The Media& Entertainment

1. How do you think the Internet will change entertainment in the future?

    미래에 인터넷이 어떻게 오락을 변화시킬 것이라고 생각하나요?

2. What will happen to traditional movie theaters in the future?

   미래에 전통적 영화관이 어떻게 될까요?

3. How do you think television affects society?

   텔레비전이 사회에 양향을 주는 것에 대해 어떻게 생각하나요?

4. Do you think that films shown in cinemas should have an educational value?

   영화관에서 상영되는 영화들은 교육적 가치를 포함해야 한다고 생각하나요?

5. How has the media developed over the past 50 years?

     미디어는 지난 50년간 어떻게 발전해왔나요?

6. How are newspapers different these days compared to the past?

   과거와 비교했을 때 오늘날의 신문은 어떻게 다른가요?

7. Should the media be censored?

   미디어는 규제되어야 할까요?

8. How can media influence young people?

   미디어가 어떻게 젊은이들에게 영향을 주나요?

< sample answer >

How do you think the Internet will change entertainment in the future?
Right... I imagine it will change things a lot. I mean, if you look at the past, for the last few decades, the Internet has changed entertainment completely. Media corporations used to control media content and broadcasting times, but… Nowadays, normal people can produce content themselves with our own equipment and upload it for millions of users around the world to see… For example, independent webseries are increasingly common these days, and in Korea, we have mukbang, which is when people use their webcam to record themselves eating, and thousands of people tune in… So in the future, I think people will depend less on traditional media and watch and create more online content.

What will happen to traditional movie theaters in the future?
OK… I guess there could be a few changes… First… The number of cinemas might decrease, because more and more people watch films at home on DVD or by downloading them illegally… Although I don’t think movie theatres will disappear completely because they offer a special atmosphere. On top of that… More and more films are being made using 4D technology these days – people get sprayed with water, chairs vibrate, stuff like that, and it can be very exciting… So 4D films might be more common in the future, too.

How do you think television affects society?
Oh, I think TV has tremendous power over our society. I mean, it’s the biggest channel of information and entertainment. But I think it could have both positive and negative effects. The positive influence would be the distribution of news and information. Even people living in remote corners of the country can have access to the news just by turning on the TV, which helps to democratise information and knowledge – everyone has access to it. On the other hand, the media often glorifies violence and shows graphic images, and teenagers or younger viewers can be instilled with negative thoughts because of that, so I think parental guidance is required. So TV has beneficial and detrimental effects.

Do you think that films shown in cinemas should have an educational value?
Actually, I think it’s impossible for films not to have an educational value. From my perspective, in the context of learning about life lessons, all films have some educational aspects. I mean, by watching films, we can witness various aspects of the life of different people with different social statuses. Also we can learn about world cultures just from sitting in our living room. So yeah, films should and do teach us something.

How are newspapers different these days compared to the past? 
OK... There are a number of differences between conventional newspapers and modern ones. In the past, newspapers were made with paper, whereas nowadays they appear in digital format as online newspapers, and they sometimes incorporate video and audio. Plus… Previously, newspapers were delivered in the morning, but these days, you can read the news any time of day on your smartphone, even in real time. So there are a lot of changes.

Should the media be censored?
As far as I’m concerned, the media needs to be censored to a certain degree. Freedom of speech is an important right to protect democracy. That said, some people abuse it and broadcast violent and graphic images on TV or the Internet. In that respect, we need to censor the media to protect children and young viewers from being exposed to unnecessarily graphic images, which can distort their sense of right and wrong, desensitise them to violence and lead to a more violent society. So to a certain extent, yeah, the media should be censored, but not entirely.

How can media influence young people?
Right... I imagine it will change things a lot. I mean, if you look at the past, for the last few decades, the Internet has changed entertainment completely. Media corporations used to control media content and broadcasting times, but… Nowadays, normal people can produce content themselves with our own equipment and upload it for millions of users around the world to see… For example, independent webseries are increasingly common these days, and in Korea, we have mukbang, which is when people use their webcam to record themselves eating, and thousands of people tune in… So in the future, I think people will depend less on traditional media and watch and create more online content.

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