Medical professionals carry with them the responsibility to be well informed about their profession. In order to remain well informed it is important to understand what a reliable source of information is. This is what the American Library Association calls “Information Literacy”.
When someone is Information Literate they are not expected to know everything. Instead, it means you have the tools necessary to learn what you need to. When you know how to find the information you need in an efficient, accurate, and responsible manner you will be able to call yourself "information literate". This page will help you to become information literate so you can better serve yourself and your patients!
It is always important to remember the difference between entertainment and journalism. While it is true that both can be resources used to learn more different subjects, they are not equal. In the above clip John Oliver, from HBO’s Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, explains to Jorge Ramos the difference between being a journalist and being a comedian. In short, it is a difference in intent.
Journalist’s intent is always to inform. Good journalism will always try to eliminate personal bias from the stories they tell in order to expose the truth. Comedians will do their best to make people laugh. While telling stories about current events may be funny, it the information is less important to the comedian than the joke is.
There is nothing wrong with watching the Daily Show, or John Oliver’s program to laugh and learn, but you as an information literate viewer cannot stop there. If you see or hear about an issue discussed in these stories it is your responsibility to do your own research and find out more. Entertainment should always be the first step in your learning process, not your last.
