TedTest

From the Ted Talk by Damon Brown: How to choose your news

Unscramble the Blue Letters

How do you know what's happening in your world? The amount of information just a click away may be limitless, but the time and energy we have to absorb and evaluate it is not. All the information in the world won't be very useful unless you know how to read the news. To your grandparents, parents, or even odelr siblings, this idea would have sounded strange. Only a few dcdeeas ago, news was broad-based. Your choices were limited to a couple of general interest magazines and nesewappr of record, and three or four TV netrkows where trusted newscasters dveleierd the day's news at the same rlileabe time every evening. But the problems with this system soon became apparent as mass media spread. While it was known that authoritarian countries controlled and censored information, a sieers of scandals showed that democratic governments were also mlaeidisng the public, often with media coapreoiton. Revelations of covert wars, seecrt assassinations, and ptiilaocl corruption undermined public faith in official narratives presented by mainstream sources. This bredoakwn of trsut in meida gatekeepers lead to alternative newspapers, radio shows, and cable news competing with the major outlets and covering events from various perspectives. More recently, the inrnteet has multiplied the amount of information and vinwoiptes, with sacoil media, blogs, and online video turning every citizen into a potential reporter. But if everyone is a repoertr, nobody is, and different sources may disagree, not only onionips, but on the facts themselves. So how do you get the truth, or something close? One of the best ways is to get the original news untrfelied by middlemen. Instead of articles interpreting a siteficinc study or a politician's seecph, you can often find the actual material and judge for yourself. For current events, follow reporters on social media. During major events, such as the Arab Spring or the Ukrainian protests, newscasters and bloggers have posted updates and recordings from the midst of the chaos. Though many of these later appear in articles or bsoacratds, keep in mind that these polished versions often combine the voice of the person who was there with the input of editors who weren't. At the same time, the more cihotac the story, the less you should try to flloow it in real time. In events like terrorist attacks and natural disasters, today's media attempts continuous coverage even when no reliable new information is available, sometimes linadeg to iocenrcrt ifoanoitrmn or false accusations of innocent people. It's easy to be anxious in such events, but try checking for the latest information at several pnoits in the day, rather than every few minutes, allowing time for complete details to emerge and false reports to be refuted. While good journalism aims for objectivity, media bias is often unavoidable. When you can't get the direct story, read coverage in multiple oteltus which employ different reporters and interview different experts. Tuning in to various sources and nnitog the differences lets you put the pieces together for a more cemltpoe picture. It's also crucial to separate fact from onipoin. Words like think, likely, or probably mean that the outlet is being careful or, worse, taking a guess. And watch out for rpotres that rely on aoynumons sources. These could be people who have little connection to the story, or have an interest in influencing coverage, their anonymity making them unaccountable for the information they provide. Finally, and most importantly, try to verify news before spreading it. While social media has enabled the truth to raceh us faster, it's also allowed rurmos to spread before they can be verified and falsehoods to survive long after they've been refuted. So, before you share that unbelievable or ouauogerts news item, do a web search to find any additional information or context you might have meissd and what others are saying about it. Today, we are more free than ever from the old media gatekeepers who used to control the flow of information. But with freedom comes responsibility: the responsibility to curate our own exeicprene and ensure that this flow does not become a flood, lnaiveg us less inmofred than before we took the plunge.

Open Cloze

How do you know what's happening in your world? The amount of information just a click away may be limitless, but the time and energy we have to absorb and evaluate it is not. All the information in the world won't be very useful unless you know how to read the news. To your grandparents, parents, or even _____ siblings, this idea would have sounded strange. Only a few _______ ago, news was broad-based. Your choices were limited to a couple of general interest magazines and _________ of record, and three or four TV ________ where trusted newscasters _________ the day's news at the same ________ time every evening. But the problems with this system soon became apparent as mass media spread. While it was known that authoritarian countries controlled and censored information, a ______ of scandals showed that democratic governments were also __________ the public, often with media ___________. Revelations of covert wars, ______ assassinations, and _________ corruption undermined public faith in official narratives presented by mainstream sources. This _________ of _____ in _____ gatekeepers lead to alternative newspapers, radio shows, and cable news competing with the major outlets and covering events from various perspectives. More recently, the ________ has multiplied the amount of information and __________, with ______ media, blogs, and online video turning every citizen into a potential reporter. But if everyone is a ________, nobody is, and different sources may disagree, not only ________, but on the facts themselves. So how do you get the truth, or something close? One of the best ways is to get the original news __________ by middlemen. Instead of articles interpreting a __________ study or a politician's ______, you can often find the actual material and judge for yourself. For current events, follow reporters on social media. During major events, such as the Arab Spring or the Ukrainian protests, newscasters and bloggers have posted updates and recordings from the midst of the chaos. Though many of these later appear in articles or __________, keep in mind that these polished versions often combine the voice of the person who was there with the input of editors who weren't. At the same time, the more _______ the story, the less you should try to ______ it in real time. In events like terrorist attacks and natural disasters, today's media attempts continuous coverage even when no reliable new information is available, sometimes _______ to _________ ___________ or false accusations of innocent people. It's easy to be anxious in such events, but try checking for the latest information at several ______ in the day, rather than every few minutes, allowing time for complete details to emerge and false reports to be refuted. While good journalism aims for objectivity, media bias is often unavoidable. When you can't get the direct story, read coverage in multiple _______ which employ different reporters and interview different experts. Tuning in to various sources and ______ the differences lets you put the pieces together for a more ________ picture. It's also crucial to separate fact from _______. Words like think, likely, or probably mean that the outlet is being careful or, worse, taking a guess. And watch out for _______ that rely on _________ sources. These could be people who have little connection to the story, or have an interest in influencing coverage, their anonymity making them unaccountable for the information they provide. Finally, and most importantly, try to verify news before spreading it. While social media has enabled the truth to _____ us faster, it's also allowed ______ to spread before they can be verified and falsehoods to survive long after they've been refuted. So, before you share that unbelievable or __________ news item, do a web search to find any additional information or context you might have ______ and what others are saying about it. Today, we are more free than ever from the old media gatekeepers who used to control the flow of information. But with freedom comes responsibility: the responsibility to curate our own __________ and ensure that this flow does not become a flood, _______ us less ________ than before we took the plunge.

Solution

secret
unfiltered
reach
opinion
anonymous
missed
reporter
outlets
delivered
newspaper
decades
networks
complete
political
chaotic
rumors
broadcasts
experience
older
points
noting
viewpoints
information
series
breakdown
internet
social
scientific
follow
leaving
reports
informed
speech
outrageous
cooperation
reliable
leading
opinions
trust
misleading
media
incorrect

Original Text

How do you know what's happening in your world? The amount of information just a click away may be limitless, but the time and energy we have to absorb and evaluate it is not. All the information in the world won't be very useful unless you know how to read the news. To your grandparents, parents, or even older siblings, this idea would have sounded strange. Only a few decades ago, news was broad-based. Your choices were limited to a couple of general interest magazines and newspaper of record, and three or four TV networks where trusted newscasters delivered the day's news at the same reliable time every evening. But the problems with this system soon became apparent as mass media spread. While it was known that authoritarian countries controlled and censored information, a series of scandals showed that democratic governments were also misleading the public, often with media cooperation. Revelations of covert wars, secret assassinations, and political corruption undermined public faith in official narratives presented by mainstream sources. This breakdown of trust in media gatekeepers lead to alternative newspapers, radio shows, and cable news competing with the major outlets and covering events from various perspectives. More recently, the Internet has multiplied the amount of information and viewpoints, with social media, blogs, and online video turning every citizen into a potential reporter. But if everyone is a reporter, nobody is, and different sources may disagree, not only opinions, but on the facts themselves. So how do you get the truth, or something close? One of the best ways is to get the original news unfiltered by middlemen. Instead of articles interpreting a scientific study or a politician's speech, you can often find the actual material and judge for yourself. For current events, follow reporters on social media. During major events, such as the Arab Spring or the Ukrainian protests, newscasters and bloggers have posted updates and recordings from the midst of the chaos. Though many of these later appear in articles or broadcasts, keep in mind that these polished versions often combine the voice of the person who was there with the input of editors who weren't. At the same time, the more chaotic the story, the less you should try to follow it in real time. In events like terrorist attacks and natural disasters, today's media attempts continuous coverage even when no reliable new information is available, sometimes leading to incorrect information or false accusations of innocent people. It's easy to be anxious in such events, but try checking for the latest information at several points in the day, rather than every few minutes, allowing time for complete details to emerge and false reports to be refuted. While good journalism aims for objectivity, media bias is often unavoidable. When you can't get the direct story, read coverage in multiple outlets which employ different reporters and interview different experts. Tuning in to various sources and noting the differences lets you put the pieces together for a more complete picture. It's also crucial to separate fact from opinion. Words like think, likely, or probably mean that the outlet is being careful or, worse, taking a guess. And watch out for reports that rely on anonymous sources. These could be people who have little connection to the story, or have an interest in influencing coverage, their anonymity making them unaccountable for the information they provide. Finally, and most importantly, try to verify news before spreading it. While social media has enabled the truth to reach us faster, it's also allowed rumors to spread before they can be verified and falsehoods to survive long after they've been refuted. So, before you share that unbelievable or outrageous news item, do a web search to find any additional information or context you might have missed and what others are saying about it. Today, we are more free than ever from the old media gatekeepers who used to control the flow of information. But with freedom comes responsibility: the responsibility to curate our own experience and ensure that this flow does not become a flood, leaving us less informed than before we took the plunge.

Frequently Occurring Word Combinations

ngrams of length 2

collocation	frequency
media gatekeepers	2
social media	2

Important Words

absorb
accusations
actual
additional
aims
allowed
allowing
alternative
amount
anonymity
anonymous
anxious
apparent
arab
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assassinations
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citizen
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democratic
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direct
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emerge
employ
enabled
energy
ensure
evaluate
evening
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experience
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fact
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faith
false
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faster
finally
find
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follow
free
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general
good
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grandparents
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incorrect
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informed
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input
interest
internet
interpreting
interview
item
journalism
judge
latest
lead
leading
leaving
lets
limited
limitless
long
magazines
mainstream
major
making
mass
material
media
middlemen
midst
mind
minutes
misleading
missed
multiple
multiplied
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natural
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news
newscasters
newspaper
newspapers
noting
objectivity
official
older
online
opinion
opinions
original
outlet
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outrageous
parents
people
person
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picture
pieces
plunge
points
polished
political
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provide
public
put
radio
reach
read
real
record
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refuted
reliable
rely
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scientific
search
secret
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spread
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trust
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tv
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unaccountable
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ways
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world
worse