Media Literacy Roundup: 29 Nov 2024
Periodic links and ideas from Wes Fryer
I hope this newsletter finds you rested and well, as we continue celebrating the Thanksgiving holidays here in the United States. Our news and social media feeds are often filled with anxiety-encouraging links. I’m hopeful the ideas and links you find here will inspire you with hope and optimism for December as well as the year to come in 2025.
In this issue you’ll find:
Details about PodCampCLT (the FREE podcasting “un-conference” I’m hosting on Saturday, Dec 7, 2024 in Charlotte, NC)
NotebookLM Resources (Google’s amazing and free AI platform co-created with one of my favorite authors and futurists, Steven B Johnson)
Conspiracy Theories & the 2024 US Election: My upcoming 3 Dec 2024 FREE webinar for the MediaEd Club of the Media Education Lab
Curating Trusted Voices (and more “Wisdom with Wes” short videos)
Data Visualization and Web Accessibility Media Literacy Lessons
Bacon Wrapped Jalapeño Poppers (and more “Cook with Wes” recipes and videos)
My Updated “AFTER” page (social media channels and links)
1. Register for PodCampCLT: 7 Dec 2024
After a lot of consideration I’ve decided to start hosting and organizing two annual in-person / face-to-face conferences each year in Charlotte, North Carolina: PodCampCLT (an “unconference” for podcast listeners AND creators) in the fall and EdCampCLT in the spring (an “unconference” EdCamp for teachers and educators.)
Unlike traditional conferences with designated speakers and thoroughly pre-planned sessions, an “un-conference” is a crowdsourced and “grassroots” event which recognizes the reality that we all have expertise and valuable knowledge to share with others. I LOVE listening to a wide range of podcasts and have been creating podcasts since 2005. My current, regular podcasts include “The EdTech Situation Room,” an almost-weekly recap of the past week’s technology news through an educational lens with my buddy Jason Neiffer, and “Wes and Shelly Share,” a channel where my spouse and I share reflections, memories, and lessons learned from “our empty nest.”
Based on the EdCamp, BarCamp and TeachMeet "unconference" models, PodCampCLT is a 1 day conference event focused on PODCASTING in Charlotte, North Carolina. Collaborative, participant-led sessions will focus on topics including:
Sharing favorite podcasts
Options for podcatcher software (podcast listening / consumption)
Tips for starting your own podcast
Mobile podcasting with Spotify for Podcasters
Techniques for Audio Editing and Normalizing Audio
Techniques for using AI in your podcasting workflow
Options for Podcast Publishing
Amplifying podcasts with social media
Outsourcing podcast production
and more!
Register for FREE for our first PodCampCLT on EVENTBRITE. Check out the detailed schedule on EventBrite as well as our main website, PodCampCLT.com. Please share our event with others who may be interested too! A printable flyer is available, please use it
2. NotebookLM Resources
NotebookLM is an AI platform co-developed by Google and one of my favorite authors and futurists, Steven B Johnson. Last summer I listened to Steven’s recent book, “Extra Life: A Short History of Living Longer,” and highly recommend it along with his full collection of other books. Steven’s SubStack is “Adjacent Possible.”
In October 2024, I started hosting monthly webinars for the MediaEd Club of the Media Education Lab. I attended the “Summer Institute in Digital Literacy” hosted by the Media Education Lab in July 2019 in Providence, Rhode Island, and ever since have become part of their “media literacy tribe.” All webinars and resources for the MediaEd Club are recorded and archived online.
Our October MediaEd Club webinar was “AI NotebookLM & Steven Johnson,” and it highlighted several of the powerful capabilities of NotebookLM. The recorded video of our webinar runs 44 minutes, and the webinar slides are also available.
In addition to those resources, check out my blog posts from this fall about NotebookLM, including:
NotebookLM on Project 2025 (28 Nov 2024)
POWs and NotebookLM (18 Sept 2024)
Spend some time “playing” with NotebookLM, I can almost guarantee you will be AMAZED. The resources I’ve shared above can help you get started. See my 10.5 minute “Wisdom with Wes” video from 19 September 2024, “Ep 33: Amazed by AI (NotebookLM)” for a short overview.
Find more helpful tips and resources for learning to use AI professionally and personally on my website, “Learning AI with Wes Fryer.”
3. Conspiracy Theories & the 2024 US Election
Register now for our next FREE webinar for the MediaEd Club on Monday, December 3, 2024: “Conspiracy Theories & the 2024 US Election.” The Zoom call starts at Noon Eastern / 11am Central / 10am Mountain / 9am Pacific.
The webinar description is:
As the dust settles from the 2024 US general election, conspiracy theories continue to swirl, shaping post-election narratives and public perception. Join us on December 2 for a timely discussion on Conspiracy Theories and the 2024 US Election, where we’ll examine the falsehoods that gained momentum in the weeks leading up to the general election and those that have emerged in its aftermath. Drawing from both recent and historical examples, we’ll explore how conspiracy theories influence democratic processes, public trust, and media coverage. Through the lens of media literacy and critical thinking strategies like the SIFT framework, participants will engage with the broader cultural and political impacts of these narratives and discuss tools for navigating misinformation in a polarized landscape. Don’t miss this important conversation on how conspiracy theories are shaping the political landscape in America today.
4. Curating Trusted Voices #WisdomWithWes
This past year I started a new YouTube video series I’ve titled, “Wisdom with Wes.” At age 54 I finally decided I’ve learned a few things in life which can be considered (at least by me) “wisdom.” Hopefully a few other people will find some of these idea shares helpful.
Usually I record these just before school on weekdays. I’m up to 40 episodes, and all of my #WisdomWithWes videos are available in this YouTube playlist. Recent episodes include:
Ep 40: Curating Trusted Voices (8 min)
Ep 38: Elections and God's Will (17 min)
Ep 37 Election Integrity and Bespoke Reality (13.5 min)
Ep 36 Election 2024 Mental Prep (13 min)
Ep 34: Prioritizing Wellness and Health (7.5 min)
I’ll be continuing this YouTube video series in the weeks ahead. You can use the shortened web link wfryer.me/wisdom to access the full YouTube playlist!
5. Data Visualization and Web Accessibility Media Literacy Lessons
I’m continuing to THOROUGHLY enjoy teaching a middle school web design course again this semester. Two of the new units and lessons I’ve created and used with my students this semester include:
I used Google’s NotebookLM to create an “audio podcast deep dive” of two articles relating to data visualization, and included that media file as a YouTube video on my curriculum page. The articles were:
Check it out!
6. Bacon Wrapped Jalapeño Poppers
One of the ways I continue to “play with media” on a regular basis involves cooking. I love to cook! I now have hundreds of our family recipes shared on food.wesfryer.com, and in recent weeks added two new ones:
7. My Updated “AFTER page”
How do you tell people how to connect with you? Several years ago when attending and presenting at a conference in Cairo, Egypt, I learned about the concept of an “After Page.” I shared about this in my June 2024 online presentation, “Amplifying Your Brand On a Fractured Web” for The Expert Educator Exchange Conference.
With continuing changes in the social media channels and websites I use to connect with others, I’ve (again) updated my “AFTER page.” Check it out on wesfryer.com/after.