Communication and Multimodal Literacies
Communication and Multimodal Literacies asks you to judge sources and media, not just read them: whether a source is reliable and relevant, what a video or graphic adds or leaves out, and how ideas are organized and presented for an audience.
Judging a source
- Authority: who wrote it, what credentials they have, and what kind of organization published it (government agency, university, museum, newspaper, company).
- Currency: the publication or update date.
- Purpose and bias: to inform, to sell, or to persuade; loaded words reveal a slant.
- Evidence: claims supported by data, quotations, or named experts.
- Relevance: whether it actually answers your question at the right level of detail.
- Cross-checking: two independent sources that agree are stronger than one.
Media and multimodal elements
Sound (music, narration, sound effects), visuals (photographs, diagrams, maps), camera choices (close-up or wide shot), color, editing pace, and on-screen text all shape a message. For each element ask: what mood or idea does it create, and what would change if it were removed?
Presenting ideas
A clear introduction states the topic and purpose; the body is organized (chronologically or by reason); the conclusion wraps up. Use vocabulary suited to the audience, credit your sources, and paraphrase rather than copy.
Worked example
You need current information about a hurricane approaching the coast. Source A is a national weather service page updated three hours ago with data tables. Source B is a personal blog post from 2011 with dramatic photos.
Reasoning: Source A wins on authority (weather scientists) and currency (three hours ago), and its numbers can be checked against other forecasts. Source B fails on currency and authority; its photos may be striking, but they describe an old storm. A classmate who says "Source B is better because the photos are scarier" is confusing emotional impact with reliability.
Traps
- Picking the page that looks best designed.
- Assuming a chart or photograph is automatically accurate.
- Treating a longer source as a better source.
- Forgetting to check the date on a science or news topic.
- Describing what a video shows without explaining how the element affects the viewer.