8. Look through the text and characterize new kinds of mass media.

With the advent of digital information systems and the Internet the scope of public distributors of news, entertainment and other information has expanded to include websites, webcams, podcasting, blogging and the like.

Some traditional public broadcasters are turning to these new areas to reach more people in the quickest way.

Many existing radio and television broadcasters provide Internet 'feeds' of their live and video streams (for example, the BBC). They may also allow time-shift viewing or listening such as Preview, Classic Clips and Listen Again features.

These providers have been joined by a range of pure Internet 'broadcasters' who never had on-air licences. This means that an Internet-connected device, such as a computer or something more specific, can be used to access on-line media in much the same way as was previously possible only with a TV or radio receiver. Podcasting is a variation on this theme, where - usually audio- material is first downloaded in full and then may be played back on a computer or shifted to a digital audio player to be listened to on the move. These techniques using simple equipment allow anybody, with little censorship or licensing control, to broadcast audio-visual material on a worldwide basis.

Webcams can be seen as an even lower-budget extension of this phenomenon. While some webcams can give full frame rate video, the picture is usually either small or updates slowly. Internet users can watch animals around an African waterhole, shops in the Panama Canal, the traffic at a local roundabout or their own premises, live and real time. Video chat rooms, video conferencing, and remote controllable webcams are also popular. Many uses can be found for personal webcams in and around the home, with and without two-way sound.

Many individuals and some companies and groups have adopted the use of "Web logs" or blogs, which are largely used as easily-updatable online diaries. Some commercial organizations encourage staff to fill them with advice on their areas of specialization in the hope that visitors will be impressed by the expert knowledge and free information, and be attracted to the cooperation as a result. One example of this practice is Microsoft, whose product developers publish their personal blogs in order to pique the public's interest in their work.

9. Discuss with your partner if television is good or evil. Supply the missing questions.

Olga:	. . . . . . ?
	Well, I suppose that I watch some television most days. My television watching tends to happen late at night for sort of domestic reasons and work resources, so it’s restricted by that.
Olga:	. . . . . . ?
Mary:	Actually I watch a lot of news programmes. I nearly always watch the news, or current affairs programmes. I’m quite a sports fan as well, so if there is any sport on I tend to watch it: cricket or football, or something like that, if I’ve got nothing better to do.
Olga:	. . . . . . ?
Mary:	It’s on in the late afternoon and late at night. But I know that in some homes the television goes on as a kind of background and people don’t actually watch it in any kind of concentrated way.
Olga:	Well, I believe some people don’t realize that some TV programmes are a great danger, especially to children. . . . . . . ?
Mary:	You are right in a way, but I think television can be a great benefit to children too. I think there are a lot of good programmes that give them good educational information. And I also think television’s good for introducing children to good literature. There are often good children’s stories which are dramatized for television.
Olga:	Well, I can’t but agree with you that television can be both good and evil. One should only be reasonable in the choice of programmes.
Mary:	Right you are.

When is television on in your family? What programmes are your favourite? Do you watch news programmes? What’s your opinion? Mary, do you often watch TV?