To function as well-informed citizens in democracy, early adolescents (12–16 years old) should become news literate news consumers. In this time of fragmented media use and evolving conceptions of (the importance and relevance of) news, this is not easy. Therefore, this focus group study investigated news consumption and news literacy through the eyes of early adolescents. Results showed that early adolescents have broad definitions of news. Their news consumption is predominantly passive, possibly due to a lack of intrinsic motivation. They see news as important, but often as boring, repetitive and negative, and disconnected from youth. Participants had knowledge of news content and effects, and stressed the importance of reliable news. However, for the majority, this did not translate into critical evaluation of news. For early adolescents, the key factor in becoming more news literate news consumers is motivation. Moving forward, motivation should be better incorporated in both research and practice.

Given the importance of news in preparing children for their role as active citizens in society, insight into how negative news can be delivered to children most optimally is warranted. In this regard, this study examined the usefulness of constructive news reporting (i.e. solution-based news stories including positive emotions). An experiment (N = 281 children, 9-13 years old) was conducted to investigate how constructive, compared to nonconstructive, news reporting affected recall of television news, and

In this study, we examined whether adolescents helped others during the COVID-19 pandemic and how stories in the media inspired them in doing so. Using an online daily diary design, 481 younger adolescents ( M = 15.29, SD = 1.76) and 404 older adolescents ( M = 21.48, SD = 1.91) were followed for 2 weeks. Findings from linear mixed effects models demonstrated that feelings of being moved by stories in the media were related to giving emotional support to family and friends, and to helping others, including strangers. Exposure to COVID-19 news and information was found to spark efforts to support and help as well and keeping physical distance in line with the advised protective behaviors against COVID-19. Moreover, helping others was related to increased happiness. Overall, the findings of this study highlight the potential role of the media in connecting people in times of crisis.

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Engaging children in news is important for their participation in the public sphere. However, producers of children's news face a tradeoff between fully informing children and not causing distress. Against the background of technological, economic, and ideological changes in the media landscape, this study examined the use of consolation strategies in the Dutch children's news, and whether these have shifted between 2000 and 2016. A manual content analysis was conducted, focusing on strategies used within the entire newscast (N = 408 programs), within items (N = 2,304 items), and within camera shots (N = 41,338 shots). Results showed that, on the one hand, the Dutch children's news seems to become less inclined to protect children, by showing a decrease in expert sources and distant shots, and an increase in the repetition of sensational images and the prevalence of frightening sounds. On the other hand, the attention for sensational topics is relatively low and has not changed over time. Also, the use of the sandwich formula, animations and reassuring comments by the host or reporter did not change over the years. Yet, the use of children as a source has risen, which might signal a greater focus on stories of children themselves.