It is often stated that newspapers have a great influence in our opinions and ideas. Does this influence have more positive or negative outcome?

Same questionCompare 2 different answers (Band 5.5–6)

Sample Response

1

The newspaper is one of the cheapest forms of communicationone of the cheapest forms of the communication system which connects a large number of people. Newspaper plays anand important role in the lives of the people, Newspapers bring out the newsnewspapers bring out the news and the happenings which are unknown to a large section of the publica large section of masses. The reasons for this influence are as followsThe reason for the influence are as under newspaper affects the minds of the voter and influences them onin a large scale, the voter has an independent decisive mind which is nurtured by readingwhich nurtures by reading and knowing of all news prevailing around him.

2

People are even influenced by their selective opinions; many are influenced by the advertisements appearingadvertisements popping out in the newspapers. They even impact the lives and thinking abilities of the students, they have an opportunity to undergo and gain a large volumeacclaim large volume of academic knowledge which is published in the newspapers.

3

Newspapers even influence the unemployed by connecting them with the employers not only in their area but also abroad. Newspapers play a significant role in the lives of the people. They do have options to choose better opportunities after seeing themopt the best with the glimpse of the same in the newspapers. Newspapers inculcate creative ideas to its readers by way of their lifestyle editions. They get to know the lifestyles of different people in different areas.

4

Apart from the above, readers can know a wide variety of incidents happening around the world which often nurture their thinking and lifestyles. The main impact of newspapers is that people have the choice to get themselves updated with the latest around them and they can generate some sort of protective responsedefensive methodology in the case of need when under influenced by serious incidents like robbery, theft etc.

5

Newspapers in the recent past have definitely impacted the generation, not all of them are positive in naturenot all are of positive in nature but there are situations where a riot atmosphere developed due to the prevailing news in the papers. Definitely, there are positive and negative aspects of the newspapers but the impact on people can be controlled by reserving the right on the printed matter.

6

An independent authority can be bestowed the responsibility of justifying the impact of the news and decide its influence before publishing.

Overall assessment

Why this response received Band 5.5

The response offers a broad range of relevant examples showing how newspapers can shape readers' knowledge, employment choices, opinions, and behaviour. However, it mostly describes influence without clearly judging whether the outcome is more positive or negative, while repetition and loosely controlled sentences weaken progression. State a clear position from the outset, organise the evidence into contrasting outcomes, and end with a direct comparison supported by precise topic vocabulary.

Band score breakdown

IELTS Writing Criteria Scores

TR

Task Response

5.5
Scoring rule

The essay discusses several ways newspapers influence readers, but the required judgement about whether the influence is more positive or negative is delayed and underdeveloped. Many points are descriptive rather than evaluative.

Next step

State a clear position in the introduction and organise the essay around positive and negative outcomes, with a final comparison.

CC

Coherence and Cohesion

5.0
Scoring rule

There are paragraph breaks, but progression is weak because ideas repeat and several sentences are loosely connected. The essay lacks clear topic sentences and a controlled argument path.

Next step

Use one paragraph for positive influence and one for negative influence, then add a conclusion that weighs them.

LR

Lexical Resource

5.5
Scoring rule

Vocabulary is adequate for basic communication, but there are many unnatural collocations and repeated words such as influence, newspaper, people, and impact. Some phrases are hard to interpret.

Next step

Replace vague or unnatural phrases with precise topic language such as public opinion, misinformation, civic awareness, and advertising pressure.

GRA

Grammatical Range and Accuracy

5.0
Scoring rule

Frequent sentence-boundary, agreement, article, and word-form errors reduce clarity. Several long sentences contain multiple clauses joined incorrectly.

Next step

Write shorter sentences and check that each clause has a clear subject and verb.

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IELTS Writing Task 2

It is often stated that newspapers have a great influence in our opinions and ideas. Does this influence have more positive or negative outcome?

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