News editors decide what to broadcast on television and what to print in newspapers. What factors do you think influence these decisions? Do we become used to bad news? Would it be better if more good news was reported?
Sample Response
Newspapers and TV channels often consider good news unprofitable for their businessnot so good for their business because it does not sell well. A radio station that relies on broadcasting positive news soon finds itself out of business for lack of listenersfor the lack of listeners. News editors’Newseditors' decisions about the typesdecision on the type of content to broadcast seems motivated by business goals or political biases rather than social and professional responsibilities. In this era of bad and fake news, most people are immune to bad news and it would definitely be better if more good newsthe more good news was reported.
Though newspapersnewspaper and TV stations report global events accurately, be they natural or human disasters, it is also true that their main objective is to sell newspapers and bring in more listeners and viewers to their stations and favour a particular political ideology. To achieve these aimsFor that, they often use confusing headlinesconfusing news headlines and reports that have little or no value to society and are full of negativity. Since more viewers and readers are attracted to bad newsattracted to reading bad news or have political preferences, newspapers and other media often reflect the character of their outletsreflect the flavour of their stations by providing news and broadcasting tailored reportstailor-made events to suit their listeners' and viewers' preferences.
Since we like to read negative news or sensationalised eventsevents that have spices on them, readers, viewers and editorsboth readers, viewers and editors have to change the way they consume or create content. The professional obligations of journalists and editors, as well as our mentality as viewers and readers, could be remarkably altered if more positive newsgood and positive news, politically unbiased reportsreports without political biases, and true global events without fabricating them are reported.
In conclusion, editors need to uphold professional standardsstick to their professionalism while readers and viewers need to be more aware to make media reports more useful and reflective of our society.
Why this response received Band 6.5
The response presents a clear position and identifies commercial, political, and audience-related influences on editorial choices, with generally coherent progression. However, the claim that people become accustomed to bad news and the case for reporting more good news are asserted more than developed, while several awkward expressions weaken precision; fuller reasoning for those two questions and more natural collocations should be the priority.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Response
All three questions receive a relevant answer, but the discussion of habituation to bad news and the benefits of positive reporting remains limited.
Develop those two answers with distinct explanations or examples rather than relying mainly on brief assertions in the introduction and third paragraph.
Coherence and Cohesion
The essay follows a clear overall direction and uses paragraphs logically, although some links within the third paragraph are loose.
Give each of the final two questions its own focused development so that the progression from claim to support is easier to follow.
Lexical Resource
The vocabulary shows useful range for media and politics, but inaccurate spelling and several strained collocations reduce naturalness and precision.
Use conventional expressions such as sensational content, editorial bias, and fabricated stories instead of phrases like events that have spices.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
A mix of simple and complex structures communicates the argument clearly, though recurring article, agreement, and clause-construction errors are noticeable.
Review article use and parallel structures, especially in phrases such as if more good news were reported and lists joining readers, viewers, and editors.
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IELTS Writing Task 2
News editors decide what to broadcast on television and what to print in newspapers. What factors do you think influence these decisions? Do we become used to bad news? Would it be better if more good news was reported?
Your response
Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.