Obama on Social Media

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Published: 12.29.2017
Level 6   |   Time: 3:42
Accent: American, British
BBC Global News Podcast (12.27.2017)

Prince Harry interviews President Obama on life after the White House and the problems with social media.

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You can download the file [ HERE ].

    

triangle Directions


  1. REVIEW the vocabulary.
  2. LISTEN to the audio.
  3. ANSWER the questions.
  4. CHECK your answers (Show Answers)

triangle Vocabulary


  • distort [v] - lie / give a false idea
  • corrode [v] - destroy or weaken
  • civil discourse [n] - written or spoken communication in public
  • a successor [n] - the person who comes after (in a job)
  • exercise care [exp] - be careful
  • remarks [n] - statements
  • an inauguration [n] - the ceremony to mark the beginning (of the presidency)
  • with your game face on [exp] - be focused without showing emotion
  • intact [exp] - not broken
  • leave (something) whole [exp] - not break something
  • trolling [n] - make an offensive online post with the purpose of upsetting someone
  • extremism [n] - holding an extreme political or religious view
  • cyberbullying [n] - the use of electronic communication to bully a person
  • The First Amendment [n] - the law that guarantees free speech in the U.S.
  • harness [v] - use
  • legislate [v] - make a law
  • cocoon [v] - ignore the outside world
  • balkanization [n] - divide into hostile parts

[n] - noun,  [v] - verb,  [exp] - expression


triangle Questions


  1. What warning has Obama made?
    President Trump will start a new war.
    Social media misuse will become a bigger problem in the future.
    Misuse of social media is causing numerous problems.

  2. Who did Obama blame?
    President Trump
    Prince Harry
    no one

  3. Who interviewed Obama?
    President Trump
    Prince Harry
    Benedict Cumberbatch

  4. When was President Trump inaugurated?
    January 2nd, 2017
    January 12th, 2017
    January 20th, 2017

  5. According to Prince Harry, how did Obama look during Trump's inauguration?
    excited
    angry
    emotionless

  6. What did Obama think about during Trump's inauguration?
    his relationship with his wife
    social media problems
    Trump's policy ideas

  7. How is Obama's relationship with his wife now?
    It is still strong.
    It has changed a lot.
    It will end soon.

  8. What problems with social media does Prince Harry mention?
    cyberstalking
    cyberbullying
    trolling
    extremism
    fake news
    pornography

  9. What job did Obama have before he was in politics?
    He was a reality TV star.
    He was a real-estate slum lord.
    He was a constitutional lawyer.

  10. How does Obama feel about the First Amendment (free speech)?
    He supports free speech.
    He thinks free speech should be limited.
    He wants the government to make stricter laws.

  11. Does Obama think the government should create laws to restrict free speech on the Internet?
    Yes
    No

  12. What does Obama think leaders should do in order to solve problems with social media?
    He wants leaders to create stricter laws for Internet communication.
    He wants leaders to create a common space for people online.
    He wants leaders to not get involved with online communities.

  13. What does Obama suggest that online communities do?
    They should meet face to face.
    They should drink more.
    They should be less cruel.

  14. According to Obama, how is life online different from real life?
    Real life is more difficult than life online.
    Real life is more complex than life online.
    Real life is simpler than life online.

  15. According to Obama, what is more difficult to do in person than online?
    Talk honestly.
    Be cruel.
    Limit free speech.


triangle Script



In a rare interview since leaving the U.S. presidency, Barack Obama has issued a warning about the irresponsible use of social media. Mr. Obama told the BBC such actions were distorting people's understanding of complex issues, corroding civil discourse, and spreading misinformation. Mr. Obama did not mention Donald Trump, his successor, by name. But he emphasized that people in positions of leadership should exercise care when posting messages. Barack Obama made the remarks in conversation with Britain's Prince Harry, who was Wednesday's guest editor for The Today Programme on BBC radio. Here are some of the highlights of the interview, starting with life after the White House.

Can I take you back to the 20th of January, 2017? You sat in Marine One, the presidential helicopter, flying over Washington. You sat through the inauguration with your game face on, not giving much emotion away, as we all saw. What was going through your mind?

Yeah the first thing that went through my mind was, sitting across from Michelle, how thankful I was that she had been my partner through that whole process. You know she did this largely in support of my decision to run. And for us to be able to come out of that intact, that marriage was strong, we're still each other's best friends, the sense that there was a completion and that we had done the work in a way that preserved our integrity and left us whole, and that we hadn't fundamentally changed, I think was a satisfying feeling.

You managed to get people to use technology to take real action when you were elected. Part of me wants to ask how you managed that. But at the same time, the social media landscape has changed dramatically. Trolling, extremism, fake news, and cyberbullying are major social issues. Is there more that you could have done as president to get ahead of some of these issues do you think?

Well most of this is happening in the outside of government. And in the United States in particular, we have a very strong First Amendment. I am, as a former constitutional lawyer, pretty firm about the merits of free speech. And the question I think really has to do with how do we harness this technology in a way that allows a diversity of views but doesn't lead to a balkanization of our society. And I'm not sure government can legislate that. But what I do believe is that all of us in leadership have to find ways in which we can recreate a common space on the Internet. One of the dangers of the Internet is that people can have entirely different realities. They can be just cocooned in information that reinforces their current biases. A good way of fighting against that is making meet in a pub. Meet at a place of worship. Meet in a neighborhood and get to know each other because the truth is is that on the Internet everything is simplified. And when you meet people face to face, it turns out they're complicated. It's also by the way harder to be as obnoxious and cruel in person as people can be anonymously on the Internet.

Barack Obama speaking to our temporary correspondent, Prince Harry. And you can hear the full interview on BBC Online.

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