MLA’s recommendations for ”A new strategy for Media Literacy and Digital learning”

by Chloé Peté, Media and Learning Association.

This policy statement is presented in the context of the stakeholder meeting of the CULT Committee (Committee on Culture and Education) on “A New Strategy for Media Literacy and Digital Learning”, held on Thursday, 5 February 2026. It reflects the views and recommendations of the Media & Learning Association on behalf of its 110 members across 30 European countries, the European Digital Media Observatory (EDMO) and its network of EDMO Hubs, as well as a broader community of media literacy experts, researchers, teachers, librarians, social and youth workers, parents and caretakers, and civil society actors who work every day to strengthen citizens’ resilience to disinformation and safeguard democratic societies.

These recommendations are the result of over four years of continuous exchange, knowledge-sharing, and identification of best practices across European organisations and networks. Many of these priorities have already been raised in previous reports, including responses to the open consultations on the Digital Education Action Plan (2024) and the European Democracy Shield (May 2025).

At the heart of all these recommendations lies a fundamental conviction:
Digital and Media Literacy is not only a skill or a competence. It is a long-term human and societal process. It is about shaping the kind of society we want to live in.

Through this collective experience, we have learned that the European media literacy landscape is fragmented. While many recognise the challenges that disinformation and generative AI pose for marginalised youth, extreme behaviour, and democratic principles, there are also numerous positive actions and small successes monitored through EDMO Hubs, MLA members, and their local activities. These successes are often led by small organisations, librarians, teachers, and educators, emphasising human connection and the building of resilient societies.

What we have learned is that there is no one-size-fits-all approach. Creating lasting relationships with trusted organisations is important for schools, but it is not only about schools; it is about building enduring connections between different stakeholders, bringing together a multiplicity of expertise to establish mechanisms of reliability, trust, and continuity. Active participation and co-creation are essential, particularly with youth, elders, and other vulnerable groups. Engaging these communities directly in the design and delivery of media literacy initiatives strengthens trust and relevance, prevents marginalisation, and counters the appeal of extremism by giving everyone a voice and stake in shaping informed and resilient societies.

We also highlight the work of EDMO on the Guidelines for Effective Media Literacy Initiatives, supported by 92 organisations from 36 countries, structured around 12 principles covering Development, Delivery, and Review. These guidelines will soon be complemented with best practices, 15 of which have already been collected.

Key Recommendations:

1. Keep Digital and Media Literacy as a political and societal priority. And by this, we mean civic and media education in its broadest sense; not disinformation alone. Disinformation is only one symptom of a much wider transformation of our information ecosystems. If we focus solely on fighting false content, we miss the bigger picture. Only through education, critical thinking, support, and long-term awareness-raising can we build resilient societies and healthy democracies.
2. Generalise digital and media literacy across Europe as a lifelong competence. This requires systematic integration within school curricula at all levels, adult and continuing education, and both initial and continuous training for teachers, journalists, and other key professional groups. Digital and media literacy cannot remain dependent on isolated projects or individual goodwill; it must become a structural, sustained component of education and training systems. This commitment should extend beyond formal education to all age groups and sectors, including public services and the commercial sphere, with employers encouraged or required to provide digital, media, and AI literacy training as part of standard employee training and contractual arrangements.
3. Adopt common European competency frameworks for learners, teachers, and trainers (building for example, on existing tools such as DigComp). While these frameworks provide an important reference, they are currently unevenly implemented across Member States, not always adapted to different target groups, and often insufficiently linked to teacher training, assessment tools, and long-term funding mechanisms. It is essential to harmonise and professionalise training across Europe and, crucially, to properly assess and measure the impact of both EU-level and national investments in this field.
4. Strengthen enforcement of EU rules for online platforms. This includes stricter sanctions for non-compliance with existing legislation, such as the Code of Conduct on Disinformation and the Digital Services Act. We also recommend that financial sanctions levied on platforms be reinvested into cooperation projects and into organisations actively working in digital and media literacy. This must go hand in hand with transparent and accountable public administration.
5. Increase European funding and cooperation through programmes such as Erasmus+ and Creative Europe MEDIA, along with greater recognition of teachers’ and educators’ engagement in European projects. Most importantly, this requires a shift away from short-term, fragmented initiatives toward long-term strategies, developed in consultation with key actors in the field.
6. Embrace a systemic, coordinated, multistakeholder approach. Long-term impact cannot be achieved by isolated actions; it requires close collaboration between governments, educational institutions, civil society, media organisations, broadcasters and regulators, tech companies, and research bodies. We need coherent and scalable strategies to maximise both reach and effectiveness.
7. Support scientific research, both on disinformation and information manipulation, and on the evaluation of the impact of digital and media literacy initiatives, campaigns, and programmes. Without solid evidence and evaluation, we cannot scale what works or improve what does not.

By adopting these recommendations, alongside continued regulatory and cybersecurity efforts, Europe can meaningfully strengthen citizens’ resilience to misinformation and safeguard democratic societies.

Media & Learning Association
February 2026