Leading in the (Mis)Information Age: Digital Media Literacy as Essential Leadership Learning

ABSTRACT Higher education leadership programs increasingly seek to prepare students to navigate complex social, political, and technological environments. Yet the rapid spread of misinformation and disinformation in digital media ecosystems remains insufficiently addressed in leadership curricula. Digital media literacy should be treated as a core competency of college student leadership learning. In a digitally mediated public sphere, emerging leaders must evaluate information critically while also communicating responsibly, ethically, and effectively across networked platforms.