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Médias et information

Axe culturel 2 — Espace privé et espace public : comment les médias façonnent l'opinion et l'identité (programme de 2nde lycée général)

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Cette activité de compréhension sur « Médias et information » en seconde entraîne à lire, analyser et répondre à des questions en anglais (LVA). Elle suit le programme officiel de seconde. Au programme : Le paysage médiatique anglophone, Vocabulaire essentiel des médias, La presse écrite : tabloids et broadsheets, L'essor des médias numériques et des réseaux sociaux. Lis le document, réponds puis vérifie immédiatement tes réponses pour progresser. Un bon moyen de travailler la méthode, d'enrichir son vocabulaire et de préparer les contrôles. Ressource gratuite proposée par un professeur particulier à Marseille pour réussir en anglais (LVA) en seconde.
1Read the following article extract and answer the questions in English.

The Rise of Citizen Journalism

Adapted from a media studies article, 2023.

In the age of smartphones, anyone can become a reporter. When a major event occurs — a natural disaster, a protest, an accident — ordinary people are often the first to document it, uploading videos and photos to social media within seconds. This phenomenon, known as citizen journalism, has both transformed the news industry and raised serious questions about reliability.

Traditional journalists follow a strict code of ethics: they verify their sources, seek multiple perspectives, and submit their work to editorial review before publication. Citizen journalists, on the other hand, face no such requirements. While this freedom allows for rapid, unfiltered reporting, it also means that errors, rumours and even deliberate misinformation can spread unchecked.

In 2013, during the Boston Marathon bombings, social media users attempted to identify the suspects — and wrongly accused several innocent people, causing immense distress. The incident highlighted a key danger: the speed of social media can outpace the need for accuracy.

Yet citizen journalism has also played a vital role in holding power to account. Videos filmed by ordinary citizens have exposed police brutality, revealed government corruption, and brought attention to conflicts that mainstream media ignored. As media expert Dan Gillmor once wrote: "The former audience has become the press."

2Questions
Q1 What is 'citizen journalism'? Define it in your own words, based on the text.
Q2 According to the text, what is ONE difference between professional journalists and citizen journalists?
Q3 What happened during the Boston Marathon bombings in 2013? (2 points)
Q4 Find a word or phrase in the text that means 'to make someone responsible for their actions'. Quote it exactly.
Q5 Do you agree with Dan Gillmor's statement: 'The former audience has become the press'? Explain your view in 3–4 sentences.
Voir le corrigé
  1. Réponse libre — exemple : Citizen journalism refers to the practice of ordinary people (non-professionals) reporting and sharing news, usually through social media, using devices like smartphones.
  2. Réponse libre — exemple : Professional journalists must verify their sources and submit their work for editorial review, while citizen journalists have no such requirements and can publish immediately without fact-checking.
  3. Réponse libre — exemple : During the Boston Marathon bombings in 2013, social media users tried to identify the suspects but wrongly accused innocent people, causing them great distress. This showed how the speed of social media can spread misinformation before the facts are verified.
  4. holding power to account — The expression 'holding power to account' means making those in power answer for their actions — a key role of journalism in a democracy.
  5. Réponse libre — exemple : I agree with Dan Gillmor's statement to a large extent. Social media has indeed transformed passive news consumers into active content creators who can report events in real time. However, I believe that this shift comes with serious responsibilities: without editorial standards, citizen journalism risks spreading misinformation. A healthy information ecosystem needs both citizen voices and professional, fact-checked journalism.
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