Purpose: Our main task is to find out how the Swedish government deals with media and information literacy (MIL) among the general public, and which key actors it identifies in this process. More specifically we want to know whether public libraries are considered to be such key actors – which is the common view within library and information science (LIS).

Method: This is a document study, applying Carol LeeBacchi's WPR approach, on a selection of Swedish government assignments published 2018–2022.

Findings: From earlier looking at digitalization in positive connotations, today the Swedish government talks more alarmistically about the dangers of digitalization and attributes MIL as a safeguard and as a means in the protection of democracy, leading to the presence of MIL in practically all of the governmental offices. Major joint investments are emphasized to achieve high MIL. But due to the shifting and situation-dependent understanding of the MIL concept, the results of the investments run the risk of being ineffective. In 2019 the government therefore assigned The Swedish Media Council (Statens medieråd) to coordinate the promotion of MIL. As for the apparent urgency of MIL issues in our research material, LIS and the public libraries extensive MIL expertise should be taken into account. How the Swedish Media Council perceives the library field's competence within MIL can have a major impact on public libraries' future promotion of MIL.

The result raises the question of how the library field can mediate its solid knowledge of MIL to the outside world.