If you've spent five minutes on Facebook or TikTok lately, you’ve seen it: hyper-realistic AI images of "shrimp Jesus," weirdly symmetrical interior design photos that don't exist, or "influencers" who are actually just 3D renders.

In the industry, we call this slop.

Like "spam" before it, slop is low-effort, AI-generated content meant to clutter feeds and trick people into engaging. For us, it’s annoying. For a kid whose brain is still developing its "BS detector," it’s confusing.

This is made worse by container collapse. Back in the day, you knew something was "news" because it was in a physical newspaper. You knew something was a "movie" because it was on a big screen.

Now, everything—a text from Grandma, a YouTube video about Skibidi Toilet, a deepfaked political ad, and a scientific report—lives in the exact same 6-inch glass rectangle. The "container" has collapsed, and the visual cues for what is "real" or "authoritative" have vanished.

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We used to tell kids, "Don't believe everything you read." Then it was, "Don't believe everything you see."

Now, with ChatGPT and AI image generators like Midjourney, we’re at the point where we can’t even believe what we hear or see in high-definition video.

Deepfakes are being used for everything from harmless memes to "AI-napping" scams and non-consensual images in middle schools. Teaching media literacy isn't just about spotting a fake news headline anymore; it’s a fundamental safety skill. It’s about helping your kid realize that just because something looks like a person's face and sounds like their voice doesn't mean it’s them.

You don't need to give a lecture. You just need better media. Here are the best resources to help kids understand the "behind the scenes" of the digital world.

Google actually did a great job here. It’s a browser-based world (specifically the "Reality River" section) that gamifies the process of spotting phishing, fakes, and "slop." It’s perfect for the 7-12 age range.

This is arguably the best family movie about our relationship with tech. It’s hilarious, but it also tackles how algorithms and "big tech" can distance us from reality. Watch it together and talk about why the "PAL" AI behaves the way it does.

For your teens who are starting to get cynical about the world, this podcast is gold. Host PJ Vogt answers questions like "How do I find a movie that isn't a scam?" or "Why are there so many AI bots on Twitter?" It treats kids like adults and explains the economics of the internet, which is the real key to media literacy.

The best way to understand how media is manipulated is to manipulate it yourself. When kids use Scratch to create their own games or animations, they learn that every digital experience is a series of choices made by a creator.

Check out our guide on how Scratch teaches kids about digital creation

At this age, the focus is simple: Everything on the screen was put there by a person (or a computer) for a reason.

This is the "Ohio" and Roblox era. Kids are following influencers who feel like friends.

Teens are dealing with the heavy stuff.

When you’re looking at a post with your kid, look for these "AI Hallucinations" together. It’s a fun game that builds a serious skill.

Learn more about identifying AI-generated content

If you come at this like a school assembly, they’ll tune you out. Instead, make it about autonomy.

Kids hate being tricked. They hate being "n00bs." Frame media literacy as a way to make sure they aren't being played by billionaires and bots.

Try saying:

We can't filter out all the "slop" for our kids—the AI floodgates are open. Our job isn't to be the ultimate gatekeeper; it's to be the coach.

If your kid can walk away from a "brain rot" video on TikTok and say, "That was probably fake, and it was definitely an ad," you’ve won. You’ve given them a shield in a world where the container has collapsed.