What an interesting experiment. I actually tried to explain this and “correct” my supervisor at my current job. It was not as awkward as I thought it would be but it did seem a little like, “I know more than you”. My supervisor always talks about using the internet in order to retrieve information and to also post about things that he has heard on the news.
The topic was about lemons and what the genetic makeup of lemons were. I asked him where did he get this information from. He simply answered, “Google”. I then began to ask him why he thought that “Google” was the best source to retrieve this information and he stated, “Google has everything.” I asked him did he verify the website that he retrieved that information from and did he confirm that the statement that he said was truthful and factual. He stated that he, “knew it was because he uses Google all of the time.” I then began to explain how many people post information just to post information and it may not even be true. I expressed to him that being media literate is so important and that what you share with people can really have a huge impact on different people across the globe.
My supervisor then began to agree with me and tried to validate why he does his research a certain way. I explained again why the process of being media literate is so important and then he began to be more receptive to the concept. I do not think he will forget his coworker talking to him on how to be more media literate.
