Teaching our parents and children to read between the lines

The Hawai‘i Department of Health is sponsoring a series of presentations by nationally known Dr. Peter DeBenedittis (Dr.D) from October 28^th - November 2^nd. Dr. D will teach parents, teachers and students throughout the state how to be media literate and better "read" television and mass media advertising.

Dr. DeBenedittis will be a keynote speaker at the Department of Education’s "Third Annual Health Education Celebration" on Monday, October 28, 2002. He will also be presenting to parent organizations, and assemblies at schools on O‘ahu, the Big Island, Maui and Kaua‘i. Please refer to the attached itinerary for details on his speaking engagements and times available for media interviews on these islands.

Media literacy is the ability to "read" television and mass media. Children who understand the motivations and production techniques of media are less likely to adopt the unhealthy attitudes and behaviors that media depicts. Peter D. has successfully used media literacy for tobacco, alcohol, drug, and violence prevention. Surveys of students who received his tobacco prevention presentation found that 70% of non-smokers reported that they are less likely to smoke and one-third of smokers reported quitting.

Organizations currently using media literacy as a prevention strategy include the Center for substance abuse, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the American Academy of Pediatrics, and the Safe and Drug free Schools and Communities Program. Peter D. has also consulted to the White House Office on Drug Control Policy, the American Medical Association, the National Cancer Institute, and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. He was featured in a recent episode of 48 Hours for his work teaching media literacy.

Peter received a Ph.D. from Penn State in 1992 in Speech-Communication, which concentrated on the political uses of mass media with a minor in Advertising. He spent 10 years living in the Pacific on the American colony of Guam, where he ran an advertising agency. Moving to Santa Fe in 1995, Peter joined the nation’s foremost media educator, The New Mexico Media Literacy Project. Since becoming an independent consultant, Peter has taught media literacy to over 50,000 students and trained more than 1,000 teachers each year. He has written a media literacy curriculum and co-authored two CD-ROMs widely used in educational settings. More information is available on his website www.medialiteracy.net

Media Literacy is a strategy that is promoted by the Department of Health to prevent the use of tobacco by our youth. The Tobacco Prevention and Education Program and the Department of Education are supporting these presentations to help youth analyze the influence of media on health decisions.

Teaching our parents…
Itinerary
Peter DeBenedittis
October 27 - November 2, 2002