Cue Card Sample

Cue Card 279 - Describe your favourite news source

IELTS Speaking Part 2: IELTS Cue Card/ Candidate Task Card.

Describe your favourite news source.

You should say:

  • how often you use it
  • what types of news you are interested in
  • what other sources you use

and explain why this is your favourite news source.


 

Model Answer 1:

After trying different kinds of news sources, such as newspapers, periodicals, magazines, the internet and TV, I have a feeling that most news sources have lost their sense of objectivity. Having said that, however, I still think that TV news is a bit more reliable than the other sources. I would be more than happy to tell you why I think so in a minute.

Anyway, the world has become too fast, and without watching the news on a daily basis, it is actually too difficult to keep up with a world that is changing very fast right in front of our eyes. In the early days of TV, of course, as far as I can remember, there used to be news on the television only a few times a day, but as the world became more and more globalized in order to meet the increasing demand of its citizens to remained “informed”, the TV stations started to air the news more frequently.

In fact, there is hardly any TV station in this world which doesn’t air the news every hour! So, while in the past, I would be happy to see the news on TV only a couple of times, these days, I can see it at least a dozen of times, even if I don’t want to see it. So, I think, we should also thank the satellite or cable TV channels for making this kind of continuous news possible not only on TV but also on other news sources. Of course, when talking about “other news sources”, I don’t really use them to get my news except on some rare occasions.

TV is my favourite news source, primarily because I can always get the updated version of the news, no matter when I watch them. Besides, the best thing about watching the news on TV is that I can actually do other things at my pace while also listening to the news update at the same time without wasting my time. Finally, I find TV news more trustworthy since I can see the video or live image to confirm the incident or news.


 

Sample Answer 2:

The daily newspaper is my favourite news source and I read newspapers daily. In the morning I go through the headlines of two newspapers at my home. I read newspapers at my workplace/ university during the lunch break and often I read the details of the news and editorial in the evening. Thus newspapers are my primary source of news and current events.

I read mostly current events, political news, sports news, business news, financial and show-biz news and news stories. Those are the types of news items I feel most interested in. I also like the editorial and in-depth coverage of international news as this news and writing give insight and different viewpoints of news or an event. Apart from newspapers I sometimes watch television and listen to the radio and those two are good sources of news also. I use the internet at home, at office/university and online news source like news websites, online radio channels and news feeds are very handy sometimes. I can collect most recent news updates and details from the internet and nowadays online news sources are getting very popular. When I drive my car, I rely on radio news and at home, I often watch television news. The online news portals, news directories, blogs are good sources for authentic and comprehensive news. I browse those sorts of news portals and websites at home and at university/ offices as well.

Among all the news sources I use, newspapers in my favourite source for gathering news and getting updated. I find it very convenient, easy to access and friendly to read. The newspapers are supplied by the local newspaper distribution authority to my home and that’s why I can easily get it every day. I can read it anytime I like, I can skip the news I do not feel interested about and the news is presented in a suitable manner. In my opinion, the news presented in a newspaper are well organised, well written, authentic and based on the people’s interest and current events of the country and the world. Personally, I consider it as the best source of news for me and I also believe a large percentage of the total population in my country also rely on this news source as their primary source for news and current events.   


 

Part 3 – Two-way discussion:

Q. What is the most effective way of getting news?

Q. Do you think the information on the Internet believable or not?

Q. What do you think of the importance of privacy?

Q. How do journalists entertain their customers?

Q. How do people in your country gather information?

Q. What are the advantages and disadvantages of different media?

Q. What kind of news do you think should be controlled?
 

Similar Cue Card Topics

Your ability to talk about this Cue Card would enable you to talk about the following Cue Cards as well:

  1. Describe a newspaper or magazine that you often read.
  2. Describe a news program you have watched.
  3. Describe a news source you like.
  4. Describe something you do daily.
  5. Describe a program you often watch or listen.
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