Roadmap™ B2 End-of-course test (Units 6–10) Listening

1 The worst kind of hoax E
2 Why do people do hoaxes? ___
3 A day of hoaxes ___
4 A more believable hoax ___
5 Modern hoaxes are easy ___
6 A hoax out of control ___
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12 Read the article again. Choose the correct answers, a, b or c to complete the summary.
Internet hoaxes often start from information which members of the public have ¹ a and put online. In the past, the media and ²___ were generally the only groups to spread hoaxes, for example people were fooled into thinking they could ³___ pasta by fake TV news. But not all hoaxes are ⁴___. For example, there was ⁵___ after a radio show about aliens was broadcast because it seemed so ⁶___. Even worse, some hoaxes ⁷___ that someone is going to receive money, when in reality they are an attempt to steal it. Not all people realise that this is a common ⁸___ to get money. Some people start hoaxes for ⁹___, while others do it to ¹⁰___ to a certain perspective or group of people, but the majority of hoaxes are done purely for ¹¹___.
1 a faked b researched c observed
2 a government b companies c celebrities
3 a grow b smell c buy
4 a funny b successful c harmless
5 a anger b confusion c panic
6 a real b strange c dangerous
7 a fake b pretend c transfer
8 a reason b trick c email
9 a attention b motivation c purpose
10 a create b deserve c appeal
11 a fun b politics c attention
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Hoaxes: fake news or just a joke?
A
Hoaxes are everywhere today, largely due to the internet. These days, anyone can put a fake picture or story online and share it with millions of people. One such hoax was a claim that a smartphone could be charged by an onion. Lots of people then attempted to do this, obviously to no effect. Hoaxes didn’t use to be so widespread though. In the past, they generally had to be incredibly spectacular for people to hear about them and were often created by news agencies or large companies.
B
The first of April has long been famous for practical jokes. For many years, broadcasters have played tricks on the public on this day. One of the most famous examples was a hoax by a British TV company about ‘spaghetti trees’. On 1st April 1957, they showed a news report about a tree which could grow spaghetti. At the time, British people weren’t very familiar with pasta and many people rang up to find out where they could buy the tree. Another famous TV hoax was ‘smell-o-vision’. A programme reported that televisions could now produce smells and that if you watched a cooking programme, you would be able to smell the food. People actually rang in to say they could smell what was being cooked!
C
Some big companies also play April fool jokes on the public. Famous examples include a fast-food company who advertised that they were planning to sell individual French fries, and a restaurant chain which claimed that they had developed a pizza-making robot. While some hoaxes seem ridiculous, other stories seem nearer to reality, such as a robot that can make food. For most of us, it’s not difficult to believe that this could happen.
D
April fool claims are often harmless, but other hoaxes can cause problems. These can be created by accident, but also on purpose. One famous example of an accidental hoax was a 1930s radio show called War of the Worlds. The half-hour show was presented as a news bulletin about aliens attacking the Earth, and caused panic among many people as they didn’t realise they were listening to a play and thought the information was real.
E
Deliberate hoaxes can also be distressing. In some cases, people pretend that they are from a bank or a rich person who lives abroad. They write emails asking for people’s bank details so they can transfer them money, giving reasons such as the fact the receiver deserves a refund, or they want to help them achieve their dreams. Obviously, this is a trick, but sometimes people do send their bank details, and the email sender then takes funds from the account rather than puts money in it.
F
What are the motivations behind these kinds of hoaxes? In the case of negative hoaxes, the purpose seems obvious – to get money. But this isn’t always the case. Some people create hoaxes because they want attention and to be in the public eye. Other people want to appeal to a particular viewpoint, especially in politics. Of course, not all hoaxes are bad. In the case of April Fools’ Day jokes, for example, people just want to have some fun!