Newsround’s Unique Role in Teaching Children Media Literacy in the Disinformation Age

In an era of political turbulence and online misinformation, approximately 3.6 million pupils—about one-third of school-age children in the UK—tune into BBC’s Newsround weekly during school hours, according to BBC estimates. The program, which has been running continuously since 1972 and targets children aged 7 to 12, has established itself as a crucial educational resource with significant reach.

As debates continue over potential government bans on smartphones in schools and concerns about online misinformation grow, Newsround’s responsibility to deliver accurate, balanced news to young viewers has become increasingly vital.

Lewis James, Newsround’s editor, explains that the program’s focus on helping young audiences understand current events “brings greater clarity” to its commitment to truth and impartiality. “We’re very conscious, obviously, of the age of the audience,” James says, “but also the age spread of the audience, as well as the context: that some are watching at home with parents and some are watching it in school with classmates and a teacher.”

To ensure accessibility across this diverse viewership, Newsround takes an approach that many educators might recognize—never assuming prior knowledge. The program consistently provides more contextual background than standard news outlets, explaining who political figures are, where geographical locations exist, and relevant historical events that adult-focused news might take for granted.

“In some ways, it’s about stating the obvious, but it does take a lot of thought,” James notes. This educational scaffolding not only helps children understand complex topics but also naturally supports impartiality by presenting information from first principles.

The program’s fundamental approach to balanced reporting involves asking, “What is the story? What are the opinions?” and then presenting those viewpoints to allow young viewers to form their own conclusions. This explains why Newsround presenters often use phrasing like “Some people think this… and some people think this…”

For the 2024 US presidential election coverage, for instance, the Newsround team deliberately interviewed children supporting Donald Trump, children supporting Kamala Harris, and those supporting neither candidate. “It’s really important to us that we are speaking to people with different views,” James emphasizes. “That, in today’s world, may lead to people feeling discomfort. Sometimes they’re hearing things they don’t agree with. But I don’t think that’s a tension for us.”

James also points to the program’s distinctively calm tone as a valuable asset in an increasingly heated media landscape. This measured approach proves especially beneficial when covering divisive topics or difficult issues involving conflict, allowing for balanced, age-appropriate reporting.

The proliferation of misinformation has made Newsround’s mission “more difficult but also more rewarding,” according to James. “One of our core aims now is to tackle disinformation. The number one way we do that is by reaching a large audience and getting information out that parents, teachers and children can rely on.”

This reliability is increasingly crucial as misinformation undermines trust in all media. “One of the biggest dangers with misinformation is that people just don’t trust anything,” James notes. Building children’s confidence in factual news sources represents an essential step toward developing more discerning media consumers.

When Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, James recalls how playground rumors—fueled by online misinformation suggesting “World War Three has just started” or “the UK is about to be invaded”—spread rapidly through schools, trickling down through age groups. “We knew we had to respond quickly with information that was honest,” he says.

The emergence of artificial intelligence has further complicated the information landscape. Newsround has adapted by covering topics like “pseudo-educational content on YouTube,” bringing in specialists to help young viewers identify AI-generated content and approach it skeptically.

Meanwhile, the program uses AI itself as a topic to demonstrate multiple perspectives. “AI might provide amazing opportunities; it might provide new careers. Or it might be a boon for disinformation; it might cause some professions to disappear,” James explains. “Those views can coexist.”

By maintaining this balanced approach across all topics, Newsround continues its longstanding mission of not just informing but educating—helping shape a generation of young people better equipped to navigate an increasingly complex information environment.