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Local News and Democracy
Local news reporting plays a pivotal role in the health of our communities—and our democracy.
That’s why the League of Women Voters of Washington, which is mission-focused on defending democracy and educating voters, supports both advocacy and education for local news and democracy.
Local News and Democracy Education
To help League members learn skills that help them discern what is true and increase their understanding of the role local news plays in a healthy democracy, LWVWA offers the Media Literacy and News Education Project.
Explore this project’s educational opportunities and resources available to you.
Empowering voters to defend democracy requires adults to learn skills that help them discern what is true and to increase their understanding of the role local news plays in healthy communities and democracy.
The Media Literacy and News Education Project is designed to help you achieve that knowledge. It begins with four online educational workshops on media and news literacy for League members. Then it equips volunteers with toolkits to share the training with their communities.
Here’s a sneak peak of the project and an interactive workshop presented at the state League convention in June 2025. Get the slides.
Learn how to be a savvy consumer of media and news through four online, interactive educational workshops.
Each workshop includes news examples, group challenges, individual skill development and links to additional resources.
The workshops will teach you skills to help discern what is true at a time when it is becoming harder to know the real facts.
Schedule for Media & News Literacy: Educational Workshops
2025
- Sept. 9, 6:30 – 8 p.m.: The Power of Critical Thinking
Register - Oct. 28, 6:30 – 8 p.m.: Mis-, Dis- and Mal-information
Register
2026
- Jan. 20, 6:30 – 8 p.m.: Techniques Used to Sway Opinion
Register - Feb. 24, 6:30 – 8 p.m.: Get to Know Artificial Intelligence (AI)
Register
Prepare to Learn
To get the most out of each Media & News Literacy: Educational Workshop, do these three things:
- Register in advance. All League members are invited to attend.
- Get familiar with a few basic definitions. Learn more in this eight-minute video: Introduction to Media and News Literacy.
- To participate in the workshops, you’ll need to be able to use your computer (for example, Google search) while staying on Zoom. For quick tips, watch this 90-second video.
Workshop Recordings
After each workshop, a recording will be posted here.
Watch this eight-minute video and discover:
- Why journalism is important and how it works
- Different ways information is delivered and how that can influence our perception of the message
- What is media and news literacy and why we need it
We recommend you view this video before taking any of the Media & News Literacy: Educational Workshops.
View VideoCheck back here in early 2026 for information about a training toolkit and train-the-trainer sessions that will enable League volunteers to offer media and news literacy training to their community.
This list of resources, which the Local News Education and Advocacy Committee has found helpful, is not intended to imply endorsement of any organization or institution.
Value of trustworthy, fact-based journalism
- LWVWA Study: The Decline of Local News and its Impact on Democracy
- Seattle Times: Why local news is more trusted, for now
- Society of Professional Journalists: Code of Ethics
- University of Washington: Center for an Informed Public
- Northwestern University, Medill Local News Initiative: Local News Barometer and Watch List
- Washington State University, Edward R. Murrow College of Communications study: Washington’s Local News Ecosystem
Books
- Media Literacy in Action by Renee Hobbs
- The Medium is the Massage by Marshall McLuhan
Critical thinking
- Logical Fallacies
- CNN Special Report: Finland’s curriculum to identify disinformation
Fact checking
- The Poynter Institute: Fact-Checking
- The Poynter Institute: PolitiFact
- Snopes
- Associated Press: AP Fact Check
- USA FACTS
- FastCheck.org
- The Washington Post: Politics Fact Checker
- Google Image Search https://images.google.com/
Bias in media
- CWU Library Guides: https://libguides.lib.cwu.edu/fakenews
- Allsides: https://www.allsides.com/unbiased-balanced-news
- Ad Fontes Media: Media Bias Chart
- Media Bias/Fact Check
Courses
- Online course offered by Poynter: How to Spot Misinformation Online
- University of Michigan free course: Understanding and countering disinformation
- Temple University Libraries: “Fake News,” Misinformation & Disinformation
- Programs to evaluate the credibility of news: News Media Alliance
Have questions about the Media Literacy and News Education Project? Send an email to MediaNewsEd@lwvwa.org. Please allow 48 hours for a response.