to navigate and thrive in a rapidly evolving digital landscape. These recommendations are directed at broadcasters, streaming services, social media and search platforms,” the British communications regulator said in a statement yesterday from London.

Ofcom said its draft recommendations have four aims at their heart and they are the following:

# Services are designed to give people meaningful choice in how they engage with content. That means making inclusive design and policy choices right from the start.

# People are empowered to shape and control their own experience. Services should equip people with practical tools to manage and personalise their online experiences. Ofcom wants to see them supporting parents and caregivers to guide younger users in an age-appropriate way and engaging third parties to extend the reach of their media literacy initiatives.

# People are supported to develop critical engagement skills, building trust and confidence. Services should help people to understand, interpret and critically assess the credibility of content they encounter, including by promoting relevant programming or educational content. The regulator expects platforms to invest in media literacy campaigns, content and partnerships, including those which target underserved and diverse audiences.

# Continuous improvement in these areas through ongoing evaluation. Services should conduct and publish evaluations of the impacts of their design choices and initiatives.

“Empowering people to have greater control over their online experience is one of our strategic priorities, especially as we continue to implement and enforce new rules under the Online Safety Act.

We recognise that services vary in size and reach, and our proposed recommendations are designed to be proportionate, ensuring that all services can play a meaningful role in promoting media literacy,” the Ofcom statement asserted, adding the deadline for submissions is December 8.

Separately, ofcom yesterday also published a report on ‘what works’ when designing and delivering media literacy ‘train the trainer’ interventions for professionals working with children and young people, drawing together learnings from three programmes supported by the regulator.