News & Media – B1 English Listening Exercise

1 Correct Answer: (C) An animal that accidentally purchased a large amount of food.

• Explanation: The man talks about a “golden retriever” (an animal) that requested “fifty boxes of sausages” (purchased a large amount of food). Option A is the Trap: The woman mentions a “politician”, but the man immediately rejects it (“No, not the political stuff”). Option B is not mentioned.

2 Correct Answer: (B) The smart device misinterpreted the pet’s noises as an order.

• Explanation: The script says “The dog just kept barking, and the machine picked it up as an instruction to buy things”. This paraphrases option B. Option C is the Trap: The delivery guy is mentioned (“The delivery guy showed up…”), but he didn’t make a mistake; he just did his job. Option A is plausible in real life but not mentioned in the audio.

3 Correct Answer: (B) The store allowed the owner to give the goods back without a full charge.

• Explanation: The man explains that the shop manager “let them return most of the items” and they only kept a few. Option A is the Trap: The woman asks if they had to pay for all of it, but the man says no. Option C uses the word “amusing” from the script to trick the listener, but the manager didn’t adopt the dog.

Man: Hey, Sarah. Did you catch that ridiculous story trending on social media this morning?

Woman: Um, you mean the one about the local politician?

Man: No, not the political stuff. It was about this golden retriever in London. Well, apparently, its owner left it alone for a few hours. The dog somehow activated their smart home device and managed to request… wait for it… fifty boxes of sausages from a local butcher.

Woman: No way! Are you serious? How is that even possible?

Man: Yeah! The owner had set up a voice command for groceries. The dog just kept barking, and the machine picked it up as an instruction to buy things. The delivery guy showed up with a massive pile of meat.

Woman: That’s hilarious! Ah, the owner must have been furious, though. Did they have to pay for all of it?

Man: Actually, the shop manager found it so amusing that he let them return most of the items. They only kept a couple of packs as a treat for the dog.

Woman: Wow. I guess I really need to be careful with my own smart speaker.

1 Correct Answer: (A) He has been too busy to read the daily news.

• Explanation: Mark says he is “swamped” (very busy) and hasn’t had a second to “check the headlines”. Option A paraphrases this perfectly. Option B is the Trap: He did cancel a newspaper delivery, but that is not the reason he doesn’t know the news today. Option C is not mentioned in the audio.

2 Correct Answer: (C) It creates short summaries of the most important stories.

• Explanation: Lisa says the app condenses “top global events into bite-sized summaries”. Option C uses synonyms (“short summaries”, “most important stories”) to match this idea. Option A is the Trap: The audio mentions “having your coffee”, but the app does not read the news aloud. Option B is the exact opposite of what the app does.

3 Correct Answer: (B) She thinks the commercial interruptions are acceptable.

• Explanation: Lisa mentions that she hasn’t upgraded to the premium version because “the ads aren’t too annoying”. Option B paraphrases “ads” as “commercial interruptions” and “not too annoying” as “acceptable”. Option A is the Trap: Mark is the one who complains about a “ridiculous monthly fee”, not Lisa. Option C is plausible but never mentioned.

Mark: Phew, I am so swamped today. I haven’t even had a second to check the headlines this morning. I feel completely out of the loop.

Lisa: Oh, I know that feeling. Actually, um, I recently downloaded this new platform on my phone called “Briefly”. It’s a total game-changer for my morning routine.

Mark: Really? What makes it different from regular news sites? I already have too many subscriptions.

Lisa: Well, instead of forcing you to read long articles, it uses a smart algorithm to condense the top global events into bite-sized summaries. You can get caught up on everything in just about five minutes while having your coffee.

Mark: That sounds pretty useful, actually. But is it expensive? I canceled my last newspaper delivery because the monthly fee was ridiculous.

Lisa: That’s the best part! The basic version is totally free. They do have a premium option without advertisements, but I haven’t bothered upgrading since the ads aren’t too annoying.

Mark: Nice. I think I’ll install it right now. Thanks, Lisa!

1 Correct Answer: (B) The article contains several written errors.

• Explanation: Tom points out that there are “a dozen spelling mistakes”. Option B paraphrases this as “written errors”. Option A is the Trap: The sister actually says the post has “a million likes” (a high number of interactions, not low). Option C is incorrect; they mention a picture of him on a beach, not a cartoon.

2 Correct Answer: (A) Looking for the story on respected media organizations.

• Explanation: Tom advises Lily to check if “major, trustworthy news outlets are reporting it”. Option A uses synonyms to express this exact idea. Option B is the Trap: Tom mentions that “photos can easily be edited”, but he doesn’t tell her to examine the picture as the primary fact-checking method. Option C is a plausible real-life action, but it is never mentioned in the audio.

3 Correct Answer: (C) He is currently shooting a film in a European city.

• Explanation: Lily finds out from BBC News that the actor is “busy filming a movie in London”. Option C perfectly paraphrases this (filming a movie = shooting a film; London = a European city). Option A is the Trap: This is the “fake news” mentioned at the beginning of the audio. Option B is also a Trap: BBC News is mentioned, but he is not doing an interview with them.

Lily: Oh my gosh, Tom! Look at this post. It says that the famous actor, Chris Evans, just bought a private island and is giving away free vacations to his followers! I’m going to share it on my page right now.

Tom: Whoa, hold on a second, Lily. Let me see that. Hmm… look at the website address. It ends in “.biz” instead of “.com”, and there are, like, a dozen spelling mistakes in the first paragraph alone.

Lily: But it has a million likes! And there’s a picture of him on a beautiful beach.

Tom: Well, you know photos can easily be edited these days. Before you spread that around, you should really verify it.

Lily: How do I do that?

Tom: Just open a search engine and type his name. Check if major, trustworthy news outlets are reporting it. If it’s only on this one sketchy blog, it’s probably just clickbait designed to get views.

Lily: Ah, you’re right. I searched his name and BBC News says he’s actually busy filming a movie in London right now. Guess it was a hoax.

Tom: Exactly. Always double-check before you click share!

1 Correct Answer: (B) She believes the print version is costly and often goes unread.

• Explanation: Emma states that the delivery is “getting quite expensive” (costly) and they “barely even have time to read it” (often goes unread). Option A is the Trap: Mark asks if she is talking about the “grocery bill”, but she immediately says “No”. Option C is plausible in real life but is never mentioned in the audio.

2 Correct Answer: (A) He enjoys the traditional experience of holding it.

• Explanation: Mark says he really enjoys “holding a physical paper” while having his coffee. Option B is the Trap: Protecting the “environment” is mentioned, but that is Emma’s point, not Mark’s initial feeling. Option C is also a Trap: Emma mentions a “pile of unread papers”, but Mark does not say he throws them away.

3 Correct Answer: (C) To switch to a cheaper electronic subscription.

• Explanation: They agree to subscribe to the “digital edition” which is “half the price” (a cheaper electronic subscription). Option A is the Trap: Mark mentions the “summer vacation fund” (holiday), but they are not stopping the news entirely; they are just changing how they read it. Option B is incorrect: Emma mentions reading on a tablet, but they do not discuss buying a new one.

Emma: Mark, I was looking at our monthly expenses, and I really think we need to cut down on a few things.

Mark: Oh? Like what? Are you talking about the grocery bill again?

Emma: No, actually, I was thinking about our daily newspaper delivery. It’s getting quite expensive, and honestly, we barely even have time to read it in the mornings. There’s always a pile of unread papers on the living room table by the end of the week.

Mark: Hmm, I suppose you’re right. But… I don’t know, I really enjoy holding a physical paper while I have my coffee. It’s a nice habit.

Emma: I know you do, honey. But we could just subscribe to their digital edition instead. It’s half the price, and you can read all the exact same articles on your tablet. Plus, it’s much better for the environment since we aren’t wasting paper.

Mark: Well, when you put it that way… I guess I can get used to reading on a screen. And the extra money could go towards our summer vacation fund.

Emma: Exactly! I’ll set up the online account today.

1 Correct Answer: (B) He had trouble falling asleep so he stayed awake.

• Explanation: Jamie says he “couldn’t sleep” (had trouble falling asleep), so he “stayed up” (stayed awake) to finish it. Option A is not mentioned in the audio. Option C is the Trap: The “green bin” is mentioned later by Alex, but it was not Jamie’s reason for watching the show.

2 Correct Answer: (C) A large amount of collected plastic is actually buried or sent to other countries.

• Explanation: Jamie states that a huge percentage of plastic “gets shipped overseas” (sent to other countries) or “ends up in landfills” (is buried). Option A is the Trap: This is what Alex used to think, not what the report actually said. Option B is incorrect because the audio says it is “too expensive to process”, not that they are making too much profit.

3 Correct Answer: (A) He intends to purchase a sustainable container for his drinks.

• Explanation: Jamie says he is going to “buy one of those reusable metal water bottles”. Option A perfectly paraphrases this action (buy = purchase; reusable metal water bottle = sustainable container). Option B uses the word “water” to distract the listener, but he doesn’t talk about stopping tap water. Option C is a plausible real-life action but is never mentioned.

Alex: Hey, Jamie. Did you end up watching that documentary on Channel 4 last night? The one about the global recycling crisis?

Jamie: Yeah, I did actually. I couldn’t sleep, so I stayed up to finish it. Honestly, it was pretty overwhelming. I had no idea the situation was that bad.

Alex: I know, right? The part that really shocked me was about plastic bottles. I always thought if you put them in the green bin, they automatically get made into new products.

Jamie: Exactly! But the report said that a huge percentage of it just gets shipped overseas or ends up in landfills anyway because it’s too expensive to process.

Alex: It makes you feel a bit helpless. But, um, at the end, they did mention that reducing our daily waste is much more effective than just relying on the recycling system.

Jamie: Yeah, that makes perfect sense. I think I’m going to finally buy one of those reusable metal water bottles today.

Alex: Good idea. I’ll get one too.