Media education practices in Portugal: a panoramic view

Abstract

Portugal has witnessed an increased dynamism in the field of media education in recent years, as a result of incentives from international bodies such as UNESCO, and more especially European ones, not only through the Recommendation of the European Council in 2009 and the European Parliament, but also as a result of a strong impetus from both civil society and academia. Several relevant initiatives, launched by public, private and civil bodies including the academic world (Pinto, Pereira, Pereira & Ferreira, 2011; Ponte & Jorge, 2010), have contributed to remarkable progress, especially if we bear in mind the historic delay caused by the dictatorship that lasted until 1974, which was characterized by media censorship as well as low levels of schooling.