Implementing one of the Three Principles of Higher Education (Tri Dharma Perguruan Tinggi) namely community service, Communication Science students of Universitas Muhammadiyah Yogyakarta (UMY) conducted media literacy movement or media education to public dealing with the use of technology like the use of social media, television programs, and gadgets. The movement was undertaken in several places like schools, youth organizations, and housewife associations in Yogyakarta Special Region (DIY) and Central Java. It was the fourth movement of media literacy organized by Communication Sciences of UMY. It began in 2012 and it was only held in DIY.
On Sunday (13/12), a lecturer of Missionary Media and Religion course as well as supervisor of the media literacy movement Filosa Gita Sukmono, S.Ikom., M.A. stated that the movement was an implementation of what students obtained at class, particularly at Missionary Media and Religion course. “We encourage students to apply what they learn at class in community. Regarding Missionary Media and Religion course, the media literacy can be categorized as a missionary medium to educate public dealing with media and technology development,” he conveyed.
The students joining the movement discussed various topics of communication and technology like appropriate and inappropriate television programs for children, news on televise for parents, and raising public awareness of advertising abuse, and the positive use of communication technology for teenagers. “The students were quite communicative in discussing the topics. They undertook movie screening, drama performance, and used other media,” he informed. He inserted that the media literacy were held different time as the agreement of each group. There were 25 groups engaging in the media literacy.
One of the groups was Communication Science students of batch 2014, namely Trisna Risani Karya, Rizki Ichwan, Nelfi Juni Yetri, Fajar Yuniar Ramanta, Yuniasti Eka Rosadiana, Thoriq Ahsin Siddiqi, Muh. Abdul Aziz N, Bambang Fazrin, and Diva Dara Noviyanti. They conducted the media literacy on Saturday (12/2) at Hall of SMA Negeri 2 Bantul by raising a theme ‘Media and Lifestyle: Minimizing the Impacts of Internet Content Construction toward Teenager Lifestyle.
Rizki Ichwan told that the theme reflected his and their friends’ concern about how media construct Indonesian teenager lifestyle to use a product. “Various products, particularly communication devices like mobile phones, are aggressively advertised through reconstructing messages in their media promotion which can influence lifestyle of teenagers. For instance, the advertisement of new sophisticated phones is packaged persuasively so that public, especially teenagers, are interested in purchasing the phone products to follow the era development and lifestyle. As the result, the teenagers do anything to be able to but the phones even though they have to undertake wrong things like stealing.
Rizki added that the literacy media aimed at raising communication science students’ care of media in Indonesia. He expected that public can be wiser to enjoy the programs getting far away or breaking norms. “Media are supposed to become information tools to educate public, but the function has disappeared due to personal interests. Therefore, public ought to be smarter to watch any programs of media,” he ended.
