Evaluating a News Literacy Intervention for French Middle School Interns: A Pilot Study of the Media Pathway Platform and Newsroom Internships
Year: 2026
Type: article
Study design: Clinical Trial
Abstract: This pilot study evaluates an innovative news literacy intervention combining a short-term newsroom internship with an online news literacy platform designed for French ninth-grade students completing such internships. Using a pretest/posttest design with 121 participants, we examined changes in motivation, knowledge, critical questioning, and engagement with news, and assessed socioeconomic disparities in these changes. Results show significant gains in knowledge of news production and in self-reported critical questioning. Initial knowledge gaps linked to socioeconomic background disappeared post intervention. Findings suggest that combining a short newsroom internship with interactive formats can foster equitable news literacy development and support civic education among adolescents.
Authors: Pierre Fastrez, Camille Tilleul, Laureline Marc
Institutions: UCLouvain, KU Leuven
Language: English
Subfield: Literature and Literary Theory
Field: Arts and Humanities
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: bronze
OpenAlex ID: W7203908568