PET (Cambridge English B1: Preliminary) Reading Part 3 Multiple

The End of TV?

Tom Collins offers his opinion

I keep reading articles that argue the TV is dead. According to this view, people are spending far more time using the Internet for their entertainment and for information. As a result, they argue the TV is becoming less and less important in our lives. The time we spend watching videos online is certainly increasing but I don't think this is a reason to believe we should be saying goodbye to the television.

The TV is still a very popular way a lot of us get our entertainment at home. It offers us the chance to see top musical artists, great films and documentaries and sometimes, thanks to important live events, it has the power to bring the whole country and all ages together in a way the Internet never could. How often do thousands or even millions of friends or families sit down at the same time to watch something together online?

Some people argue that the TV offers a poor quality of programmes on the many channels we now have. It is certainly true that many of the channels do nothing more than repeat old shows or offer cheap, low quality programmes. However, I would argue that a lot of content on the Internet isn't particularly great. At least TV shows have professional people checking the quality of shows, which a lot of content on the web doesn't.

I agree that it is easy to keep up-to-date with the latest news on the Internet, even though much of it is not true or certainly can't be trusted. I enjoy sitting down to the news on TV in the evening, knowing that I am more likely to believe the information than the things I read online. Anybody can post information on the Internet and a lot of it is opinion rather than fact.

1. The author thinks that

• TV is no longer important.

• people are spending more time watching videos on the Internet.

• people spend too much time on the Internet.

•  people don't have time to watch TV.

The End of TV?

Tom Collins offers his opinion

I keep reading articles that argue the TV is dead. According to this view, people are spending far more time using the Internet for their entertainment and for information. As a result, they argue the TV is becoming less and less important in our lives. The time we spend watching videos online is certainly increasing but I don't think this is a reason to believe we should be saying goodbye to the television.

The TV is still a very popular way a lot of us get our entertainment at home. It offers us the chance to see top musical artists, great films and documentaries and sometimes, thanks to important live events, it has the power to bring the whole country and all ages together in a way the Internet never could. How often do thousands or even millions of friends or families sit down at the same time to watch something together online?

Some people argue that the TV offers a poor quality of programmes on the many channels we now have. It is certainly true that many of the channels do nothing more than repeat old shows or offer cheap, low quality programmes. However, I would argue that a lot of content on the Internet isn't particularly great. At least TV shows have professional people checking the quality of shows, which a lot of content on the web doesn't.

I agree that it is easy to keep up-to-date with the latest news on the Internet, even though much of it is not true or certainly can't be trusted. I enjoy sitting down to the news on TV in the evening, knowing that I am more likely to believe the information than the things I read online. Anybody can post information on the Internet and a lot of it is opinion rather than fact.

2. What does the author say about TV?

• It's the only way to see important live events.

•  It is more popular than the Internet.

•  It can attract huge audiences for live events.

•  It is more popular with certain age groups.

The End of TV?

Tom Collins offers his opinion

I keep reading articles that argue the TV is dead. According to this view, people are spending far more time using the Internet for their entertainment and for information. As a result, they argue the TV is becoming less and less important in our lives. The time we spend watching videos online is certainly increasing but I don't think this is a reason to believe we should be saying goodbye to the television.

The TV is still a very popular way a lot of us get our entertainment at home. It offers us the chance to see top musical artists, great films and documentaries and sometimes, thanks to important live events, it has the power to bring the whole country and all ages together in a way the Internet never could. How often do thousands or even millions of friends or families sit down at the same time to watch something together online?

Some people argue that the TV offers a poor quality of programmes on the many channels we now have. It is certainly true that many of the channels do nothing more than repeat old shows or offer cheap, low quality programmes. However, I would argue that a lot of content on the Internet isn't particularly great. At least TV shows have professional people checking the quality of shows, which a lot of content on the web doesn't.

I agree that it is easy to keep up-to-date with the latest news on the Internet, even though much of it is not true or certainly can't be trusted. I enjoy sitting down to the news on TV in the evening, knowing that I am more likely to believe the information than the things I read online. Anybody can post information on the Internet and a lot of it is opinion rather than fact.

3. The author thinks that

• nothing on the Internet is checked.

• it is cheaper to make programmes for the Internet.

• some programmes are shown again and again on TV.

• there are too many channels on TV.

The End of TV?

Tom Collins offers his opinion

I keep reading articles that argue the TV is dead. According to this view, people are spending far more time using the Internet for their entertainment and for information. As a result, they argue the TV is becoming less and less important in our lives. The time we spend watching videos online is certainly increasing but I don't think this is a reason to believe we should be saying goodbye to the television.

The TV is still a very popular way a lot of us get our entertainment at home. It offers us the chance to see top musical artists, great films and documentaries and sometimes, thanks to important live events, it has the power to bring the whole country and all ages together in a way the Internet never could. How often do thousands or even millions of friends or families sit down at the same time to watch something together online?

Some people argue that the TV offers a poor quality of programmes on the many channels we now have. It is certainly true that many of the channels do nothing more than repeat old shows or offer cheap, low quality programmes. However, I would argue that a lot of content on the Internet isn't particularly great. At least TV shows have professional people checking the quality of shows, which a lot of content on the web doesn't.

I agree that it is easy to keep up-to-date with the latest news on the Internet, even though much of it is not true or certainly can't be trusted. I enjoy sitting down to the news on TV in the evening, knowing that I am more likely to believe the information than the things I read online. Anybody can post information on the Internet and a lot of it is opinion rather than fact.

4. The author says that compared to the Internet,

• TV news is more reliable.

• people don't give their opinion on TV.

• TV news is not up to date.

• TV news can always be trusted.

The End of TV?

Tom Collins offers his opinion

I keep reading articles that argue the TV is dead. According to this view, people are spending far more time using the Internet for their entertainment and for information. As a result, they argue the TV is becoming less and less important in our lives. The time we spend watching videos online is certainly increasing but I don't think this is a reason to believe we should be saying goodbye to the television.

The TV is still a very popular way a lot of us get our entertainment at home. It offers us the chance to see top musical artists, great films and documentaries and sometimes, thanks to important live events, it has the power to bring the whole country and all ages together in a way the Internet never could. How often do thousands or even millions of friends or families sit down at the same time to watch something together online?

Some people argue that the TV offers a poor quality of programmes on the many channels we now have. It is certainly true that many of the channels do nothing more than repeat old shows or offer cheap, low quality programmes. However, I would argue that a lot of content on the Internet isn't particularly great. At least TV shows have professional people checking the quality of shows, which a lot of content on the web doesn't.

I agree that it is easy to keep up-to-date with the latest news on the Internet, even though much of it is not true or certainly can't be trusted. I enjoy sitting down to the news on TV in the evening, knowing that I am more likely to believe the information than the things I read online. Anybody can post information on the Internet and a lot of it is opinion rather than fact.

5. What might the author say about the TV?

• "Eventually, mobile phones and laptops will replace it."

• "It will remain a popular form of entertainment."

• "We need fewer channels and better quality programmes."

•  "It's not as important as it used to be."