Mass Media

MASSMEDIA
1. Say which media you would choose if you had to rely on only one. Explain why.
2. Newspapers that only write about celebrities, sex and crime should be banned. Tell your opinion.
3. Compare the main types of newspapers and magazines. Say which of them you prefer and why.
4. List commercial and non-commercial TV channels in Slovakia, compare them.
5. Discuss the negative effect of TV on family life, health and children. Explain your attitude to
TV commercials.
S. Discuss the ways in which the Internet can be used in the following areas of human life. Say what
possible problems might be connected with it.
 Education
 Communication
 Entertainment
 Work
1. We can't imagine our life without newspapers, radio, television and the internet. They are a
source of information, easily available, complex and cheap. Through newspapers, radio and TV we
learn about the world around us, important inventions, new technologies, events and so on. We learn
about current events and world affairs and we get the latest information via many channels which
broadcast breaking news.
Radio
Some people don´t like buying newspapers, reading it or they just spend a lot of time by doing
something, e.g. driving a car or gardening. Their source of information, education or entertainment is
radio, they can listen to it while doing something. There are a lot of radio programmes, from news or
weather forecast read by a presenter to educational programmes, quiz shows, phone-in programmes
(when people telephone in to give their opinion or get advice), political discussions to
documentaries. Radio is very popular among older and younger, too. Moreover, you can listen to a
good piece of music from the latest hits to serious music. There are also programmes for children like
radio played fairy tales or radio plays/radio series for adults which are very popular.
Television
TV is definitely the most popular source of information and many of people spend a lot of
time by watching TV programmes. Nowadays you have a wide variety of TV channels, which
broadcast especially chosen topics, like BBC, CNN, Viasat History and other documentary channels
as well as musical channels like MTV or VIVA. The most popular in Slovakia are Slovak channels
Radio and Television Slovakia – RTVS 1,2, Markiza or JOJ but people like to watch also Czech
channels like Nova or sports channels. Programmes on TV are almost the same as on radio:
headlines, weather forecasts, and documentaries, educational and political programmes. People
can choose from the wide variety of films, soap operas, sitcoms or series of films, children's
programmes, and programmes about cooking, fishing, gardening, reality shows and others. But there
are also programmes like soap operas, sitcoms (amusing stories about the same group of people) and,
of course, lots of films and cartoons. There is a wide selection of TV channels and at any time of the
day you can certainly find a programme you will like watching. The media play an important role in
society and some experts say they are too powerful and too influential today. Commercials on TV
very often interrupt the broadcasting or film what can be very unpleasant while watching it.
TV can be divided into:
a) Non-commercial TV (owned by state, RTVS 1, RTVS 2). They are financed from a state budget.
TV stations in Slovakia broadcast mostly in the Slovak language, there are some programmes
dedicated to ethnic minorities (always subtitled). Foreign language (with the exception of Czech)
movies and shows are dubbed (rarely subtitled).
b) Commercial TV (owned by private companies). There are lots of commercial channels in SVK,
e.g. Markiza, JOJ, TA3. They are financed mainly with money obtained from broadcasting
commercials/advertisements. In comparison with the state channels they broadcast programmes of
a lower quality.
TV advantages TV disadvantages
- has the power to educate - a lot of violence,
- it's a window to the world - is blamed for violent behaviour
- we can learn a lot from watching it - effect on family life
- cheap form of entertainment - people spend hours in front of TV
- gives pleasure to people, especially those and become couch potatoes or telly addicts
who are alone - people watch TV instead of talking to each other
- brings the world close to us - damage your eyesight
- exciting, powerful
Newspapers
There are 2 types of newspapers:
a) Serious papers or quality papers or broadsheets (The Times, The Guardian) trying to bring
news that is objective and serious; (Slovakia – Sme, Pravda)
b) Tabloids or yellow press or gutter press (The Sun, The Daily Mirror), which contain gossip or
affairs of famous people, crime news and reports from rich people and politicians. They are usually
smaller in size. (Slovakia – Nový čas, Plus 7 dní)
We can find different articles in newspapers: on economics, politics or social life, sports,
editorials (personal opinion of editors), sport, features (special reports about an interesting subject,
place or person). Newspapers are published every day, some are even published at weekends. Some
newspapers also have literary, cultural or health supplements.
Magazines and journals

Magazines are published weekly or monthly and bring national or international news, various
articles and stories. The pictures attract the readers, they contain various advice about health,
cosmetics, diets, sport activities, etc. Advertisements are very important, too. Companies can advert
their products and pay a lot of money to the publishers (the same is with radio and TV).
Magazines have their target groups: people with special hobbies - gardening, housing,
cooking, knitting, animals, health, music, crosswords. There are magazines especially for men and
women, children and teenagers. Journals are serious magazines for specific groups of professionals
and experts, e.g. scientists, historians, philosophers or doctors.
Internet
Do you want top news or latest news? Use the internet. This is the widest source of
information and by surfing on it, you can find a lot of interesting things. You can gain information,
educate yourself, do shopping online, chat with friends, watch TV programmes and listen to the
music or radio channels as well.
Do you need to find any information, make a presentation or translate the article? Use some
internet networks or Google searching, web pages with your topic – undoubtedly it will help you.

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