Media Detective

Website

Program Description

Media Detective is an activity-driven media literacy program designed to prevent alcohol and tobacco use among third through fifth graders. The main program consists of ten 45-minute interactive sessions, where students analyze advertisements and media messages through a structured curriculum grounded in social cognition, substance use prevention, and media literacy research. Other related products include Media Detective Family Night, a one-time interactive workshop for families, and Media Detective Family, a web-based program that has families collaboratively uncover hidden messages in alcohol and tobacco advertising.

Prevention Category

Universal - Direct

Practice Level

Individual

Relationship

Community or Society

Strategies

Education

Practice Components

Level

Components

Individual

Education

Self-Efficacy or Self-Esteem Enhancement

Skills Training

Relationship

None

Community/Society

Community-Based Processes

Risk and Protective Factors

Risk Factors

Protective Factors

Individual Risk Factors

Early initiation of substance use

Favorable attitudes towards substance abuse

Individual Protective Factors

High self-esteem

Personal engagement in two or more of the following: school, peers, athletics, employment, religion/spirituality, culture

Positive temperament

Family Risk Factors

None

Family Protective Factors

Communication and contact between caregivers and youth

Supportive relationships with family

School, Peer, and Community Risk Factors

Norms favorable towards substance use

Substance use among peers

School, Peer, and Community Protective Factors

Community norms, beliefs, and standards against substance use

Opportunities for prosocial engagement in the school and community

Positive social norms

Population Age

Age 6-12

Age 13-17

Age 18-20

Populations of Focus

General Population

Settings

Home

School (K-12)

Parental/Caregiver Involvement

Recommended or optional

Substance Use Prevention Focus

Alcohol

Cannabis

Cocaine

Prescription Drugs

Tobacco

Recommended Staffing

Teachers or educators

Empirical Evidence of Impact

Substance	Substance-Related Behavior	Population Age	Evidence Strength and Study Populations of Focus
Alcohol	Changes in Knowledge, Attitudes, or Beliefs	Elementary School	Moderate (General Population)¹
Alcohol	Changes in Knowledge, Attitudes, or Beliefs	Middle School	Promising (White)²
Substance Use (General)	Changes in Knowledge, Attitudes, or Beliefs	Elementary School	Moderate (General Population)^1,3
Substance Use (General)	Reduced Use or Delayed Initiation	Elementary School	Moderate (General Population)³
Substance Use (General)	Reduced Use or Delayed Initiation	Middle School	Promising (White)²
References ¹Kupersmidt, J. B., Scull, T. M., & Austin, E. W. (2010). Media literacy education for elementary school substance use prevention: Study of Media Detective. Pediatrics, 126(3), 525-531. https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2010-0068 ²Draper, M., Appregilio, S., Kramer, A., Ketcherside, M., Campbell, S., Stewart, B., Rhodes, D., & Cox, C. (2015). Educational Intervention/Case Study: Implementing an Elementary-Level, Classroom-Based Media Literacy Education Program for Academically At-Risk Middle-School Students in the Non-Classroom Setting. Journal of Alcohol and Drug Education, 59(2), 12–24. https://www.jstor.org/stable/48506437 ³Scull TM, Kupersmidt JB, Weatherholt TN. The effectiveness of online, family-based media literacy education for substance abuse prevention in elementary school children: Study of the Media Detective Family program. Journal of Community Psychology, 45(6):796-809. https://doi.org/10.1002/jcop.21893

Training and Technical Assistance

The developers highly recommend in-person or online training for teachers planning to implement the program. Technical assistance and evaluation services are also available, provided by Innovation Research and Training.

Adaptations

Elementary school programs that are part of these curricula have been used in both public and private schools, and curricula are available in both English and Spanish. Updated editions of curricula incorporate lessons on modern methods of marketing related to social media and vaping/e-cigarette products. Online and family-focused materials are also available.

Program Costs

Please visit the developer’s website listed above for updated information about implementation costs.

What California Providers Are Saying

We have not yet spoken to any California providers who have experience implementing Media Detective. If you have implemented it, we would love to hear from you. Please contact us.

Labels

Universal,

Individual,
Relationship,
Community/Society, community-society, community society,

Information dissemination,
Education,

Education,
Self-efficacy/self-esteem enhancement,
Skills Training,

Community-based Processes, community based processes, community/based processes,

Early initiation of substance use,
Favorable attitudes towards substance abuse,

High self-esteem,
Personal engagement in two or more of the following: school, peers, athletics, employment, religion/spirituality, culture,
Positive temperament,

Communication and contact between caregivers and youth,
Supportive relationships with family,

Norms favorable towards substance use,
Substance use among peers,

Community norms, beliefs, and standards against substance use,
Opportunities for prosocial engagement in the school and community,
Positive social norms,

Age 6-12, Ages 6-12,
Age 13-17, Ages 13-17,
Age 18-20, Ages 18-20,

General Population, Hispanic,

Recommended/optional,

Alcohol,
Cannabis,
Cocaine,
Prescription Drugs,
Tobacco,

Home,
School (K-12), k-12,

Teachers/Educators, teachers educators, teachers-educators,