Entity | Leslie Spence

Leslie Spence was an English teacher and Ph.D. holder who attended the University of Wisconsin. She co-founded the International Council for Media Literacy, formerly known as the National Telemedia Council and the American Council for Better Broadcasts, alongside colleague Jessie McCanse. The council was born out of work on an American Association of University Women committee which was tasked with evaluating and recommending radio programs in the Madison, Wisconsin area. As part of the council, Spence created a publication that today is published as "JML, The Journal of Media Literacy". She created an annual initiative called the "Look-Listen" project that enabled audiences to report their own evaluations of radio and television programs. Spence also featured prominently in several programs broadcast by station WHA in Madison as part of the series "Broadcast on Broadcasts" throughout the late 1940s.