The performers were holding empty shopping bags because they wanted - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

1- Describe and explain the performers’ attitude before their show in the article from The Courrier Post Online. The performers were “holding empty shopping bags” because they wanted to go unnoticed. Indeed, they tried to melt into the background / crowd, so that they could surprise everyone at Macy’s when they started singing… By acting like this, they wanted to take everyone by surprise… They were also rather nervous ( “holding (…) their breaths” (l. 3), “nervous” ( l. 4))… They didn’t want to mess up / ruin an event that they must have been planning for weeks … They wanted their performance to be a success / an event to remember…

2- Why did their spectacle shock and stop « busy holiday shoppers » (l.14)? The event / spectacle was obviously quite unusual in such a setting… Normally, people do not expect to witness such events in a shopping centre /mall… The fact that it looked like a spontaneous concert must have added to the onlookers’ surprise… Such cultural flash mobs seldom occur, so shoppers were surprised, stopped what they were doing and converged on the performers to listen to them…

3- Compare the influence of yesterday’s and today’s media as described in the CNN article. Yesterday’s media (radio, newspapers, television) were used to rally / round up people from different backgrounds around a common cause… Mass media have been used over the years for better or for worse… Hitler used the radio to spread his propaganda… Gangs in Rwanda also used the radio to perpetrate mass murders… Today, people use the Internet and cell phones to communicate, which means that they can gather / assemble instantly and spread messages to millions of people around the globe… For instance, protesters / rebels in some parts of the Arab world used social media to fight oppressive regimes… But today’s media can also be used for illegal / unlawful activities like during the London riots, or for the looting of stores…

4- Why does the journalist wonder whether today’s social media are « too dangerous for people to handle » (l.28) The journalist wonders whether modern technology and social media in particular could in fact do more harm than good / be more a curse than a blessing… People who use social media can easily participate / take part in illegal / unauthorized activities that can lead to serious / dramatic consequences… Social media are not dangerous most of the time, but can rapidly and easily get out of control… With no control, social networks can fall into the wrong hands and become dangerous tools …