More information
Description
This project addresses the phenomenon of the ‘single story’, that is, the creation of overly simplified and inaccurate opinions of persons, groups or countries that shape perceptions and attitudes towards others and lead to social exclusion and discrimination.
It will do this by providing members of the public with the opportunity to interact with the subjects of such ‘single stories’, specifically migrants and members of vulnerable and local communities during a range of activities, including edutainment labs and story cafés.
The aim is to provide insight on the negative impact of stereotypes, stimulate debate, improve the levels of media literacy and critical thinking and try to narrow the ever-growing cultural divide in Malta that is leading to social exclusion.
The partners of this project - the African Media Association Malta (AMAM) and NWAMI International Malta - have a history of successful collaboration on projects relating to cohesion building, social inclusion and skills development for vulnerable communities. The teaming up of the two organisations exemplifies cross-culture active citizen engagement and provides stakeholders with the unique opportunity to experience Africa and European perspectives of issues related to media literacy, critical thinking and its impact on social exclusion.
Summary of project results
This project addressed the phenomenon of the ‘single story’, that is, the creation of overly simplified and inaccurate opinions of persons, groups or countries that shape perceptions and attitudes towards others and lead to social exclusion and discrimination.
The project provided members of the public with the opportunity to interact with the subjects of such ‘single stories’, specifically migrants and members of vulnerable and local communities during a range of activities that included:
- Educational awareness sessions led by experts with panel discussions consisting of panelists from migrant and local communities
- Roundtables with benefactors and stakeholders.
- Story cafes during which representatives of migrant and local communities as well as educators and media experts were given the opportunity to critically analyse topical issues relating to ‘the single story’.
By the end of the project, 29 CSO staff and over 200 people from various sectors were trained in media literacy and critical reflection on the single narrative mindset that contributes to social exclusion in their specific sectors. The insights gained by the participants will have an impact on policy-making and reporting by the media.