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Vocabulary |
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Ideas/examples for |
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Ideas/examples against |
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Introduction |
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Body |
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Conclusion |
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Do the media treat famous people unfairly? Should
famous people be given more privacy? Is publicity about their private lives
the price VIPs must pay for fame? |
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Circle the important words in the question. |
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Write down as many related words as you can |
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If the word is a verb, write the noun form |
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If the word is a noun, write the verb form |
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Write words with a similar meaning |
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Write words with an opposite meaning |
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Break down generalizations like “media,”
“people” |
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Media: newspapers, magazines, Hello magazine,
television, radio, internet, Hollywood, paparazzi, photographers, zoom
lens, scoop, exclusive, prestige |
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Famous people: stars, celebrities, VIPS,
dignitaries, politicians, leaders, show business, glitterati, models,
businessmen |
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Fair: public have a right to know, stars need
publicity, stars give us hope, something to dream about, investigative
journalism, private life should reflect public life, models for society |
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Unfairly: with dignity, too much pressure, too
much interference, loss of respect, loss of dignity, demeaning, in a cage,
crazy |
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Privacy: security, private life, family life,
effect on relationships, effect on children, guards, compounds, virtual
prison, masks, tinted windows, secrets, news blackouts, |
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Fame: rumors, gossip, stories, sensationalist
journalism, libel, lies |
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Start grouping words and phrases to make ideas |
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You need 3 ideas for the topic (agreeing with
the topic) and 3 against (disagreeing) |
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Have some examples for each idea |
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We pay these people’s salaries |
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We have a choice not to buy papers with rubbishy
stories |
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Media only give us what we want - they don’t
create the demand |
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Most VIPS get rich because of the media - they
cannot turn it off just because they don’t like it |
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If you don’t want a public life, don’t become
famous |
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The public needs to know about corrupt
politicians and businessmen |
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Many VIPs are role models. They should have good
standards in both private AND public life |
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The media can focus on positive role models |
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Diana - chased to her death by photographers? |
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Michael Jackson - already judged guilty by
media? |
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Clinton - unable to function as US President due
to private life? |
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Beckham - children will never have normal lives |
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Only in some countries: not allowed in others |
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Ordinary people often not interested: media hype |
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Newspapers exist to make money - they just appeal to the lowest standard
in us |
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Media can drive celebrities crazy |
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Too much attention can distract the celebrity from
his or her real talent or work |
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Two kinds of introductions: |
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Situation (some places vs. other places,
past vs. present) |
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Opinion (some people think vs. others think) |
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Both kinds have 3 sentences: |
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One side |
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Other side |
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Thesis (This essay will…) |
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One side: Before newspapers, television, and the
internet, ordinary people were not exposed to endless stories about pop
singers, princesses, and politicians. |
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Other side: Today however, we are bombarded with
information about who is dating whom, where they eat, and what they wear at
their weddings. |
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Thesis: Do we really need this information? This
essay will discuss if famous people should have privacy or not. |
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One side: Most ordinary people respect the
rights of others to a private life. |
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Other side: However, some people are obsessed
with celebrities and VIPS. They want to know everything about them, and
have an insatiable desire for more information. |
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Thesis: This essay will discuss whether
newspapers and TV should show us intimate details of famous people’s lives. |
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One side: In some parts of the world, privacy is
very important, even for VIPs. |
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Other side: However, in the US and many other
countries, the personal life and family life of many famous people is
public property. |
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Thesis: This essay will discuss whether
newspapers and TV should show us intimate details of famous people’s lives. |
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Use four paragraphs |
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Introduction 3 sentences |
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Body (agree or disagree) 7 sentences |
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Body (disagree or agree) 7 sentences |
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Conclusion 3 sentences |
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This is a total of 20 sentences, at 12 words per
sentence – about 240 words! |
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There are two paragraphs in the body |
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agree |
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disagree |
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Famous people deserve privacy and respect. First
of all, we should admire what they do, not who they are. If someone is a
famous singer or footballer, we should enjoy their talent on the pitch or
at a concert, but we should not invade their family or private life through
the media. Secondly, the children and family of famous people should not be
affected. Some stars have to hire security for their children or spouses
because of media attention. Another point is that too much attention can
affect celebrities. They begin to act strangely and lose touch with
reality. |
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Although, generally speaking, the media should
not interfere in people’s private lives, there are times when it is correct
to do so. If a politician is becoming very rich, the media should
investigate where the money is coming from. If a businessman is committing
a crime, the public should know. It is also fair for the media to show
contradictions between a famous people’s private and public lives. A
further point is that media such as TV or papers are meeting a demand. We
can make the media accountable by not buying rubbishy magazines or watching
sensationalist programs. |
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A good conclusion: |
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summarizes the two ideas (for and against)
and |
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looks to the future
or |
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gives your opinion |
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In conclusion, the responsibility lies with us,
the consumers. We should treat celebrities the way we would like to be
treated—with respect, and we should treat trashy media with the scorn it
deserves. |
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Notes
