Translations of the media and information literacy concept: Tracing policy terms in the Latin American countries.

Abstract

This chapter addresses the linguistic uses of the media and information literacy (MIL) concept. The chapter explores how the MIL concept is translated into local languages in the Hispanic linguistic area, namely, Portuguese and Spanish in the Latin American Countries. We begin by investigating how the MIL concept has developed over the last 70 years through United Nations’ recommendations. After presenting some visualizations of its chronological development, we identify the main countries by applying the concepts to Facebook and Twitter as social networking platforms, interrogating how the platforms translate the expression into Portuguese and Spanish. We apply systematic review and social network data mining. This paper hopes to provide clarity on how the MIL concept has gradually developed over the past 70 years and how it is locally translated and applied; the linguistic variations of the MIL concept is a case for further research.