IELTS Speaking Part 1, 2, and 3 - Talking about Internet, Media and Celebrity Culture

IELTS Speaking Part 1 - Talking about Familiar Topics

Internet

How often do you go online?
Too often, I guess. I can barely stop using the internet. I buy food online, I read news online, I often use online transportation, bank transfer is done through mobile banking, I often browse from my desktop computer to do my job, I use social media a lot, I even read an article on how to deal with internet addiction on the internet. Internet has become an important part of our life today. Working people use the internet to stay connected to their superiors or clients. Internet is also used for social networking. Living without internet can make us feel like being cut off from the outside world, which is an apparent sign of a severe addiction. I'm addicted to internet, but at least I use it to be more productive.

How do you get online?
I'm a writer, and I spend hours working in front of my laptop or computer. I often browse the internet, looking for helpful information to finish my book. My job requires me to stay connected to the internet. I often do a little research while finishing a manuscript, communication with editors is done through email. Smartphone is mostly used for entertainment and social purpose, but I don't use it a lot when I'm at work.

What do you use the internet for?
As I said, I use it mostly for work. After work, internet is used mainly for social networking. It also provides information and entertainment. We listen to music online, movie streaming, games.

Do you have your own computer?
Yes I do. I'm a writer, I do all my work on my laptop. Writing, proofreading, editing, revising, promotion, you name it. My laptop was damaged recently, there was something wrong with the motherboard. I was having a panic attack. I mean, all of my work is in there. If the laptop is damaged beyond repair and the data is somehow missing and can't be restored, I'll be in a lot of trouble. I already signed some publishing contracts and I may have lost all the work, could it be worse?

What's your favorite website?
My favorite website is definitely the one that provides useful information. There's a website called tirto.id, and this is where I get my news and information. Unlike other cliché online news portals, tirto.id is very reliable and thorough. They write articles not only for commercial purpose, but mainly for information and knowledge sharing, a real journalism. For entertainment, I like website like 9gag, or youtube.

Do you think children should be allowed to use the internet?
If supervised, yes. Internet provides a lot of educational content and entertainment for different age group, including children. But, using the internet without proper guidance from the parents is definitely not advisable. There are things that children shouldn't see on the internet, like violence, pornography, hate speech, you name it. Some parents might use parental control kind of software on their home computer, but we all know that many of the younger generations are tech savvy, sometimes they can be far ahead of us when it comes to technology. Parents can block harmful websites all they want, but somehow, children can always bump into something that they are not supposed to see. Teenagers will always find a way to get access to harmful contents on the internet, despite all the precautions that their parents have taken.



IELTS Speaking Part 2 - Self-Presentation

Describing your favorite radio program

Describe a radio program that you find interesting

You should say:

What it is about

Which radio station broadcasts it

How often you listen to it

Why do you like it

Talking about radio program makes me feel a little bit nostalgic. I don't actually listen to radio these days, but I was a huge fan of a radio program called SBI suka-suka. It sort of means 'whatever you like' in English. The program was broadcasted by 123.4 SBI FM,  a local radio  in my town.

It was called suka-suka because we could request Indonesian songs, other asian songs like japanese rock, as well as western songs. We could request a song and say hi to our friends and family by sending text message. To do so, we had to join a discussion moderated by the radio broadcaster. The broadcaster always had an interesting topic to talk about, mostly things that attract people's attention like the general election, special event or celebrations, and recent local, national or even international news. It's not always a serious topic though, sometimes we also talked about entertainment like the release of a new album, the new formation of certain band, and other topics that would encourage the audience to engage in the discussion.

Once in a while, the radio would give flash news if the broadcaster felt like giving some important information. For example, they always give report about congestion in the main roads. I usually listened to the flash news in a car, trying to avoid congestion during the rush hour. Sometimes the radio announced important news from local government or the local police, making sure that the audience would always be up-to-date with the most recent news.

When I was a high school student, I listened to this radio program almost every night. I listen to the songs being played while doing my homework or just chilling out. I always engaged in the discussion and was even considered as one of the most loyal audience. I met several time with the broadcaster, simply known as Jo Swara. The radio often held events and invited the audience to come. It was really nice meeting up with other big fans of the radio program.

I liked listening to this program because it not only entertained me but also provided me with a lot of information. The program also gave me the chance to really engage with the local community and sometimes even offer a solution for the problems that the town had to deal with, like congestion, for example. The program is like a forum where everyone can express their thoughts and request whatever song they like.



Part 3 - Discussion

Media and Information

Do you believe everything you read on the newspaper?
I wouldn't say everything. There are media that are independent and reliable. I usually trust them. Regardless, I always do a little research on the internet, here and there. If there are other news from several reliable media, and the news has different tone, then it's obvious that there's something not quite right, right? It happens a lot during general election, just to give you a little perspective. I'm not saying that media are telling lies or anything. They don't lie, but sometimes they just don't tell you the whole truth. The information is either partial or too much. Once our brain is flooded with too much information, it becomes difficult to tell which information is valid. News can be written to satisfy one's interest, image and video can be edited, rumors are often misleading, there are certainly bias and prejudice at times. We gotta think critically these days, that's for sure.

How do most people get their news in your country?
More and more people are getting their news on television. We have news in the morning, afternoon, and evening. I often see people just listen attentively to news at home, or even in public places. In several major cities, roads are very congested that people end up listening to news from radio while driving. Newspaper used to be prominent but I rarely see people read newspaper recently. Television is one of the reasons why we see a significant decrease in the number of newspaper readers. Internet and smartphone make it even worse because people tend to read news on their gadget these days. There are some people who often go to coffee shops where newspaper are provided for free, but most of them are from the age group of 40 or older.

How do you think people will get their news in the future?
In the future, there will be more and more people reading news online. Smartphones are ubiquitous and internet has made it possible for us to get the latest news very fast. It is faster than printed newspaper. This is probably one of many reasons why newspaper readership is declining. Smartphones are easy to carry and most online news can be read for free. Now, there are a few people reading printed newspaper, older people mostly. Printed newspaper is more convenient to read, especially when you don't like staring at your phone screen all day. There are issues with online news as well. Because it has to be posted fast, many of the online news do not go through rigorous editorial process. The reliability of some online sources is often questioned. Many of the news are biased, many more of them are hoaxes, so...

How has TV changed our life?
TV has brought about some positive and negative changes. Well, journalism is an important part of democracy. TV is the main source of information for many people. It also entertains the viewers. But, it is undeniable that TV has also brought about negative effects. People prefer watching TV, they no longer watch traditional performed arts and this is bad for many local culture. It's true that some local TV gives local artists to show their talents on a special program, but there are not many TV stations doing this. Most TV stations will focus on the commercial aspect instead. With TV, everything becomes more commercialized. It s ironic how the viewers are often seen only as a prospective consumer. Rating is everything for TV program and sometimes, they simply forget that there are other things that are more important than rating and commercials.

Do you think TV influences the way we think?
Yes, definitely. I see that people in my country are more westernized these days. They watch a lot of western movies and eventually adopt the western culture. People become more aware of the global issues, knowing that that what happened to other countries will definitely affect our country. This never happened until very recently. TV also make the people more open to different culture. Western culture used to be considered as strange in my country. Teenagers are living far from their parents, women are demanding more independence, men and women live together without marital status. These things are no longer frowned up these days, but they were definitely seen as strange some time ago.

Are all people on TV famous?
Not all of them. Some people try to be famous but fail. I don't know, may be there's some sort of natural selection or whatever, so only some people really become famous. May be they don't get enough exposure, may be they have nothing to offer, no talent or creativity. May be the people simply don't like them. But we have to note that people become famous for various reasons. Some of them are famous because of their life achievement, others are famous because of their scandals and sensation. Many celebrities are famous not because they win awards or become the main actor of a famous movie, but because they are getting a divorce. Many politicians that we never know before suddenly appear on television and become famous after getting caught by the commission for corruption eradication, which is a shame.

Do you think that famous people have some kind of responsibility to be a good role model?
Of course. These people are exposed by the media for the public to see, and people normally have a high expectation of a public figure. Teenagers are trying to emulate their idols. If celebrities are famous because of their glamorous life, scandals, and sensation, it will definitely be a bad example for many young generations. Public figures often get a lot of attention, and they have to use their fame to spread positive message to the people. If they don't feel like spreading positive message or being exemplary figure, at least they have to try not to be a bad example.