With the development of online media, there is no future for the radio. To what extent do you agree or disagree with this opinion?
Sample Response
Many people opine that the progress of online media will render traditional radio obsolete. I agree with this opinion and believe that online media will replace broadcast radio because online radio continues to gain popularity and revenue.
The primary reason why a question mark hangs over the future of terrestrial radio after the emergence of online media is that the latter proves to be highly convenient and easy to use in comparison to terrestrial radio. People can listen to any song they want at any given time on digital platforms such as YouTube and Spotify. But with broadcast radios, this is not possible at all. They have to wait until the song is aired. This convenience and ease that comes with online media has made a significant portion of the young generation forget about radio. A recent study, for instance, carried out in India confirmed that millennials choose online media as their music platform of choice for its convenient properties, very often at the cost of traditional radio.
The second main reason why radio faces a grim future is that online advertising causes a decline in broadcast radio advertising revenue. Online advertising enables businesses to interact with target audiences promptly. This means that it can effectively respond to customer queries and thus gain their trust. This, in turn, influences customers’ buying decisions, a useful feature rarely available with traditional radio advertisements. Consequently, businesses opt for digital advertising, thereby decreasing traditional radio advertising income. iHeartMedia, the world’s biggest radio company, is a case in point, which faces mounting debts due to a huge loss of advertising revenue.
In conclusion, I forecast a dire future for broadcast radio because online media leads to the decline of its popularity and revenue.
IELTS Writing Correction
- 1. Use natural trend noun Original: progress Suggested revision: growth Why it matters: “Growth” is the natural term for the increasing reach and use of a media form.
- 2. Fix verb collocation Original: gain popularity and revenue Suggested revision: gain popularity and generate revenue Why it matters: A service gains popularity but generates revenue.
- 3. Use uncountable radio Original: radios Suggested revision: radio Why it matters: “Radio” is uncountable when referring to the medium generally.
- 4. Use natural age phrase Original: young Suggested revision: younger Why it matters: “Younger generation” is the conventional phrase for this age group.
- 5. Avoid repetitive phrase Original: music platform of choice Suggested revision: preferred music platform Why it matters: “Preferred” conveys the same meaning more concisely.
- 6. Use natural collocation Original: for its convenient properties Suggested revision: because of its convenience Why it matters: “Convenience” is the natural noun for ease of use; “convenient properties” is awkward.
- 7. Use revenue consistently Original: income Suggested revision: revenue Why it matters: “Advertising revenue” is the standard business term and matches the paragraph's topic.
- 8. Fix decline preposition Original: of Suggested revision: in Why it matters: The noun “decline” takes “in” before the measure that decreases.
- 9. Sentence rewrite Original: This means that it can effectively respond to customer queries and thus gain their trust. Suggested revision: This means that businesses can respond effectively to customer queries and thus gain their trust. Why it matters: The rewrite gives “respond” a logical human subject instead of referring to advertising itself.
- 10. Sentence rewrite Original: iHeartMedia, the world’s biggest radio company, is a case in point, which faces mounting debts due to a huge loss of advertising revenue. Suggested revision: iHeartMedia, the world’s biggest radio company, is a case in point because it faces mounting debts after a substantial loss of advertising revenue. Why it matters: The rewrite replaces the faulty relative clause with a clear reason clause.
Suggested Rewrites
- progress growth
- gain popularity and revenue gain popularity and generate revenue
- radios radio
- young younger
- music platform of choice preferred music platform
- for its convenient properties because of its convenience
Why this response received Band 8.0
The essay presents a decisive position and develops two coherent reasons—listener convenience and declining advertising revenue—with relevant examples and strong progression. Its main limitation is that it treats radio largely as a music and advertising medium, leaving functions such as local news, emergencies and live broadcasting unexamined. Prioritise acknowledging the strongest counterpoint and explaining why online media would still make radio obsolete.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Response
The position is clear and fully sustained, and both main reasons are well explained and supported with relevant examples.
Address radio’s strongest continuing functions briefly, then show why they are insufficient to secure its future.
Coherence and Cohesion
Paragraphing is purposeful, each body paragraph develops one central reason, and cohesive links create a clear progression throughout.
Make the transition from declining audiences to declining revenue more explicit so the two causal strands reinforce each other.
Lexical Resource
The essay uses a broad and generally precise range, including effective language about obsolescence, convenience, audiences, and advertising revenue, with occasional awkward phrasing.
Prefer natural expressions such as “convenience” rather than “convenient properties” and use “radio broadcasts” rather than “broadcast radios.”
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
A wide range of complex sentences is handled with strong control, while a few reference and relative-clause constructions are imperfect.
Clarify pronoun reference in the advertising paragraph and revise the iHeartMedia sentence so the company, example, and debt relationship are grammatically direct.
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IELTS Writing Task 2
With the development of online media, there is no future for the radio. To what extent do you agree or disagree with this opinion?
Your response
Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.