By Wong Lai Cheng

In an era where internet users are increasingly exposed to false, misleading, and manipulated information, the need for robust Media and Artificial Intelligence (AI) Literacy (MAIL) has become more urgent than ever. MAIL is essential for fostering responsible, ethical, and inclusive engagement with media and AI technologies particularly in a society where online interactions, algorithmic systems, and generative AI profoundly influence how information is created, disseminated, and consumed.

In Malaysia, AI already influences how young people learn, communicate, socialise, and form opinions through social media platforms, recommendation algorithms, generative AI tools, and automated decision-making systems.

The World Economic Forum’s Global Risks Report 2026 ranks mis- and disinformation among the most significant global risks (WEF Global Risks Perception Survey 2025-2026). Awareness and education will be essential components of any effective mitigation strategy.

As our education system seeks to prepare learners for both present realities and future uncertainties, a critical question emerges:

Are we truly equipping young Malaysians with the knowledge, skills, and values they need to thrive safely and responsibly in an AI-driven future?

Influence of AI

The influence of AI is deeply embedded in everyday digital experiences, from personalised content feeds to AI-generated images, videos, and text. These developments bring new opportunities for creativity and learning, but also introduce serious risks, including online harassment, online bullying, disinformation & misinformation, and the misuse of AI-generated deepfakes. If education is to remain relevant and future-proof, we must rethink what it means to be literate, and ethically grounded in the age of AI. Promoting critical, ethical, and responsible engagement with media platforms and AI systems is therefore essential to safeguarding societies against manipulation, bias, and digital harm.

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) recently announced a significant development in global education assessment. The OECD Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2029 will introduce Media and Artificial Intelligence Literacy (MAIL) as a new innovative domain. Moving beyond traditional assessments of reading, mathematics, and science, this interdisciplinary domain will examine whether young people are learning to think critically and engage meaningfully in a world increasingly shaped by digital media and AI technologies.

As production, participation, and social interaction move online, PISA 2029 MAIL will provide insights into students’ ability to evaluate the credibility, quality, intent, and impact of digital content. This is particularly relevant in Malaysia, where incidents of online bullying, misinformation, and AI-generated deepfake content have raised growing concerns about student safety, wellbeing, and digital responsibility. Ultimately, the domain aims to assess whether learners can make well-informed decisions and participate responsibly in a digitally mediated society.

The assessment will use realistic simulations such as browsing the internet, engaging on social media, or interacting with AI tools to examine how students apply media and AI literacy skills in real-life contexts. These scenarios mirror the environments where Malaysian students are already navigating complex issues such as cyberbullying, identity misuse, and manipulated content.

Critical thinking

Critical thinking lies at the heart of media literacy. A learner’s ability to critically evaluate information across both digital and non-digital environments directly influences their capacity to assess reliability, detect manipulation, and resist harmful narratives, including those that fuel online harassment and media bullying (OECD, 2022). AI literacy encompasses the technical understanding, durable skills, and future-ready dispositions needed to live and work in an AI-influenced world. It enables learners not only to use and create with AI, but also to critically evaluate its benefits, limitations, risks, and ethical implications, including issues of bias, privacy, and accountability (OECD, 2025).

Taken together, Media and Artificial Intelligence Literacy (MAIL) refers to the ability to critically access, analyse, evaluate, engage with, and create media content, as well as interact with and design AI systems, while understanding their societal influence, ethical implications, and associated responsibilities. MAIL empowers learners to think critically, act responsibly, and engage meaningfully in a digitally and AI-driven society.

MAIL foundation for future-ready education

MAIL is no longer optional; it is an essential foundation for future-ready education. In Malaysia, the rise of online bullying, misinformation, and deepfake misuse highlights the urgent need for learners to be equipped not only with technical skills, but also with ethical judgment and social responsibility.

Without MAIL, students risk becoming passive consumers of content rather than informed citizens who can question bias, recognise manipulation, and stand against online harm. MAIL competencies prepare young Malaysians to:

• Identify bias and stereotypes in media and AI systems;
• Understand how algorithmic personalisation shapes what they see and believe;
• Recognise synthetic, manipulated, or deepfake media;
• Reflect on the ethical, legal, and social impacts of digital and AI technologies; and
• Analyse and evaluate the credibility, intent, and consequences of digital media content.

Looking ahead, media and AI literacy are no longer optional, but essential competencies for meaningful participation in the digital age. Equipping students with MAIL competencies is not about prescribing what they should think; rather, it is about empowering them with the critical tools to think independently, navigate digital environments responsibly, safeguard themselves and others from harm and contribute ethically and constructively to digital media spaces. This includes cultivating the habit of asking essential questions such as: Where did this content come from? Why was it created? Who benefits from its circulation? In an era of generative AI, such critical awareness is indispensable for navigating algorithmic decisions, AI-generated media, and the complex incentives that shape digital systems.

The time has come for educators, policymakers and communities to embed MAIL deliberately and systematically across curricula, teacher preparation, and school culture so that technology advances human dignity, safety, and societal wellbeing, rather than undermining them.

-- BERNAMA

Wong Lai Cheng (wong@aseamil.org) is Digital and Media Literacy Educator, PhD Researcher based in Penang, Malaysia.