Medijska pismenost kot orodje soočanja z dezinformacijami

As part of the Media Literacy Infrastructure Program of School of Advanced Social Studies in Nova Gorica (SASS), we have been accumulating relevant domestic and foreign materials on media literacy since 2013. An important part of these includes the up-to-date collection and updating of primary data bases, with which we offer support to key stakeholders in media education and literacy, as well as research activities. At the same time, we pay special attention to vulnerable groups of the population. In 2024, we first examined the general state and trends of the media habits of high schoolers at the national level, and then, by holding three focus groups of students, we focused our interest in the specific area of the phenomenon of the media landscape, in the segment of the problem of fake news and disinformation. With this, we not only gained a view from another point of view, but also gave a voice to the (often overheard) young people. Supplementing quantitative findings with qualitative ones represents a major contribution to existing studies. It is an opportunity to perceive and discover overlooked factors that significantly influence the selected observed processes, as well as a broader and more in-depth understanding of the context and complexity of the issue. The report includes an introductory part, a study background, an overview of the methodology, a presentation of the results and concluding thoughts. We came from the background of interpretive paradigmatic framework, we included 23 respondents in the sample, the research instrument used was a semi-structured interview for focus groups. However, the obtained rich descriptions of human experiences, perceptions, attitudes and opinions of the participants on the topic of media literacy as a tool for dealing with problematic media practices, falsehoods and deception are subjective in nature, therefore we do not generalize these beyond the boundaries of the sample. The results serve to inform various spheres, both professional and public. Keywords: media literacy, fake news, disinformation, media habits, media education, youth, Slovenia