For over 4 decades, educational researchers have been studying best practices for introducing writing into the curriculum. One successful strategy, a low-stakes writing exercise called “writing to learn” (WTL), has been implemented across several disciplines within higher education. In light of a growing interest in the use of technology and social media as an influential tool in the educational environment, we ask this question: “Does the source material used to prepare for WTL activities impact student learning and knowledge retention?” To address this question, the authors studied student performance on WTL exercises (in microbiology and introductory biology) that were based on material presented via (a) media (news videos, Podcasts, or YouTube) or (b) written articles and transcripts.