Fostering Digital Citizenship: Promoting Media Literacy and Critical Thinking in the Age of Artificial Intelligence.

The proliferation of fake news, disinformation, and biased information threatens democracy, sustainable digital growth, efficient governance, and the digital transformation. According to the Reuters Institute Digital News Report 2022, the economic dimension created by Artificial Intelligence (AI) will reach $25 trillion by 2030, which is equivalent to 55% of the world GDP. Consequently, the European Commission (EC) aims to integrate AI in almost all areas, such as research, education, employability, healthcare, manufacturing, production, city planning, farming, and environment protection. However, experts warn that the European Union lags behind the United States and China in the global race for AI, which creates geopolitical risks given the strategic importance of these new technological systems, as reported by The Economist in 2022.

To address this issue, a project has been launched to enhance the social and civic competences of young people in Europe, with a particular focus on fostering critical thinking and media literacy. The project aims to combat the proliferation of fake news and biased media narratives regarding artificial intelligence and intelligent systems. The ultimate goal is to equip young people with the necessary skills to meaningfully participate in society and shape public perceptions of these important phenomena, especially as they are portrayed in mainstream media.