Research shows that both teens and adults can be significantly affected by emotionally charged video content, particularly around conflict, social issues, or environmental crises. The rise of AI technology has made this landscape even more complex—videos can now be altered or entirely AI-generated, creating convincing but false narratives. Understanding how to evaluate content has become an essential skill for digital well-being, especially when content relates to personal experiences or identity.

The most effective approach builds on teens’ natural curiosity and skepticism. Rather than simply warning about misinformation and other manipulative content, help teens develop their own evaluation skills through active exploration and discussion. Start by acknowledging that distinguishing accurate information from misleading content can be challenging for everyone, not just teens.

Key Strategies:

Teens often already question what they see online. Build on this tendency by exploring their thinking: “What makes you trust certain creators more than others? How can you tell when something might not be showing the full story?” Share your own experiences of discovering misleading content and how you learned to verify information.

Help teens develop practical verification strategies that feel natural rather than burdensome. When they share interesting content with you, show interest while modeling critical thinking: “That’s fascinating—let’s see what other sources say about this.” Discuss how to check claims across multiple reliable sources and recognize signs of AI-generated or manipulated content.

Emotional reactions to content can be valuable indicators but shouldn’t be the only guide. Help teens understand why certain videos might trigger strong feelings: “Why do you think this content affected you so much? What aspects of it feel most important?” This can lead to deeper discussions about how content creators use emotional triggers to engage viewers.

Many schools now teach media literacy—how to analyze, evaluate, and think critically about the information we get from different media sources, from social media posts to news articles to TV shows. Build on these lessons by asking about what they’re learning: “What strategies have you discussed in school for evaluating online information? How do you use those when watching videos?” This reinforces classroom learning while showing you value their growing expertise.

While developing these skills, explore credible resources together:

• The American Psychological Association has modules on the psychology behind misinformation and shares research-based strategies for media evaluation.
• Common Sense Media offers practical guides for evaluating digital content.
• School librarians and media specialists can often recommend additional resources.
  

The goal isn’t to make teens cynical but to help them become thoughtful consumers of information. These skills develop gradually through practice and discussion. It’s okay to admit uncertainty and learn verification strategies together—this models the lifelong learning needed to navigate our evolving digital landscape.