In the age of social media, fake news and data-driven capitalism, the need for critical understanding is more urgent than ever. Half-baked ideas about ‘media literacy’ will lead us nowhere: we need a comprehensive and coherent educational approach. We all need to think critically about how media work, how they represent the world, and how they are produced and used.

In this manifesto, leading scholar David Buckingham makes a passionate case for media education. He outlines its key aims and principles, and explores how it can and should be updated to take account of the changing media environment.

Concise, authoritative and forcefully argued, The Media Education Manifesto is essential reading for anyone involved in media and education, from scholars and practitioners to students and their parents.

David Buckingham is Emeritus Professor of Media and Communication at Loughborough University and Visiting Professor at King’s College London.