Tuesday, May 13, 2008
English of the Day - May 12, 08
วันก่อนมีเหตุต้องไปแถวๆ อนุสาวรีย์ชัยสมรภูมิ (Victory Monument)
แล้วเดินสวนกับสาวน้อยน่ารักนางหนึ่ง เธอสวมเสื้อยืด (T-shirt)
ที่เขียนว่า I love boyfriend.
มีใครรู้บ้างว่าประโยคนี้ผิดตรงไหน
คำตอบก็คือ
1 คำว่า boyfriend (แฟน) เป็นคำที่แสดงความสัมพันธ์
เช่นเดียวกับ father, mother ดังนั้นเวลาใช้ต้องระบุด้วยว่าแฟนใคร
ไม่งั้น"งานเข้า"ได้ไม่รู้ตัว
2 นามนับได้ (countable noun) ต้องมี article (a,an,the)เสมอ
หรือไม่ก็ต้องทำให้อยู่ในรูปพหูพจน์ (plural) โดยการเติม S
ดังนั้นต้องแก้ประโยคใหม่เป็น
I love my boyfriend. ถ้ามีคนเดียว
แต่ถ้าอยากเก็บเธอไว้ทั้ง 2,3,4......คน ก็ต้องเขียนว่า
I love my boyfriends.
เเต่ถ้าอย่างนี้ก็ตัวใครตัวมันนะคะ
แล้วเดินสวนกับสาวน้อยน่ารักนางหนึ่ง เธอสวมเสื้อยืด (T-shirt)
ที่เขียนว่า I love boyfriend.
มีใครรู้บ้างว่าประโยคนี้ผิดตรงไหน
คำตอบก็คือ
1 คำว่า boyfriend (แฟน) เป็นคำที่แสดงความสัมพันธ์
เช่นเดียวกับ father, mother ดังนั้นเวลาใช้ต้องระบุด้วยว่าแฟนใคร
ไม่งั้น"งานเข้า"ได้ไม่รู้ตัว
2 นามนับได้ (countable noun) ต้องมี article (a,an,the)เสมอ
หรือไม่ก็ต้องทำให้อยู่ในรูปพหูพจน์ (plural) โดยการเติม S
ดังนั้นต้องแก้ประโยคใหม่เป็น
I love my boyfriend. ถ้ามีคนเดียว
แต่ถ้าอยากเก็บเธอไว้ทั้ง 2,3,4......คน ก็ต้องเขียนว่า
I love my boyfriends.
เเต่ถ้าอย่างนี้ก็ตัวใครตัวมันนะคะ
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
fun vocab 1
คำศัพท์
1 pair : สิ่งของสองสิ่งที่มีขนาดและรูปร่างเหมือนกัน เป็นของที่ใช้คู่กัน
เช่น รองเท้า ถุงมือ เป็นต้น
เช่น The surgeon puts on a pair of gloves before doing the operation.
ศัลยแพทย์สวมถุงมือคู่หนึ่ง ก่อนผ่าตัด
2 couple : คนสองคนที่แต่งงานกันหรืออยู่ด้วยกัน หรือมีความสัมพันธ์ฉันสามีภรรยา
เช่น The couple owns a Thai restaurant in Sydney.
สามีภรรยาคู่นี้ เป็นเจ้าของร้านอาหารไทยในนครซิดนีย์
3 twins: คู่ฝาแฝดที่เกิดวันเดียวกันจากมารดาคนเดียวกัน
เช่น Inn and Chan were well known as Siamese twins.
อินและจันเป็นที่รู้จักกันดีในนามฝาแฝด สยาม
นอกจากนั้นคำว่า twin ยังสามารถใช้ขยายคำนามเพื่อบอกว่าเหมือนกันทุกอย่าง
เช่น twin beds เตียงเดี่ยวสองเตียงที่ใช้คู่กัน, twin towers ตึกคู่ที่มีลักษณะเหมือนกัน
4 double: คนที่เหมือนกับอีกคนหนึ่งอย่างมาก
เช่น You can easily notice him because he is his father’s double.
คุณสังเกตเห็นเขาได้ง่ายเพราะเขาเหมือนพ่อของเขามาก
ส่วน double มักใช้ ขยายคำนามอื่นเพื่อบอกว่าสำหรับ สองคน
เช่น double room ห้องพักสำหรับสองคน, double bed เตียงสำหรับสองคนนอน
เมื่อใช้ double ขยายคำนาม หมายถึงมีส่วนประกอบที่เหมือนกัน
1 pair : สิ่งของสองสิ่งที่มีขนาดและรูปร่างเหมือนกัน เป็นของที่ใช้คู่กัน
เช่น รองเท้า ถุงมือ เป็นต้น
เช่น The surgeon puts on a pair of gloves before doing the operation.
ศัลยแพทย์สวมถุงมือคู่หนึ่ง ก่อนผ่าตัด
2 couple : คนสองคนที่แต่งงานกันหรืออยู่ด้วยกัน หรือมีความสัมพันธ์ฉันสามีภรรยา
เช่น The couple owns a Thai restaurant in Sydney.
สามีภรรยาคู่นี้ เป็นเจ้าของร้านอาหารไทยในนครซิดนีย์
3 twins: คู่ฝาแฝดที่เกิดวันเดียวกันจากมารดาคนเดียวกัน
เช่น Inn and Chan were well known as Siamese twins.
อินและจันเป็นที่รู้จักกันดีในนามฝาแฝด สยาม
นอกจากนั้นคำว่า twin ยังสามารถใช้ขยายคำนามเพื่อบอกว่าเหมือนกันทุกอย่าง
เช่น twin beds เตียงเดี่ยวสองเตียงที่ใช้คู่กัน, twin towers ตึกคู่ที่มีลักษณะเหมือนกัน
4 double: คนที่เหมือนกับอีกคนหนึ่งอย่างมาก
เช่น You can easily notice him because he is his father’s double.
คุณสังเกตเห็นเขาได้ง่ายเพราะเขาเหมือนพ่อของเขามาก
ส่วน double มักใช้ ขยายคำนามอื่นเพื่อบอกว่าสำหรับ สองคน
เช่น double room ห้องพักสำหรับสองคน, double bed เตียงสำหรับสองคนนอน
เมื่อใช้ double ขยายคำนาม หมายถึงมีส่วนประกอบที่เหมือนกัน
หรือของสองสิ่งที่เป็นประเภทเดียวกัน
เช่น double doors สองประตูที่เหมือนกัน, double tracks ทางสองทาง ที่ไปด้วยกัน
5 duo: นักแสดงที่เล่นคู่กัน อาจจะเป็นนักดนตรี นักร้อง หรือนักเต้นรำก็ได้
เช่น Thongchai and Jintara are a famous singing duo.
ธงชัยและจินตราเป็นนักร้องคู่ที่โด่งดัง
6 Soulmate หรือ soul mate: คู่ใจที่มีความสัมพันธ์ใกล้ชิด เข้าใจกันและกันอย่างลึกซึ้ง
เช่น If you have someone as a soulmate, you are definitely lucky.
หากคุณมีใครบางคนที่เป็นเพื่อนรู้ใจ คุณก็โชคดีเหลือเกิน
7 partner: คนที่ทำบางอย่างด้วยกัน
เช่น He is a good partner in dancing.
เขาเป็นคู่เต้นรำที่เก่ง คำนี้ยังหมายถึงคนที่แต่งงานด้วยหรือมีเพศสัมพันธ์ด้วย
เช่น He cannot live without his partner.
เขาไม่สามารถอยู่โดยปราศจากคู่ชีวิต (ภรรยา) ได้
ในด้านธุรกิจ partner หมายถึงหุ้นส่วนผู้ซึ่งร่วมกันเป็นเจ้าของกิจการ
เช่น One of the partners of the firm was absent from the conference.
หุ้นส่วนคนหนึ่งของบริษัทขาดประชุม
8 buddy: เป็นภาษาพูดอย่างไม่เป็นทางการ หมายถึงเพื่อนสนิท มักใช้กับเพื่อนผู้ชายด้วยกัน
เช่น An American cop must have a buddy when patrolling the area.
ตำรวจอเมริกันต้องมีคู่หู เมื่อออกตรวจท้องที่
9 date: เป็นภาษาอังกฤษแบบอเมริกัน หมายถึงคู่ควง คนที่ชอบพอกันและมีนัดด้วยกัน
เช่น ไปกินอาหาร หรือชมภาพยนตร์เป็นต้น
He told me that his date was an English teacher.
เขาบอกว่าคู่ควงของเขาเป็นครูสอนภาษาอังกฤษ
10 boyfriend/girlfriend: คู่รัก บุคคลที่มีความสัมพันธ์เชิงรักใคร่
เช่น He promises to call his girlfriend everyday when he is abroad.
เขาสัญญาจะโทรฯถึงแฟน/คนรัก ทุกวันเมื่อเขาไปเมืองนอก
ในภาษาอังกฤษมีหลายคำที่หมายถึงคู่รัก
คำว่า lover หมายถึงคนที่มีความสัมพันธ์เชิงชู้สาว แต่ไม่ได้แต่งงานกัน
เช่น In the Titanic, Rose and Dawson are lovers.
ในภาพยนตร์เรื่องไททานิก โรสและดอว์สันเป็นชู้รักกัน
นอกจากนี้ love ยังหมายถึงคนรัก หรือสิ่งของที่รักได้เช่นกัน
เช่น You are my love. คุณคือที่รักของผม
เช่น double doors สองประตูที่เหมือนกัน, double tracks ทางสองทาง ที่ไปด้วยกัน
5 duo: นักแสดงที่เล่นคู่กัน อาจจะเป็นนักดนตรี นักร้อง หรือนักเต้นรำก็ได้
เช่น Thongchai and Jintara are a famous singing duo.
ธงชัยและจินตราเป็นนักร้องคู่ที่โด่งดัง
6 Soulmate หรือ soul mate: คู่ใจที่มีความสัมพันธ์ใกล้ชิด เข้าใจกันและกันอย่างลึกซึ้ง
เช่น If you have someone as a soulmate, you are definitely lucky.
หากคุณมีใครบางคนที่เป็นเพื่อนรู้ใจ คุณก็โชคดีเหลือเกิน
7 partner: คนที่ทำบางอย่างด้วยกัน
เช่น He is a good partner in dancing.
เขาเป็นคู่เต้นรำที่เก่ง คำนี้ยังหมายถึงคนที่แต่งงานด้วยหรือมีเพศสัมพันธ์ด้วย
เช่น He cannot live without his partner.
เขาไม่สามารถอยู่โดยปราศจากคู่ชีวิต (ภรรยา) ได้
ในด้านธุรกิจ partner หมายถึงหุ้นส่วนผู้ซึ่งร่วมกันเป็นเจ้าของกิจการ
เช่น One of the partners of the firm was absent from the conference.
หุ้นส่วนคนหนึ่งของบริษัทขาดประชุม
8 buddy: เป็นภาษาพูดอย่างไม่เป็นทางการ หมายถึงเพื่อนสนิท มักใช้กับเพื่อนผู้ชายด้วยกัน
เช่น An American cop must have a buddy when patrolling the area.
ตำรวจอเมริกันต้องมีคู่หู เมื่อออกตรวจท้องที่
9 date: เป็นภาษาอังกฤษแบบอเมริกัน หมายถึงคู่ควง คนที่ชอบพอกันและมีนัดด้วยกัน
เช่น ไปกินอาหาร หรือชมภาพยนตร์เป็นต้น
He told me that his date was an English teacher.
เขาบอกว่าคู่ควงของเขาเป็นครูสอนภาษาอังกฤษ
10 boyfriend/girlfriend: คู่รัก บุคคลที่มีความสัมพันธ์เชิงรักใคร่
เช่น He promises to call his girlfriend everyday when he is abroad.
เขาสัญญาจะโทรฯถึงแฟน/คนรัก ทุกวันเมื่อเขาไปเมืองนอก
ในภาษาอังกฤษมีหลายคำที่หมายถึงคู่รัก
คำว่า lover หมายถึงคนที่มีความสัมพันธ์เชิงชู้สาว แต่ไม่ได้แต่งงานกัน
เช่น In the Titanic, Rose and Dawson are lovers.
ในภาพยนตร์เรื่องไททานิก โรสและดอว์สันเป็นชู้รักกัน
นอกจากนี้ love ยังหมายถึงคนรัก หรือสิ่งของที่รักได้เช่นกัน
เช่น You are my love. คุณคือที่รักของผม
ส่วน beloved หมายถึงคนรัก เป็นภาษาเก่า
เช่น He danced with his beloved. เขาเต้นรำกับคู่รักของเขา
และยังมี sweetheart หมายถึงคนรัก เป็นภาษาเก่า ภาษาในหนังสือพิมพ์หรือนิตยสาร
เช่น It is unlikely to marry one’s childhood sweetheart.
แทบเป็นไปไม่ได้ที่จะได้แต่งงานกับคนรักสมัยยังเด็ก
สำหรับคำว่า fan นั้นหมายถึงคนที่ชอบดาราหรือบุคคลที่มีชื่อเสียง
เช่น David Beckham signed his name on his fan’s shirt.
เดวิด เบ็กแฮมเซ็นชื่อบนเสื้อแฟนบอลคนหนึ่ง
academic mania : generation of independent information
New Generation: Generation of Independent Information
Its Impact on Communication Paradigm
ABSTRACT
Currently the emerging presence of collective groups of people
who are taking the role of the Sender is becoming to call for attention.
They are not recognized and defined in terms of communication
theories yet but they are well-informed, independent groups
of people, not typical media users who merely search
for contents required.
On the contrary, after searching for those contents, even creating
them themselves, they want to be heard, to be recognized
as a sender as well.
They have desire to publish the information or contents they have
to share it with others and at the same time to show who they are
and boast their access to exclusive information.
Some examples include amateur paparazzi/ stalkerazzi
who publish exclusive pictures and stories on the web boards, blogs,
automobile lovers publishing exclusive data on their websites, etc.
Through the paper, the elements and processes of conventional
communication models and the emergence of the aforementioned
new paradigm are explored, examined and presented.
Then an analysis on the formation and transformation of these
independent information seekers and its impact on communication
and cultural aspects together with suggestions on decency and
code of conduct are given to elevate the ethical standards
bringing about good cause for the society.
Key words: independence, paradigm shift, Thailand
by Asst. Prof. Rachada Dangchamroon,
Assumption University of Thailand
Traditionally the four basic components of communication are
the Sender (S), the Message (M), the Channel (C) and
the Receiver (R) with the feedback as to show
the effectiveness and efficiency of the communication.
The sender in terms of the mass communication field usually
refers to the mass media practitioners who gather and
report the information to the community. The information created
is then the message intended for the people to know.
And those people getting the information is undeniably the receiver.
The medium used for information transaction is,
of course the channel.
Currently there have been challenges and changes in
communication process.
The transaction becomes more complex and even confusing.
With the help of state-of-the-art technology including
satellite transmission, live broadcast together with
advanced mobile functions, the pattern of communication
transaction is altered and its components switch places at times.
The emerging presence of collective groups of people
who are taking the role of the Sender is becoming to call
for attention. They are not recognized and defined in terms of
communication theories yet but they are well-informed,
independent groups of people, not typical audiences but rather
producers or creators. Some examples include amateur paparazzi/
stalkerazzi who publish exclusive pictures and stories on
the web boards, blogs, automobile lovers publishing exclusive data
on their websites, etc.
Basically when studying the audiences,Two Main Audience Types
is a foundation theory used to discuss and explain their
nature and behavior
(John C. Merrill, John Lee and Edward Jay Friedlander, 1994)
The theory offers the following descriptions on
the audiences’ interests:
The General Audience : This group of audience comprises
people of all walks of life. They have nothing in common.
They show no common interests. They are of all ages, professions.
It does not matter who they are, what they do and where they live.
An example of this type of audience is middle-aged people
in the north, teenagers in the south and first jobbers in Bangkok
watching an evening news program.
The Specialized Audience : This group of audience consists of
people who have something in common. Even though
they contribute to different demographic backgrounds,
they share some common psychographics. In other words
they have some common interests. An example of this type
of audience is middle-aged people in the north,
teenagers in the south and first jobbers
in Bangkok watching a sports program offering golf tips
since they all are interested in golf.
Obviously the independent information seekers fall into
the second type. But what is more special and interesting
about them is, apart from searching for those contents,
viewing them as convention media users, they afterwards;
produce the contents themselves.
When all the desired information and details are possessed
and processed, they want to be heard ;
to be recognized as a sender as well.
They have desire to publish the information or contents they have
to share it with others and at the same time to show
who they are and boast their access to exclusive information.
This evolution is meant for various fields and industries.
For leisure and pastime purposes, it is no doubt on-line diaries,
blogs, web boards and chat rooms have become powerful
sources of information. Those who are creators and producers
have undeniably turned out to be opinion leaders among
their fans and viewers.
As for the show business, Thai people have witnessed photographs
of a legendary baby launched on the internet long before the local
newspaper have them published on the front page. (The mother is
a well-known Thai actress who was never found to be dating with
a guy before she was found pregnant before marriage.
It then became a big news story and notorious gossip in the society).
For entertainment/ show business-oriented web boards/
community chat rooms, some popular sites are
www. nationgroup.com, www.kapook.com, www.hunsa.com, etc.
For the political arena, Thai citizens have recently been bombarded
with information and details about the two rivals. Rumors,
hearsays, pictures as well as anecdotes of the administration and
the opponent have been sent through e-mails and text messages
among families, friends and peers.
Surprisingly some are more exclusive and up-to-date than
what the conventional media have to offer.
For politics-oriented web boards/ community chat rooms,
some popular sites include www.pantip.com (rajdumnern)
Meanwhile the private business sector has its first-hand
experience on the matter. As a Public Affairs Specialist,
in the Automobile industry says (Interview: 15 May, 2006):
“We have recently become aware of particular groups of our car
users who create and publish contents about our sedans and trucks.
They form their own community sharing with one another
information, tips, comments and reviews on our products.
It seems they are passionate about our cars and they strive for
the most exclusive details on their own.
They do not simply consume the information fed to them through
the media eg. brochures, advertisements and so on.
Instead they crave for some other sources providing them
in-depth and off-the-record information. To my surprise,
some details and pictures on their website are beyond my access.
Discussion pages from popular sites include
http://www.fordclub.net/, www. weekendhobby.com
Communication Models to Explain the Role and Function of the
Generation of Independent Information
According to the Two-Step Theory (Devito, 1991), messages from
the media influence opinion leaders then these opinion leaders
influence the general public in more interpersonal situations
as seen in the following picture:
Each party has its clear-cut role and function.
While the Multi-step Theory states that influence moves back
and forth from the media to the people (who also interact with
one another), then back to the media, then back to the people
and so on as shown in the picture.
Though they have interactions among themselves, each party
still holds on to its own role and function.
However, media users nowadays become more sophisticated and
well aware of their access of information. They receive, interchange
and send the information primarily among themselves but
welcome outsiders as well. They ;therefore,
are a combination between the two aforementioned paradigms,
creating a hybrid of being the sender and the receiver
together with some aspects of being the opinion leader.
To draw a picture that should best fit their media use,
the following is shown:
They, performing multi-tasking as the audience, the opinion leader
and the sender have interactions among themselves.
For their profile, they are not typical media users but they have
some aspects of individualism in the sense that their interests and
desires are put as a priority. (Berger, 1995). They focus on
catering to their own interests and needs but do not mind
sharing what they have got with people having the same craving.
It can be concluded they are individualistic with some sense of
community building.
To understand more about these well-informed, independent
groups of people, A Trinary Classification of Audiences is explored
for examination and explanations on their attitudes to know
how they stand as an audience.
(John C. Merrill, John Lee and Edward Jay Friedlander, 1994)
Attitudinal Illiterates. These people have a negative attitude
towards words, towards reading and writing and towards
serious forms of media.
They are exposed to the most superficial
and action-oriented messages. They seek entertainment and
excitement, reading light material that gratifies emotional appetites.
They are not idea-oriented; they hate analysis and in-depth stories.
Attitudinal Pragmatists. These people involve themselves in
social affairs and are interested in knowing what is going on in
their communities and in the world.
They are exposed to a variety of media messages especially those
that might be of help to them. They seek messages that will help
them advance and live more usefully and happily in
their communities.
Attitudinal Intellectuals. These people have an intellectual attitude.
They are thinkers, seeking specialized and serious media messages.
They like to be stimulated mentally. They enjoy thinking and
they want media messages that will stimulate them.
It is evidently seen that these independent information seekers
are not categorized as Attitudinal Illiterates. However, they are
a mix between Attitudinal Pragmatists
and Attitudinal Intellectuals.
This results from the fact that they are not just exposed to
the contents for their own good. But after getting those contents,
even creating them themselves, they want to be respected as
a sender as well. They long to publish the information or contents
they have to share it with others thus amazing people with
their superior means and resources of acquiring the information.
In summary, they initially seek the information because
it is useful for them. It is of their interests and benefits.
But they afterwards want others to know their intellectual capacity,
to impress them with their knowledge.
Finally when it comes to the pursuit of civility and ethical
codes of conduct, some possible schemes to be employed to inspect
the decency of the messages are
1. To have the Ombudsman System : It is of best policy if the
Thai community could have a joint board or commission hired
to investigate questionable and problematic media messages
and give comments or recommend actions.
2. To empower and strengthen those existing organizations
such as the internet police etc. These institutions should be
recognized and accredited as a regulatory apparatus by the public
and of course the government.
To make these work, we need to have strict rules and regulations,
unanimous code of ethics together with grave penalty to prevent
troublesome and damaging consequences such as libel,
invasion of privacy, plagiarism and of course obscenity and
pornography (Alexander and Hanson, 2001).
This is especially true for some particular channels such as
the internet where anyone can publish anything without registering
or disclosing their true identities thus bearing no liability
and accountability whatsoever. Setting boundaries and limits
will certainly elevate the ethical standards bringing about
good cause for the society.
References
English
Alexander and Hanson (2001). Taking Sides: Clashing Views on
Controversial Issues in Mass Media and Society (6th edition).
McGraw Hill/Dushkin.
Arthur Asa Berger (1995). Essentials of Mass Communication Theory.
California: Sage Publications, Inc.
Devito, J.A. (1991). Human Communication: the Basic Course (5th edition).
New York: Harper Collins Publishers Inc.
Dominick. J.R. (1994). The Dynamics of Mass Communication (4th edition).
New York: McGraw Hill Inc.
John C. Merrill, John Lee and Edward Jay Friedlander(1994). Modern Mass
Media. Harper Collins Publishers Inc.
Websites
www.fordclub.net
http://www.hunsa.com/
http://www.kapook.com/
www.nationgroup.com
http://www.pantip.com/
www.weekendhobby.com
Its Impact on Communication Paradigm
ABSTRACT
Currently the emerging presence of collective groups of people
who are taking the role of the Sender is becoming to call for attention.
They are not recognized and defined in terms of communication
theories yet but they are well-informed, independent groups
of people, not typical media users who merely search
for contents required.
On the contrary, after searching for those contents, even creating
them themselves, they want to be heard, to be recognized
as a sender as well.
They have desire to publish the information or contents they have
to share it with others and at the same time to show who they are
and boast their access to exclusive information.
Some examples include amateur paparazzi/ stalkerazzi
who publish exclusive pictures and stories on the web boards, blogs,
automobile lovers publishing exclusive data on their websites, etc.
Through the paper, the elements and processes of conventional
communication models and the emergence of the aforementioned
new paradigm are explored, examined and presented.
Then an analysis on the formation and transformation of these
independent information seekers and its impact on communication
and cultural aspects together with suggestions on decency and
code of conduct are given to elevate the ethical standards
bringing about good cause for the society.
Key words: independence, paradigm shift, Thailand
by Asst. Prof. Rachada Dangchamroon,
Assumption University of Thailand
PAPER
Traditionally the four basic components of communication are
the Sender (S), the Message (M), the Channel (C) and
the Receiver (R) with the feedback as to show
the effectiveness and efficiency of the communication.
The sender in terms of the mass communication field usually
refers to the mass media practitioners who gather and
report the information to the community. The information created
is then the message intended for the people to know.
And those people getting the information is undeniably the receiver.
The medium used for information transaction is,
of course the channel.
Currently there have been challenges and changes in
communication process.
The transaction becomes more complex and even confusing.
With the help of state-of-the-art technology including
satellite transmission, live broadcast together with
advanced mobile functions, the pattern of communication
transaction is altered and its components switch places at times.
The emerging presence of collective groups of people
who are taking the role of the Sender is becoming to call
for attention. They are not recognized and defined in terms of
communication theories yet but they are well-informed,
independent groups of people, not typical audiences but rather
producers or creators. Some examples include amateur paparazzi/
stalkerazzi who publish exclusive pictures and stories on
the web boards, blogs, automobile lovers publishing exclusive data
on their websites, etc.
Basically when studying the audiences,Two Main Audience Types
is a foundation theory used to discuss and explain their
nature and behavior
(John C. Merrill, John Lee and Edward Jay Friedlander, 1994)
The theory offers the following descriptions on
the audiences’ interests:
The General Audience : This group of audience comprises
people of all walks of life. They have nothing in common.
They show no common interests. They are of all ages, professions.
It does not matter who they are, what they do and where they live.
An example of this type of audience is middle-aged people
in the north, teenagers in the south and first jobbers in Bangkok
watching an evening news program.
The Specialized Audience : This group of audience consists of
people who have something in common. Even though
they contribute to different demographic backgrounds,
they share some common psychographics. In other words
they have some common interests. An example of this type
of audience is middle-aged people in the north,
teenagers in the south and first jobbers
in Bangkok watching a sports program offering golf tips
since they all are interested in golf.
Obviously the independent information seekers fall into
the second type. But what is more special and interesting
about them is, apart from searching for those contents,
viewing them as convention media users, they afterwards;
produce the contents themselves.
When all the desired information and details are possessed
and processed, they want to be heard ;
to be recognized as a sender as well.
They have desire to publish the information or contents they have
to share it with others and at the same time to show
who they are and boast their access to exclusive information.
This evolution is meant for various fields and industries.
For leisure and pastime purposes, it is no doubt on-line diaries,
blogs, web boards and chat rooms have become powerful
sources of information. Those who are creators and producers
have undeniably turned out to be opinion leaders among
their fans and viewers.
As for the show business, Thai people have witnessed photographs
of a legendary baby launched on the internet long before the local
newspaper have them published on the front page. (The mother is
a well-known Thai actress who was never found to be dating with
a guy before she was found pregnant before marriage.
It then became a big news story and notorious gossip in the society).
For entertainment/ show business-oriented web boards/
community chat rooms, some popular sites are
www. nationgroup.com, www.kapook.com, www.hunsa.com, etc.
For the political arena, Thai citizens have recently been bombarded
with information and details about the two rivals. Rumors,
hearsays, pictures as well as anecdotes of the administration and
the opponent have been sent through e-mails and text messages
among families, friends and peers.
Surprisingly some are more exclusive and up-to-date than
what the conventional media have to offer.
For politics-oriented web boards/ community chat rooms,
some popular sites include www.pantip.com (rajdumnern)
Meanwhile the private business sector has its first-hand
experience on the matter. As a Public Affairs Specialist,
in the Automobile industry says (Interview: 15 May, 2006):
“We have recently become aware of particular groups of our car
users who create and publish contents about our sedans and trucks.
They form their own community sharing with one another
information, tips, comments and reviews on our products.
It seems they are passionate about our cars and they strive for
the most exclusive details on their own.
They do not simply consume the information fed to them through
the media eg. brochures, advertisements and so on.
Instead they crave for some other sources providing them
in-depth and off-the-record information. To my surprise,
some details and pictures on their website are beyond my access.
Discussion pages from popular sites include
http://www.fordclub.net/, www. weekendhobby.com
Communication Models to Explain the Role and Function of the
Generation of Independent Information
According to the Two-Step Theory (Devito, 1991), messages from
the media influence opinion leaders then these opinion leaders
influence the general public in more interpersonal situations
as seen in the following picture:
Each party has its clear-cut role and function.
While the Multi-step Theory states that influence moves back
and forth from the media to the people (who also interact with
one another), then back to the media, then back to the people
and so on as shown in the picture.
Though they have interactions among themselves, each party
still holds on to its own role and function.
However, media users nowadays become more sophisticated and
well aware of their access of information. They receive, interchange
and send the information primarily among themselves but
welcome outsiders as well. They ;therefore,
are a combination between the two aforementioned paradigms,
creating a hybrid of being the sender and the receiver
together with some aspects of being the opinion leader.
To draw a picture that should best fit their media use,
the following is shown:
They, performing multi-tasking as the audience, the opinion leader
and the sender have interactions among themselves.
For their profile, they are not typical media users but they have
some aspects of individualism in the sense that their interests and
desires are put as a priority. (Berger, 1995). They focus on
catering to their own interests and needs but do not mind
sharing what they have got with people having the same craving.
It can be concluded they are individualistic with some sense of
community building.
To understand more about these well-informed, independent
groups of people, A Trinary Classification of Audiences is explored
for examination and explanations on their attitudes to know
how they stand as an audience.
(John C. Merrill, John Lee and Edward Jay Friedlander, 1994)
Attitudinal Illiterates. These people have a negative attitude
towards words, towards reading and writing and towards
serious forms of media.
They are exposed to the most superficial
and action-oriented messages. They seek entertainment and
excitement, reading light material that gratifies emotional appetites.
They are not idea-oriented; they hate analysis and in-depth stories.
Attitudinal Pragmatists. These people involve themselves in
social affairs and are interested in knowing what is going on in
their communities and in the world.
They are exposed to a variety of media messages especially those
that might be of help to them. They seek messages that will help
them advance and live more usefully and happily in
their communities.
Attitudinal Intellectuals. These people have an intellectual attitude.
They are thinkers, seeking specialized and serious media messages.
They like to be stimulated mentally. They enjoy thinking and
they want media messages that will stimulate them.
It is evidently seen that these independent information seekers
are not categorized as Attitudinal Illiterates. However, they are
a mix between Attitudinal Pragmatists
and Attitudinal Intellectuals.
This results from the fact that they are not just exposed to
the contents for their own good. But after getting those contents,
even creating them themselves, they want to be respected as
a sender as well. They long to publish the information or contents
they have to share it with others thus amazing people with
their superior means and resources of acquiring the information.
In summary, they initially seek the information because
it is useful for them. It is of their interests and benefits.
But they afterwards want others to know their intellectual capacity,
to impress them with their knowledge.
Finally when it comes to the pursuit of civility and ethical
codes of conduct, some possible schemes to be employed to inspect
the decency of the messages are
1. To have the Ombudsman System : It is of best policy if the
Thai community could have a joint board or commission hired
to investigate questionable and problematic media messages
and give comments or recommend actions.
2. To empower and strengthen those existing organizations
such as the internet police etc. These institutions should be
recognized and accredited as a regulatory apparatus by the public
and of course the government.
To make these work, we need to have strict rules and regulations,
unanimous code of ethics together with grave penalty to prevent
troublesome and damaging consequences such as libel,
invasion of privacy, plagiarism and of course obscenity and
pornography (Alexander and Hanson, 2001).
This is especially true for some particular channels such as
the internet where anyone can publish anything without registering
or disclosing their true identities thus bearing no liability
and accountability whatsoever. Setting boundaries and limits
will certainly elevate the ethical standards bringing about
good cause for the society.
References
English
Alexander and Hanson (2001). Taking Sides: Clashing Views on
Controversial Issues in Mass Media and Society (6th edition).
McGraw Hill/Dushkin.
Arthur Asa Berger (1995). Essentials of Mass Communication Theory.
California: Sage Publications, Inc.
Devito, J.A. (1991). Human Communication: the Basic Course (5th edition).
New York: Harper Collins Publishers Inc.
Dominick. J.R. (1994). The Dynamics of Mass Communication (4th edition).
New York: McGraw Hill Inc.
John C. Merrill, John Lee and Edward Jay Friedlander(1994). Modern Mass
Media. Harper Collins Publishers Inc.
Websites
www.fordclub.net
http://www.hunsa.com/
http://www.kapook.com/
www.nationgroup.com
http://www.pantip.com/
www.weekendhobby.com
academic mania :media ethics
Introduction
“Media are instrumental in the transmission of cultural values.
They provide important values and offer symbolic cues for
standards of conduct, including ethical behavior,”
wrote Louis A. Day in his Ethics in Media Communications.
However in the information age with a fierce competition
forcing the media to struggle hard, the traditional concepts of
social responsibility might have been challenged.
This is especially true with tabloid journalism’s trying to satisfy
the public’s thirst for violence and sexually related contents.
Unethical conducts such as invasion of privacy,
inaccurate information, fabrication of facts, etc. are listed
as major concerns of media ethicists around the world.
In Thailand, to handle sexually offensive issues is much more
tricky when there is neither strict law enforcement nor
the control system. There are no conclusive viewpoints
and opinions on what the media are obliged to do
and forbidden to do.
Among special problem areas on sexual matters come sex crime
and pornography. Recently two cases of them occurred in
Thai society ( a woman accused of raping a man and a nude
advertorial on a magazine’s front cover.) In the paper,
these two cases are examined to see how the media acted in
response. The observations given here are based on the concept
of the media’s functions together with ethical theories in
mass communication.
Case : The first ever woman accused of raping a man
On November 19, 2003 Thairath newspaper’s headline read
“ A big shock . Female Teacher Rapes Male Ninth-Grader”
stunned the whole community. The news piece dealt
with an accusation on an English teacher at a high school in
Samutprakarn province of raping one of her students.
She was said to have tricked the boy into her office to
have sexual intercourse with him for several times.
Soon the issue got the media attention due to its following
news values ( Hodgson,1996) :
1. Proximity : The matter occurred in Thai society and
it certainly interested Thai people especially those
concerned parties such as the school, the family
members of the two sides and acquaintances of both
the teacher and the student, etc. It also raised questions
on the educational system among Thais.
2. Impact on members of people : What happened
did not affect only the two parts but also a large number
of people. Directly and indirectly. Seriously and
slightly affected. They include the population of teachers,
the student body as well as worried parents and so on.
3. Accidents , crime , natural disasters : sexual assaults
are counted as one of the most serious crime.
It is no wonder why the subject matter became a very
favorite topic of the press at that time.
4. Unique , bizarre people or events : “ Rape ” cases
usually deal with men violating women. Conversely
this case featured a woman as a rapist and a boy as
a rape victim. Having this uniqueness , this story even
attracted both the press and the readers more.
5. Nostalgic, humorous, sad or ironic people as events:
News pieces that read a male teacher rapes a female
student are common. But what is ironic here in
this matter is the accusation that an older female
teacher raped a male youngster. The fact that a woman
is not capable of raping a man and it is physically
impossible might lead to people’s curiosity to find out
how that happened.
6. Federal and other governments : Later when federal
institutions such as the Council of Attorney, the Ministry
of Education voiced out their comments about that
sexual assault, the media and people were again
drawn to the matter.
7. Timeliness : When one side had to say something,
the other had to feedback on that . As the matter
progressed, new details were reported every now
and then. Everyone wanted updated bits of this hot story.
New details emerged all the time.
To conclude, this first ever case of a woman accused of
raping a man appeared to be a very hot story. And
the press tried their best to get the most specifics
and updates of the story. Their competition for fast news
brought about several inappropriate practices.
They are:
1.Lack of thoroughness
At first the matter was made public stating that the
female teacher raped one of her male students as
appeared in Thairath newspaper of November 19,2003,
Khao Sod newspaper of November 19,2003 and Daily
News newspaper of November 19,2003. But on the very
next day, the media reported it otherwise saying that
the teacher defended herself claiming that she was raped.
And later on the matter became clearer and more
conclusive that it was not a rape as it was reported
in the first place.
The media fell into a trap called “Feeding Frenzy“
or the act of rush to cover a sensational story (Agee,
Ault and Emery, 1997). Instead of checking all facts and
finding evidence before reporting it to the audience,
the media’ s only concern is fast news. Though in the end
the case was made clear, the media already misjudged
the teacher ruining her reputation and career making it
a very painful experience for the innocent.
2 Improper presentation of the matter
Rape cases are considered as serious, hard news.
They should be reported in an informative and
factual way. They are not supposed to be treated as
a drama having a plot, a climax, a twist or good
and bad characters.
In this matter, first the media featured the woman as
an antagonist, and the boy as an innocent character.
Then the matter turned upside down. The villain(teacher)
was mistaken and proved to be innocent with the help of
supporting characters ( lawyers ). It reached the climax
and the mystery was solved when the boy’s classmates
testified against him, in favor of the teacher.
Apart from making it look dramatic, the media also
abused and deployed the tone and manner of the story
when reporting it to the public.
For example, the use of “role model”, “horny” in the
mentioned newspapers all helped paint the teacher bad.
This is not a civil and ethical of the media to do so;
especially, when the court had never reached a verdict yet.
The accused should be treated with respect and decency.
3. Invasion of privacy
“ The media are so hungry for stories. They are not to
violate the rights of either the boy or the teacher by
publishing offensive stories, headlines and pictures,”
printed in Bangkok Post of November 22,2003.
Above is a statement voiced out by Mr.Sanpranit
Koompraphant the Director of Children’s Rights Protection
Foundation on the media’s coverage of the matter.
Sex crime is a very sensitive issue dealing with sexual
misconduct, not a very pleasant side of life. Traditionally
the media have tried to avoid exposing the names,
the addresses including faces of both the victim and
the accused ( Day, 1997: 125.) This is not to psychologically
violate the victim again, placing trauma and stigma
on the already unfortunate.
In this ”teacher – student rape” case, the Thai community
had witnessed the media’s initial attempt to use aliases for
the concerned parties. However, this did not last long
before they could not resist the competition and started to
reveal all the personal details as well as pictures.
Though there are no particular laws against the media’ s
revelation of the news figures’ intimate details,
the media cannot just publicize whatever they want to.
They cannot take it for granted and use old-fashioned
excuses saying that it is for the public’s interest
and benefits. They should have agreements on standards
of conduct in dealing with this kind of vulnerable
and sensitive subject matter.
The media practitioner should have an ethical mind
when dealing with these problematic sexual issues.
True, it is difficult. But it can be and must be done
despite of having no strict law enforcement and loopholes.
To be ethically sound because of the laws is good
but to do so because they feel that it’s their responsibility
is even better.
Case : The first ever nude advertorial on a magazine’s
front cover
Picture
The pictures shown are the cause of another war of discourse
on the subject matter of nudity in Thailand.
This fashion shooting features Yossavadee Hassadeevichit
and her boyfriend, Justin Randall Farr almost naked having
only KTC Visa Mini Credit Card to cover the groin area.
It made a hot news piece for the following aspects:
1. Proximity : The fact that this set of shooting features
a Thai super model on a Thai magazine (Image),
available on marketplace in Thailand attracted
Thai people’s attention.
2. Impact on members of people : The matter worried
various groups of people especially those who are concerned
about Thai values. Though the impact is seemingly intangible,
it had a cultural impact on the Thai community on the ideology
of nudity particularly when we are still trying to negotiate
westernized trends in the Thai contexts on what is appropriate
and what is not.
3. Unique , bizarre people or events : The unique characteristics
of this advertorial fashion lie in the following:
3.1 The shoot features the female model with her boyfriend
in a very sexually seductive pose. Both of them practically
wore nothing.
3.2 The product advertised is a credit card, which
fairly speaking, has nothing to do with this provocative
fashion shoot.
3.3 The barely shoot was printed in a fashion magazine,
one of the most popular and best-known ones amongst
teenagers and young adults primarily targeted at females,
not one that aims for male readers or the so-called adult
magazines (eg. Playboy, Penthouse, etc.)
4. Prominent people : People are interested in the activities
of the notable. In this case, Yossavadee Hassadeevichit is
considered one of the Thai super models. She is well-known
for her sexy poses. This time when she outrageously
featured on the magazine, the public was definitely attracted
to the matter.
5. Federal and other governments : The matter got heated up
when it was criticized by the federal organizations
such as the Ministry of Culture, the Commission of Religion,
the Office of Police and so on. The matter would have
been less questioned if that credit card had not been issued
by Krungthai Bank, a state-owned bank .
6.Timeliness: When concerned parties poured out their views,
it made good news. The media keep updating the matter
by interviewing particular persons involved to capture the audience.
This problematic fashion shoot got a blast of criticism
and comments for two major reasons. One undoubtedly
involves overly sexual exposure in the Thai context.
The other is on the relevance of the use of supposedly nudity
as the selling point with the product of a credit card;
especially , one issued by a state-owned bank.
The following are some of the remarks from Manager,
Daily News, and Kom Chad Luek newspapers on February 25,
2004 respectively:
Credit Card to be Questioned ‘ Art or Pornographic?
“ Naked… Yo-Yossavadee Hassadeevichit a super model posed
with her boyfriend for a credit card advertisement.
It has drawn a lot of criticism. The bank issuing the card
maintains the shoot is fine.”
“ I need not say anything. Though nipples, pubic hair and
the sex organ are covered, leaving it to the viewers’
imagination, this is an example of selling sex.
It is even worse to see the advertisement is for a credit
card issued by a state-owned bank” said Veerasak Kowsurat,
Deputy Minister, the Ministry of Culture.
Even today the definitions of pornography and art
are still unclear. That applies to Thai society as well,
as Commander Lieutenant Picharn Jittirat, Commander,
Office of the Police stated in Kom Chad Luek newspaper of
February 26, 2004, “In Thailand the law states that sexually
offensive materials are pictures with the sex organ exhibited.
And with this very attribute, it is breaking the law.”
The distinctions between nude and sexy attributes have long
been in dispute but no clear-cut criteria have been established.
After all one person’s pornography may be another’s art.
But from these headlines on the first pages of well-known
newspapers and magazines, it is conclusive that not
the whole Thai community ethically and conscientiously
approves this printed matter. It surely has upset and offended
concerned parties in particular.
But a more frustrating part lying beneath all this is the way
the media responded to the matter. This advertorial fashion
shoot made itself “ the talk of the town” and had its presence
all over the media. This hot issue got the media’s attention
right away. Thai people got informed about the matter and its
controversy but in a light and shallow level .
All the media had to say was about the figures and postures
of the two models, the two sides of opinions (those who like
and dislike ), accusative attacks from the state organizations
and defensive claims and explanations from the producers.
What was lacking was the media’s own viewpoints and critiques.
As the watchdog of the society, the media are expected to
not only tell but also explain what is going on. But for this issue,
unlike all other political, economic or social issues, there were
no irrefutable and concrete conceptions towards this one.
The media never voiced out their point of view whether or not
it was nudity, and whether not it is acceptable in Thai society.
However a very unexpected and unlikely source of definite
conviction on the matter was the model herself when she appeared
on the TV program called “ Samakom Chom Dow”, basically
a light – hearted and entertaining talk show late at night.
In the show, Yossavadee was asked whether she would take
more fashion shooting jobs that expose a lot of skin in the future.
Yosawadee simply said no. Then she talked about this credit card
fashion and referred to it as nudity. She also mentioned that
it was too much for Thai society . And she apologized for that.
All of the arguments presented here lead to two pleas to post
on the media. One is the request on the ethical standards for
ruling judgments over sexually indecent material. The other is
the moral sensibilities of the media in setting proper boundaries
to accommodate both the producers and concerned public.
We can see that when dealing with touchy and controversial issues
on sexuality, the media seem to adopt an intermittent and
unstable standpoint on their duties and functions towards
the society. In other words they are unable to accomplish
what they are supposed to do.
According to one of the best known and foremost theories
discussing the media’s functions ; Lasswell’s Three Functions
( Littlejohn, 1996 ), the media are to perform the following :
1. Surveillance of the Environment : The media are to gather
and disseminate the information to society. For this function,
it can be stated that the media have done a satisfactory job
since people are informed of new events almost at
the real-time basis.
But what to ask for more from the media is the way they treat
the stories and their presentation styles. They should show
more respect and civility when publicizing the sex-concerned stories.
Doing so the media’s professionalism will be recognized
and elevated. Thus more credits and credentials will be granted.
2. Correlation of the Parts of Society : The media should also explain
and interpret the news to help the members of the society
understand the whole sense of it. Clearly, the media have not
fulfilled this requirement.
From the two cases mentioned, it is seen that the media fail to
make people understand what is going on, its backgrounds,
consequences and end results.
These aspects should be linked and weaved together to create
thorough understanding of the big picture of the matter.
From the contents and the presentation styles, it seems the media
just want to excite the crowd with new details. And they apparently
lost the ethical battle to the competition. The news stories should be
reported in order to make people aware of the incident in a form of
educational and informative, not entertaining pieces.
3.Transmission of the Social Heritage : The media should pass on the
social and cultural values from one generation to the next. For this
very function, the media seem to fail badly. It can’t be denied
that in this fast-paced society, we need timely and up-to-date
information. But at the end of the day, the media should offer
comprehensive sets of instructions and guidelines so that people can
develop themselves accordingly. What could be added are more
analyses and critiques from the media.
However, before they can direct or guide people on what is right
and what is wrong, they need to have their firm standpoints of
their own and should hold on those.
To conclude, the media, viewed as a crucial institution in a community,
are supposed to help people keep abreast of what is happening out
there by performing the three functions stated. Humanity in general
is supposedly better off after reading or hearing or seeing the news
brought to them by the media for one reason. It gives them knowledge.
Certain expectations are placed on the media as mentioned in Agee,
Ault and Emery’s Introduction to Mass Communication,
that journalists are to endure hardships, danger, and even give
their lives to make people know the truth as best they can find it.
They should insist on accuracy, professionalism and sensitivity
in reporting.
Take Janet Jackson’s breast show on the live broadcast of Super Bowl
as an example. The day after the incident occurred, the Federal
Communication Commission (FCC), the main government media
watchdog in America swiftly demanded a thorough investigation as
the matter was considered offensive causing national controversy
and outrage among the viewers. Then CBS television which showed
the game quickly apologized. The matter shows how the media
are monitored and demonstrates their act of social responsibility.
Now that the censorship on the press no longer exists in Thailand,
some possible schemes to be used to inspect the practices of
the media are
1) to have the Ombudsman System : This is a kind of self-criticism.
Thai press could have a board or commission hired to investigate
questionable and problematic journalistic conduct and give comments
or recommend actions.
2) to empower and strengthen those journalistic organizations such as
the Press Council of Thailand, Thai Journalist Association etc.
These institutions should be recognized and accredited as a
regulatory apparatus by the public, the government
and the press themselves.
However, to make these work, we need to have strict rules
and regulations, unanimous code of ethics together with grave
penalty like what they have in the United States, Sweden, etc.
The journalist should obtain a license for his of her professionalism.
Unethical and socially irresponsible media practitioners and
organizations are to be punished and suffered.
Having all these hopefully will uplift journalistic standards of conduct.
With their better moral and ethical conscience, the media will
eventually be awarded with the public’s trust and respect.
In that sense the media themselves will really have become the
fourth estate as they have been thought of.
References
English
Agee K., Ault H. and Emery E. Introduction to Mass Communication.
12th Edition. Longman, 1997.
Children’s Rights Protection Foundation Director Warns the Media.
Bangkok Post. November 22,2003: 2
Day A. Ethics in Media Communication :Cases and Controversies. 2nd
Edition. Wadsworth Publishing Company, 1997.
F.W. Hodgson. Modern Newspaper Practice : A Primer on the Press.
4th Edition. Focal Press, 1996.
Littlejohn W. Theories of Human Communication. 5th Edition.
Wadsworth Publishing Company, 1996.
Thai
23 Year-Old Teacher Rapes 13 Year-Old Student. Kom Chad Luek.
November 19,2003: 1.
Big shock . Female Teacher Rapes Male Ninth- Grader. Thairath.
November 19,2003: 1.
Credit Card to be Questioned ‘ Art or Pornographic? Manager.
February 25, 2004: 1.
Naked… Yo-Yossavadee Hassadeevichit a Super Model Posted with
Her Boyfriend for a Credit Card Advertisement. Daily News.
February 25, 2004: 1.
Thai Laws with Loopholes. Kom Chad Luk. February 25,2004: 4.
Talk show. Samakom Chom Dow, March 24 , 2004.
Teacher Defended the Boy Came on to Her. Khao Sod. November 19,
2003: 1.
Weird.. Horny Teacher Tricked Student to Rape. Daily News.
November 19, 2003: 1.
http://www.thairath.co.th/. November 20-22,2003.
http://www.dailynews.co.th/. November 19-20,2003.
http://www.komchadluek.com/. November 19-22,2003.
http://www.khaosod.co.th/. November 20-22,2003.
http://www.nationgroup.co.th/. February 8-9,2004.
“Media are instrumental in the transmission of cultural values.
They provide important values and offer symbolic cues for
standards of conduct, including ethical behavior,”
wrote Louis A. Day in his Ethics in Media Communications.
However in the information age with a fierce competition
forcing the media to struggle hard, the traditional concepts of
social responsibility might have been challenged.
This is especially true with tabloid journalism’s trying to satisfy
the public’s thirst for violence and sexually related contents.
Unethical conducts such as invasion of privacy,
inaccurate information, fabrication of facts, etc. are listed
as major concerns of media ethicists around the world.
In Thailand, to handle sexually offensive issues is much more
tricky when there is neither strict law enforcement nor
the control system. There are no conclusive viewpoints
and opinions on what the media are obliged to do
and forbidden to do.
Among special problem areas on sexual matters come sex crime
and pornography. Recently two cases of them occurred in
Thai society ( a woman accused of raping a man and a nude
advertorial on a magazine’s front cover.) In the paper,
these two cases are examined to see how the media acted in
response. The observations given here are based on the concept
of the media’s functions together with ethical theories in
mass communication.
Case : The first ever woman accused of raping a man
On November 19, 2003 Thairath newspaper’s headline read
“ A big shock . Female Teacher Rapes Male Ninth-Grader”
stunned the whole community. The news piece dealt
with an accusation on an English teacher at a high school in
Samutprakarn province of raping one of her students.
She was said to have tricked the boy into her office to
have sexual intercourse with him for several times.
Soon the issue got the media attention due to its following
news values ( Hodgson,1996) :
1. Proximity : The matter occurred in Thai society and
it certainly interested Thai people especially those
concerned parties such as the school, the family
members of the two sides and acquaintances of both
the teacher and the student, etc. It also raised questions
on the educational system among Thais.
2. Impact on members of people : What happened
did not affect only the two parts but also a large number
of people. Directly and indirectly. Seriously and
slightly affected. They include the population of teachers,
the student body as well as worried parents and so on.
3. Accidents , crime , natural disasters : sexual assaults
are counted as one of the most serious crime.
It is no wonder why the subject matter became a very
favorite topic of the press at that time.
4. Unique , bizarre people or events : “ Rape ” cases
usually deal with men violating women. Conversely
this case featured a woman as a rapist and a boy as
a rape victim. Having this uniqueness , this story even
attracted both the press and the readers more.
5. Nostalgic, humorous, sad or ironic people as events:
News pieces that read a male teacher rapes a female
student are common. But what is ironic here in
this matter is the accusation that an older female
teacher raped a male youngster. The fact that a woman
is not capable of raping a man and it is physically
impossible might lead to people’s curiosity to find out
how that happened.
6. Federal and other governments : Later when federal
institutions such as the Council of Attorney, the Ministry
of Education voiced out their comments about that
sexual assault, the media and people were again
drawn to the matter.
7. Timeliness : When one side had to say something,
the other had to feedback on that . As the matter
progressed, new details were reported every now
and then. Everyone wanted updated bits of this hot story.
New details emerged all the time.
To conclude, this first ever case of a woman accused of
raping a man appeared to be a very hot story. And
the press tried their best to get the most specifics
and updates of the story. Their competition for fast news
brought about several inappropriate practices.
They are:
1.Lack of thoroughness
At first the matter was made public stating that the
female teacher raped one of her male students as
appeared in Thairath newspaper of November 19,2003,
Khao Sod newspaper of November 19,2003 and Daily
News newspaper of November 19,2003. But on the very
next day, the media reported it otherwise saying that
the teacher defended herself claiming that she was raped.
And later on the matter became clearer and more
conclusive that it was not a rape as it was reported
in the first place.
The media fell into a trap called “Feeding Frenzy“
or the act of rush to cover a sensational story (Agee,
Ault and Emery, 1997). Instead of checking all facts and
finding evidence before reporting it to the audience,
the media’ s only concern is fast news. Though in the end
the case was made clear, the media already misjudged
the teacher ruining her reputation and career making it
a very painful experience for the innocent.
2 Improper presentation of the matter
Rape cases are considered as serious, hard news.
They should be reported in an informative and
factual way. They are not supposed to be treated as
a drama having a plot, a climax, a twist or good
and bad characters.
In this matter, first the media featured the woman as
an antagonist, and the boy as an innocent character.
Then the matter turned upside down. The villain(teacher)
was mistaken and proved to be innocent with the help of
supporting characters ( lawyers ). It reached the climax
and the mystery was solved when the boy’s classmates
testified against him, in favor of the teacher.
Apart from making it look dramatic, the media also
abused and deployed the tone and manner of the story
when reporting it to the public.
For example, the use of “role model”, “horny” in the
mentioned newspapers all helped paint the teacher bad.
This is not a civil and ethical of the media to do so;
especially, when the court had never reached a verdict yet.
The accused should be treated with respect and decency.
3. Invasion of privacy
“ The media are so hungry for stories. They are not to
violate the rights of either the boy or the teacher by
publishing offensive stories, headlines and pictures,”
printed in Bangkok Post of November 22,2003.
Above is a statement voiced out by Mr.Sanpranit
Koompraphant the Director of Children’s Rights Protection
Foundation on the media’s coverage of the matter.
Sex crime is a very sensitive issue dealing with sexual
misconduct, not a very pleasant side of life. Traditionally
the media have tried to avoid exposing the names,
the addresses including faces of both the victim and
the accused ( Day, 1997: 125.) This is not to psychologically
violate the victim again, placing trauma and stigma
on the already unfortunate.
In this ”teacher – student rape” case, the Thai community
had witnessed the media’s initial attempt to use aliases for
the concerned parties. However, this did not last long
before they could not resist the competition and started to
reveal all the personal details as well as pictures.
Though there are no particular laws against the media’ s
revelation of the news figures’ intimate details,
the media cannot just publicize whatever they want to.
They cannot take it for granted and use old-fashioned
excuses saying that it is for the public’s interest
and benefits. They should have agreements on standards
of conduct in dealing with this kind of vulnerable
and sensitive subject matter.
The media practitioner should have an ethical mind
when dealing with these problematic sexual issues.
True, it is difficult. But it can be and must be done
despite of having no strict law enforcement and loopholes.
To be ethically sound because of the laws is good
but to do so because they feel that it’s their responsibility
is even better.
Case : The first ever nude advertorial on a magazine’s
front cover
Picture
The pictures shown are the cause of another war of discourse
on the subject matter of nudity in Thailand.
This fashion shooting features Yossavadee Hassadeevichit
and her boyfriend, Justin Randall Farr almost naked having
only KTC Visa Mini Credit Card to cover the groin area.
It made a hot news piece for the following aspects:
1. Proximity : The fact that this set of shooting features
a Thai super model on a Thai magazine (Image),
available on marketplace in Thailand attracted
Thai people’s attention.
2. Impact on members of people : The matter worried
various groups of people especially those who are concerned
about Thai values. Though the impact is seemingly intangible,
it had a cultural impact on the Thai community on the ideology
of nudity particularly when we are still trying to negotiate
westernized trends in the Thai contexts on what is appropriate
and what is not.
3. Unique , bizarre people or events : The unique characteristics
of this advertorial fashion lie in the following:
3.1 The shoot features the female model with her boyfriend
in a very sexually seductive pose. Both of them practically
wore nothing.
3.2 The product advertised is a credit card, which
fairly speaking, has nothing to do with this provocative
fashion shoot.
3.3 The barely shoot was printed in a fashion magazine,
one of the most popular and best-known ones amongst
teenagers and young adults primarily targeted at females,
not one that aims for male readers or the so-called adult
magazines (eg. Playboy, Penthouse, etc.)
4. Prominent people : People are interested in the activities
of the notable. In this case, Yossavadee Hassadeevichit is
considered one of the Thai super models. She is well-known
for her sexy poses. This time when she outrageously
featured on the magazine, the public was definitely attracted
to the matter.
5. Federal and other governments : The matter got heated up
when it was criticized by the federal organizations
such as the Ministry of Culture, the Commission of Religion,
the Office of Police and so on. The matter would have
been less questioned if that credit card had not been issued
by Krungthai Bank, a state-owned bank .
6.Timeliness: When concerned parties poured out their views,
it made good news. The media keep updating the matter
by interviewing particular persons involved to capture the audience.
This problematic fashion shoot got a blast of criticism
and comments for two major reasons. One undoubtedly
involves overly sexual exposure in the Thai context.
The other is on the relevance of the use of supposedly nudity
as the selling point with the product of a credit card;
especially , one issued by a state-owned bank.
The following are some of the remarks from Manager,
Daily News, and Kom Chad Luek newspapers on February 25,
2004 respectively:
Credit Card to be Questioned ‘ Art or Pornographic?
“ Naked… Yo-Yossavadee Hassadeevichit a super model posed
with her boyfriend for a credit card advertisement.
It has drawn a lot of criticism. The bank issuing the card
maintains the shoot is fine.”
“ I need not say anything. Though nipples, pubic hair and
the sex organ are covered, leaving it to the viewers’
imagination, this is an example of selling sex.
It is even worse to see the advertisement is for a credit
card issued by a state-owned bank” said Veerasak Kowsurat,
Deputy Minister, the Ministry of Culture.
Even today the definitions of pornography and art
are still unclear. That applies to Thai society as well,
as Commander Lieutenant Picharn Jittirat, Commander,
Office of the Police stated in Kom Chad Luek newspaper of
February 26, 2004, “In Thailand the law states that sexually
offensive materials are pictures with the sex organ exhibited.
And with this very attribute, it is breaking the law.”
The distinctions between nude and sexy attributes have long
been in dispute but no clear-cut criteria have been established.
After all one person’s pornography may be another’s art.
But from these headlines on the first pages of well-known
newspapers and magazines, it is conclusive that not
the whole Thai community ethically and conscientiously
approves this printed matter. It surely has upset and offended
concerned parties in particular.
But a more frustrating part lying beneath all this is the way
the media responded to the matter. This advertorial fashion
shoot made itself “ the talk of the town” and had its presence
all over the media. This hot issue got the media’s attention
right away. Thai people got informed about the matter and its
controversy but in a light and shallow level .
All the media had to say was about the figures and postures
of the two models, the two sides of opinions (those who like
and dislike ), accusative attacks from the state organizations
and defensive claims and explanations from the producers.
What was lacking was the media’s own viewpoints and critiques.
As the watchdog of the society, the media are expected to
not only tell but also explain what is going on. But for this issue,
unlike all other political, economic or social issues, there were
no irrefutable and concrete conceptions towards this one.
The media never voiced out their point of view whether or not
it was nudity, and whether not it is acceptable in Thai society.
However a very unexpected and unlikely source of definite
conviction on the matter was the model herself when she appeared
on the TV program called “ Samakom Chom Dow”, basically
a light – hearted and entertaining talk show late at night.
In the show, Yossavadee was asked whether she would take
more fashion shooting jobs that expose a lot of skin in the future.
Yosawadee simply said no. Then she talked about this credit card
fashion and referred to it as nudity. She also mentioned that
it was too much for Thai society . And she apologized for that.
All of the arguments presented here lead to two pleas to post
on the media. One is the request on the ethical standards for
ruling judgments over sexually indecent material. The other is
the moral sensibilities of the media in setting proper boundaries
to accommodate both the producers and concerned public.
We can see that when dealing with touchy and controversial issues
on sexuality, the media seem to adopt an intermittent and
unstable standpoint on their duties and functions towards
the society. In other words they are unable to accomplish
what they are supposed to do.
According to one of the best known and foremost theories
discussing the media’s functions ; Lasswell’s Three Functions
( Littlejohn, 1996 ), the media are to perform the following :
1. Surveillance of the Environment : The media are to gather
and disseminate the information to society. For this function,
it can be stated that the media have done a satisfactory job
since people are informed of new events almost at
the real-time basis.
But what to ask for more from the media is the way they treat
the stories and their presentation styles. They should show
more respect and civility when publicizing the sex-concerned stories.
Doing so the media’s professionalism will be recognized
and elevated. Thus more credits and credentials will be granted.
2. Correlation of the Parts of Society : The media should also explain
and interpret the news to help the members of the society
understand the whole sense of it. Clearly, the media have not
fulfilled this requirement.
From the two cases mentioned, it is seen that the media fail to
make people understand what is going on, its backgrounds,
consequences and end results.
These aspects should be linked and weaved together to create
thorough understanding of the big picture of the matter.
From the contents and the presentation styles, it seems the media
just want to excite the crowd with new details. And they apparently
lost the ethical battle to the competition. The news stories should be
reported in order to make people aware of the incident in a form of
educational and informative, not entertaining pieces.
3.Transmission of the Social Heritage : The media should pass on the
social and cultural values from one generation to the next. For this
very function, the media seem to fail badly. It can’t be denied
that in this fast-paced society, we need timely and up-to-date
information. But at the end of the day, the media should offer
comprehensive sets of instructions and guidelines so that people can
develop themselves accordingly. What could be added are more
analyses and critiques from the media.
However, before they can direct or guide people on what is right
and what is wrong, they need to have their firm standpoints of
their own and should hold on those.
To conclude, the media, viewed as a crucial institution in a community,
are supposed to help people keep abreast of what is happening out
there by performing the three functions stated. Humanity in general
is supposedly better off after reading or hearing or seeing the news
brought to them by the media for one reason. It gives them knowledge.
Certain expectations are placed on the media as mentioned in Agee,
Ault and Emery’s Introduction to Mass Communication,
that journalists are to endure hardships, danger, and even give
their lives to make people know the truth as best they can find it.
They should insist on accuracy, professionalism and sensitivity
in reporting.
Take Janet Jackson’s breast show on the live broadcast of Super Bowl
as an example. The day after the incident occurred, the Federal
Communication Commission (FCC), the main government media
watchdog in America swiftly demanded a thorough investigation as
the matter was considered offensive causing national controversy
and outrage among the viewers. Then CBS television which showed
the game quickly apologized. The matter shows how the media
are monitored and demonstrates their act of social responsibility.
Now that the censorship on the press no longer exists in Thailand,
some possible schemes to be used to inspect the practices of
the media are
1) to have the Ombudsman System : This is a kind of self-criticism.
Thai press could have a board or commission hired to investigate
questionable and problematic journalistic conduct and give comments
or recommend actions.
2) to empower and strengthen those journalistic organizations such as
the Press Council of Thailand, Thai Journalist Association etc.
These institutions should be recognized and accredited as a
regulatory apparatus by the public, the government
and the press themselves.
However, to make these work, we need to have strict rules
and regulations, unanimous code of ethics together with grave
penalty like what they have in the United States, Sweden, etc.
The journalist should obtain a license for his of her professionalism.
Unethical and socially irresponsible media practitioners and
organizations are to be punished and suffered.
Having all these hopefully will uplift journalistic standards of conduct.
With their better moral and ethical conscience, the media will
eventually be awarded with the public’s trust and respect.
In that sense the media themselves will really have become the
fourth estate as they have been thought of.
References
English
Agee K., Ault H. and Emery E. Introduction to Mass Communication.
12th Edition. Longman, 1997.
Children’s Rights Protection Foundation Director Warns the Media.
Bangkok Post. November 22,2003: 2
Day A. Ethics in Media Communication :Cases and Controversies. 2nd
Edition. Wadsworth Publishing Company, 1997.
F.W. Hodgson. Modern Newspaper Practice : A Primer on the Press.
4th Edition. Focal Press, 1996.
Littlejohn W. Theories of Human Communication. 5th Edition.
Wadsworth Publishing Company, 1996.
Thai
23 Year-Old Teacher Rapes 13 Year-Old Student. Kom Chad Luek.
November 19,2003: 1.
Big shock . Female Teacher Rapes Male Ninth- Grader. Thairath.
November 19,2003: 1.
Credit Card to be Questioned ‘ Art or Pornographic? Manager.
February 25, 2004: 1.
Naked… Yo-Yossavadee Hassadeevichit a Super Model Posted with
Her Boyfriend for a Credit Card Advertisement. Daily News.
February 25, 2004: 1.
Thai Laws with Loopholes. Kom Chad Luk. February 25,2004: 4.
Talk show. Samakom Chom Dow, March 24 , 2004.
Teacher Defended the Boy Came on to Her. Khao Sod. November 19,
2003: 1.
Weird.. Horny Teacher Tricked Student to Rape. Daily News.
November 19, 2003: 1.
http://www.thairath.co.th/. November 20-22,2003.
http://www.dailynews.co.th/. November 19-20,2003.
http://www.komchadluek.com/. November 19-22,2003.
http://www.khaosod.co.th/. November 20-22,2003.
http://www.nationgroup.co.th/. February 8-9,2004.
English Kids Fun(เด็กอ่านได้ ผู้ใหญ่อ่านดี) 2
Back to School
เปิดเทอมแล้ว
Hello! ช่วงนี้เดินไปที่ห้างสรรพสินค้าไหน ๆ ก็จะเจอป้าย
Back to school เป็นสัญญาณบอกว่าใกล้จะเปิดเทอมแล้ว
ซึ่งน้อง ๆ หลายคนอาจต้อง เตรียมหาซื้อเสื้อผ้า ข้าวของเครื่องใช้
สำหรับเทอมใหม่นี้ และบรรดาข้าวของ ยอดฮิตที่มักจะต้องมี
อยู่ในรายการ ของที่ต้องซื้อ (shopping list)
ก็จะแบ่งออกเป็น 3 ประเภทใหญ่ ๆ คือ
เครื่องแบบนักเรียน (uniform)
เครื่องเขียน (stationery)
และของใช้จิปาถะ (miscellaneous)
ถ้าอย่างนั้น เราลองมาทดสอบความรู้ศัพท์ภาษาอังกฤษกันดีกว่า
พี่มาดาจะเตรียมศัพท์ไว้ให้ 26 คำ น้อง ๆ เอาศัพท์ที่ให้มานี้
ไปใส่ในหมวดหมู่ สิ่งของที่แบ่งไว้ให้ 3 หมวด ถ้าน้อง ๆ
ไม่ทราบความหมายจะลองเดาดูก็ได้
ที่สำคัญก็คือ อย่าแอบดูเฉลย (ที่อยู่ข้างท้าย) ก่อนก็แล้วกัน
ห้ามขี้โกงนะ (No cheating!)
หมวดที่ 1 เครื่องแบบนักเรียน (13 คำ)
หมวดที่ 2 เครื่องเขียน (8 คำ)
หมวดที่ 3 ของใช้อื่น ๆ (5 คำ)
คำศัพท์
1 sneakers 10 paper clip 19 skirt
2 folder 11 pencil sharpener 20 buckle
3 shorts 12 pin 21 socks
4 belt 13 ball pen 22 safety pin
5 scarf 14 shirt 23 stapler
6 backpack 15 neck-tie 24 trousers
7 ruler 16 bow 25 thermos
8 whiter 17 binto 26 leather shoes
9 book shelf 18 eraser
แถมท้ายอีกนิดนึง เวลาไปเลือกซื้อเสื้อผ้า ถ้าจะถามถึงขนาด ให้ใช้คำวา size
สีใช้คำว่า color ส่วนยี่ห้อใช้คำว่า brand หรือ make นะคะ ลองดูตัวอย่างกันดีกว่า
เช่น What size is this? ตัวนี้ขนาด (เบอร์) อะไร? It is an S (small)/M (Medium)
หรือ L (large) I would like a smaller/bigger one. ผม/หนูอยากได้เบอร์เล็ก/
ใหญ่กว่านี้
What brand/make is that? ตัวนั้นยี่ห้ออะไร Do you have any other brands?
(มียี่ห้ออื่นอีกไหมคะ/ครับ)
Do you have this in navy blue? มีแบบนี้สีกรมท่าไหมคะ
I would like a black one. ผมขอสีดำครับ/ค่ะ
ทีนี้ก็พร้อมจะไป shopping แล้วใช่ไหมคะ
พี่มาดาขอให้ทุกคน enjoy shopping นะคะ
See you next month ค่ะ
เฉลย หมวดที่ 2 มี 2(e)/7(v)/8(r)/10(a)/11(m)/13(w)/18(f)/23(n)
หมวดที่ 3 มี 6(k)/9(x)/17(b)/22(y)/25(q)
หมวดที่ 1 มี 1(i)/3(p)/4(j)/5(c)/12(o)/14(l)/15(u)/16(s)/19(t)/20(d)
/21(h)/24(g)/26(z)
เปิดเทอมแล้ว
Hello! ช่วงนี้เดินไปที่ห้างสรรพสินค้าไหน ๆ ก็จะเจอป้าย
Back to school เป็นสัญญาณบอกว่าใกล้จะเปิดเทอมแล้ว
ซึ่งน้อง ๆ หลายคนอาจต้อง เตรียมหาซื้อเสื้อผ้า ข้าวของเครื่องใช้
สำหรับเทอมใหม่นี้ และบรรดาข้าวของ ยอดฮิตที่มักจะต้องมี
อยู่ในรายการ ของที่ต้องซื้อ (shopping list)
ก็จะแบ่งออกเป็น 3 ประเภทใหญ่ ๆ คือ
เครื่องแบบนักเรียน (uniform)
เครื่องเขียน (stationery)
และของใช้จิปาถะ (miscellaneous)
ถ้าอย่างนั้น เราลองมาทดสอบความรู้ศัพท์ภาษาอังกฤษกันดีกว่า
พี่มาดาจะเตรียมศัพท์ไว้ให้ 26 คำ น้อง ๆ เอาศัพท์ที่ให้มานี้
ไปใส่ในหมวดหมู่ สิ่งของที่แบ่งไว้ให้ 3 หมวด ถ้าน้อง ๆ
ไม่ทราบความหมายจะลองเดาดูก็ได้
ที่สำคัญก็คือ อย่าแอบดูเฉลย (ที่อยู่ข้างท้าย) ก่อนก็แล้วกัน
ห้ามขี้โกงนะ (No cheating!)
หมวดที่ 1 เครื่องแบบนักเรียน (13 คำ)
หมวดที่ 2 เครื่องเขียน (8 คำ)
หมวดที่ 3 ของใช้อื่น ๆ (5 คำ)
คำศัพท์
1 sneakers 10 paper clip 19 skirt
2 folder 11 pencil sharpener 20 buckle
3 shorts 12 pin 21 socks
4 belt 13 ball pen 22 safety pin
5 scarf 14 shirt 23 stapler
6 backpack 15 neck-tie 24 trousers
7 ruler 16 bow 25 thermos
8 whiter 17 binto 26 leather shoes
9 book shelf 18 eraser
แถมท้ายอีกนิดนึง เวลาไปเลือกซื้อเสื้อผ้า ถ้าจะถามถึงขนาด ให้ใช้คำวา size
สีใช้คำว่า color ส่วนยี่ห้อใช้คำว่า brand หรือ make นะคะ ลองดูตัวอย่างกันดีกว่า
เช่น What size is this? ตัวนี้ขนาด (เบอร์) อะไร? It is an S (small)/M (Medium)
หรือ L (large) I would like a smaller/bigger one. ผม/หนูอยากได้เบอร์เล็ก/
ใหญ่กว่านี้
What brand/make is that? ตัวนั้นยี่ห้ออะไร Do you have any other brands?
(มียี่ห้ออื่นอีกไหมคะ/ครับ)
Do you have this in navy blue? มีแบบนี้สีกรมท่าไหมคะ
I would like a black one. ผมขอสีดำครับ/ค่ะ
ทีนี้ก็พร้อมจะไป shopping แล้วใช่ไหมคะ
พี่มาดาขอให้ทุกคน enjoy shopping นะคะ
See you next month ค่ะ
เฉลย หมวดที่ 2 มี 2(e)/7(v)/8(r)/10(a)/11(m)/13(w)/18(f)/23(n)
หมวดที่ 3 มี 6(k)/9(x)/17(b)/22(y)/25(q)
หมวดที่ 1 มี 1(i)/3(p)/4(j)/5(c)/12(o)/14(l)/15(u)/16(s)/19(t)/20(d)
/21(h)/24(g)/26(z)
English Kids Fun(เด็กอ่านได้ ผู้ใหญ่อ่านดี) 1
English+ kids = fun
ใคร ๆ ก็รู้ว่าภาษาอังกฤษน่ะสำคัญ แต่ก่อนที่จะไปรู้จักคำศัพท์
และสำนวนใหม่ ๆ ในวันนี้ ลองตอบคำถามของพี่มาดา
ดูหน่อยนะคะ น้อง ๆ ทราบไหมว่า ในเมืองไทย
เดือนไหนอากาศร้อนที่สุด บอกใบ้ให้นิดนึงว่า เป็นเดือนที่
ขึ้นต้นด้วยตัว A ในภาษาอังกฤษ ใช่แล้วค่ะ
April เดือนเมษายน นั่นเอง
เดือนนี้อากาศร้อนมาก ๆ ซึ่งก็เหมาะกับเทศกาลสงกรานต์
วันปีใหม่ของไทย ซึ่งจะมีการรดน้ำดำหัวผู้ใหญ่ และเล่นสาดน้ำกัน
ช่วยคลายร้อนลงไปได้บ้าง ในช่วงสงกรานต์นี้ก็มีวันหยุดติดกัน
หลายวัน น้อง ๆ หลายคนคงจะเตรียมตัวไปเที่ยวกับคุณพ่อคุณแม่
ซึ่งที่เที่ยวยอดฮิตในหน้าร้อนนี้ก็คงจะเป็นทะเลใช่มั้ยคะ
ก็แหม เมืองไทยเรามีชายทะเล มีหาด มีเกาะสวย ๆ ตั้งหลายที่
ถ้างั้นก็ Let’s get ready to go to the sea.
เตรียมตัวไปทะเลกันเลย
จะไปทะเลทั้งที น้อง ๆ ควรจัดเตรียม swimming suit (ชุดว่ายน้ำ)
goggles (แว่นตากันน้ำสำหรับว่ายน้ำ) rubber ring (ห่วงยาง)
sandals (รองเท้าแตะ) แล้วก็อย่าลืม toiletries (ของใช้ในห้องน้ำ
อันได้แก่ soap - สบู่ shampoo – ยาสระผม และอื่น ๆ )
และที่ขาดไม่ได้ก็คือ towel (ผ้าเช็ดตัว) หรือ robe (เสื้อคลุม)
อ้อ ก่อนจะออกไปเล่นน้ำ อย่าลืมให้คุณแม่ทา
sunblock lotion (ครีมกันแดด) ให้นะคะ
น้อง ๆ จะได้ไม่โดนแดดเผา เดี๋ยวผิวไหม้ แสบผิว (sunburn)
และถ้าจะพูดว่า ทาครีม /โลชั่นเป็นภาษาอังกฤษ
น้อง ๆ ต้องพูดว่า apply lotion on my skin ( face,arm)
และถ้าจะขอให้คนอื่นทาให้น้องๆ ก็ต้องใส่คำว่า please ด้วยนะคะ
คราวหน้าลองบอกคุณแม่ว่า
Mommy, please apply lotion on my arm. ดูสิคะ
รับรองคุณแม่ต้องปลื้มมากแน่ ๆ เลย ส่วนใครที่เตรียมตัว
จะไปเข้าค่ายฤดูร้อน ก็ต้องเตรียมข้าวของเครื่องใช้เพิ่มอีก
2-3 อย่าง เช่น sleeping bag (ถุงนอน)
torch/ flashlight (ไฟฉาย)
แล้วก็อย่าลืมติด mosquito repellent (ยาทากันยุง)
ไปด้วยนะคะ ปลอดภัยไว้ก่อน
ทีนี้หากน้อง ๆ ไปเจอเพื่อนใหม่แล้วอยากจะชวนคุย
น้อง ๆ ก็ควรจะเริ่มต้น ทักทายว่า
Hello/Hi. My name is Beam (ชื่อของน้อง) and you are_____
แล้วก็เว้นจังหวะให้เขาตอบ หรือจะถามเขาว่า
What is your name? ก็ได้
ซึ่งเขาก็น่าจะบอกว่า My name is Dan. เป็นต้น
จากนั้นเราก็ควรบอกว่า ดีใจที่ได้รู้จัก Nice to meet you.
คราวนี้ก็เริ่มคุยกันต่อไปเลย โดยควรจะคุยกัน
เรื่องทั่ว ๆ ไป ไม่ซีเรียส เช่น อาจถามว่าเขามาจากที่ไหน
(ในกรณีที่เป็นชาวต่างชาติ หรือดูหน้าตาไม่เหมือนคนแถวนั้น)
Where do you come from? หรือ
บ้านอยู่ที่ไหน (Where do you live?)
มาเข้าค่ายเป็นครั้งแรกหรือเปล่า
(Is this your first time to go to a camp?)
แค่นี้ก็หาเพื่อนใหม่ (make friends) ได้แล้วล่ะค่ะ
แต่หากน้อง ๆ คนไหน ไม่มีโอกาสได้ไปเที่ยวไกล ๆ
ก็ไม่ต้องเสียใจนะคะ เราสามารถใกล้ชิดกับธรรมชาติได้
ที่สวนสัตว์ใกล้ ๆ บ้านนี่ไง น้อง ๆ จะได้เจอสัตว์
หลายพันธุ์ (species) ทั้ง tiger (เสือ) giraffe (ยีราฟ)
monkey (ลิง) turtle (เต่า) crocodile (จระเข้)
hippopotamus (ฮิปโป) และอื่นๆอีกเยอะแยะ แต่ที่สำคัญก็คือ
อย่าเข้าไปใกล้เจ้าสัตว์พวกนี้จนเกินไป แม้ว่าจะดู
ไม่มีพิษมีภัยก็ตาม ส่วนใหญ่แล้ว ทางสวนสัตว์ก็จะติดป้ายไว้
เช่น No entry (ห้ามเข้า)
Do not feed the animal. (ห้ามให้อาหารสัตว์)
น้อง ๆ ควรทำตามที่ป้ายบอกนะคะ ถ้าหากมองไม่เห็นและ
อยากรู้ว่าสัตว์อะไร ก็ถามคุณพ่อคุณแม่ หรือ ผู้ใหญ่คนอื่น
ที่อยู่แถวนั้นก็ได้ แต่ต้องพูดดี ๆ แสดงความสุภาพสักหน่อย
เช่น Excuse me. ขอโทษค่ะ/ครับ What is that? นั่นคือตัวอะไร
ซึ่งน้อง ๆ ก็อาจได้รับคำตอบว่า It's a tiger/turtle. เป็นต้น
ทั้งนี้อย่าลืมกล่าวคำขอบคุณด้วยนะคะ Thank you ก็ได้
หรือจะ Thank you very much ก็ดีค่ะ
ไม่ว่าจะไปเที่ยวที่ไหน น้อง ๆ สามารถเรียนรู้ศัพท์และ
สำนวนภาษาอังกฤษใหม่ ๆ ได้ตลอดเวลา โดยอาจสังเกต
จากป้ายบอกทางที่เป็นภาษาอังกฤษ แผ่นพับ
ป้ายโฆษณา หรือถามจากคุณพ่อ คุณแม่
เพียงแค่นี้ น้อง ๆ ก็จะเก่งภาษาอังกฤษได้ไม่ยากเลย
ถ้าอย่างนั้นก็ Let’s go. (ไปกันเลย)
Have a good time. (ขอให้เที่ยวให้สนุก)
Have a nice trip./ Bon Voyage.
(ขอให้เดินทางโดยสวัสดิภาพ)
Until next time. Bye. แล้วเจอกันใหม่นะคะ สวัสดีค่ะ
ใคร ๆ ก็รู้ว่าภาษาอังกฤษน่ะสำคัญ แต่ก่อนที่จะไปรู้จักคำศัพท์
และสำนวนใหม่ ๆ ในวันนี้ ลองตอบคำถามของพี่มาดา
ดูหน่อยนะคะ น้อง ๆ ทราบไหมว่า ในเมืองไทย
เดือนไหนอากาศร้อนที่สุด บอกใบ้ให้นิดนึงว่า เป็นเดือนที่
ขึ้นต้นด้วยตัว A ในภาษาอังกฤษ ใช่แล้วค่ะ
April เดือนเมษายน นั่นเอง
เดือนนี้อากาศร้อนมาก ๆ ซึ่งก็เหมาะกับเทศกาลสงกรานต์
วันปีใหม่ของไทย ซึ่งจะมีการรดน้ำดำหัวผู้ใหญ่ และเล่นสาดน้ำกัน
ช่วยคลายร้อนลงไปได้บ้าง ในช่วงสงกรานต์นี้ก็มีวันหยุดติดกัน
หลายวัน น้อง ๆ หลายคนคงจะเตรียมตัวไปเที่ยวกับคุณพ่อคุณแม่
ซึ่งที่เที่ยวยอดฮิตในหน้าร้อนนี้ก็คงจะเป็นทะเลใช่มั้ยคะ
ก็แหม เมืองไทยเรามีชายทะเล มีหาด มีเกาะสวย ๆ ตั้งหลายที่
ถ้างั้นก็ Let’s get ready to go to the sea.
เตรียมตัวไปทะเลกันเลย
จะไปทะเลทั้งที น้อง ๆ ควรจัดเตรียม swimming suit (ชุดว่ายน้ำ)
goggles (แว่นตากันน้ำสำหรับว่ายน้ำ) rubber ring (ห่วงยาง)
sandals (รองเท้าแตะ) แล้วก็อย่าลืม toiletries (ของใช้ในห้องน้ำ
อันได้แก่ soap - สบู่ shampoo – ยาสระผม และอื่น ๆ )
และที่ขาดไม่ได้ก็คือ towel (ผ้าเช็ดตัว) หรือ robe (เสื้อคลุม)
อ้อ ก่อนจะออกไปเล่นน้ำ อย่าลืมให้คุณแม่ทา
sunblock lotion (ครีมกันแดด) ให้นะคะ
น้อง ๆ จะได้ไม่โดนแดดเผา เดี๋ยวผิวไหม้ แสบผิว (sunburn)
และถ้าจะพูดว่า ทาครีม /โลชั่นเป็นภาษาอังกฤษ
น้อง ๆ ต้องพูดว่า apply lotion on my skin ( face,arm)
และถ้าจะขอให้คนอื่นทาให้น้องๆ ก็ต้องใส่คำว่า please ด้วยนะคะ
คราวหน้าลองบอกคุณแม่ว่า
Mommy, please apply lotion on my arm. ดูสิคะ
รับรองคุณแม่ต้องปลื้มมากแน่ ๆ เลย ส่วนใครที่เตรียมตัว
จะไปเข้าค่ายฤดูร้อน ก็ต้องเตรียมข้าวของเครื่องใช้เพิ่มอีก
2-3 อย่าง เช่น sleeping bag (ถุงนอน)
torch/ flashlight (ไฟฉาย)
แล้วก็อย่าลืมติด mosquito repellent (ยาทากันยุง)
ไปด้วยนะคะ ปลอดภัยไว้ก่อน
ทีนี้หากน้อง ๆ ไปเจอเพื่อนใหม่แล้วอยากจะชวนคุย
น้อง ๆ ก็ควรจะเริ่มต้น ทักทายว่า
Hello/Hi. My name is Beam (ชื่อของน้อง) and you are_____
แล้วก็เว้นจังหวะให้เขาตอบ หรือจะถามเขาว่า
What is your name? ก็ได้
ซึ่งเขาก็น่าจะบอกว่า My name is Dan. เป็นต้น
จากนั้นเราก็ควรบอกว่า ดีใจที่ได้รู้จัก Nice to meet you.
คราวนี้ก็เริ่มคุยกันต่อไปเลย โดยควรจะคุยกัน
เรื่องทั่ว ๆ ไป ไม่ซีเรียส เช่น อาจถามว่าเขามาจากที่ไหน
(ในกรณีที่เป็นชาวต่างชาติ หรือดูหน้าตาไม่เหมือนคนแถวนั้น)
Where do you come from? หรือ
บ้านอยู่ที่ไหน (Where do you live?)
มาเข้าค่ายเป็นครั้งแรกหรือเปล่า
(Is this your first time to go to a camp?)
แค่นี้ก็หาเพื่อนใหม่ (make friends) ได้แล้วล่ะค่ะ
แต่หากน้อง ๆ คนไหน ไม่มีโอกาสได้ไปเที่ยวไกล ๆ
ก็ไม่ต้องเสียใจนะคะ เราสามารถใกล้ชิดกับธรรมชาติได้
ที่สวนสัตว์ใกล้ ๆ บ้านนี่ไง น้อง ๆ จะได้เจอสัตว์
หลายพันธุ์ (species) ทั้ง tiger (เสือ) giraffe (ยีราฟ)
monkey (ลิง) turtle (เต่า) crocodile (จระเข้)
hippopotamus (ฮิปโป) และอื่นๆอีกเยอะแยะ แต่ที่สำคัญก็คือ
อย่าเข้าไปใกล้เจ้าสัตว์พวกนี้จนเกินไป แม้ว่าจะดู
ไม่มีพิษมีภัยก็ตาม ส่วนใหญ่แล้ว ทางสวนสัตว์ก็จะติดป้ายไว้
เช่น No entry (ห้ามเข้า)
Do not feed the animal. (ห้ามให้อาหารสัตว์)
น้อง ๆ ควรทำตามที่ป้ายบอกนะคะ ถ้าหากมองไม่เห็นและ
อยากรู้ว่าสัตว์อะไร ก็ถามคุณพ่อคุณแม่ หรือ ผู้ใหญ่คนอื่น
ที่อยู่แถวนั้นก็ได้ แต่ต้องพูดดี ๆ แสดงความสุภาพสักหน่อย
เช่น Excuse me. ขอโทษค่ะ/ครับ What is that? นั่นคือตัวอะไร
ซึ่งน้อง ๆ ก็อาจได้รับคำตอบว่า It's a tiger/turtle. เป็นต้น
ทั้งนี้อย่าลืมกล่าวคำขอบคุณด้วยนะคะ Thank you ก็ได้
หรือจะ Thank you very much ก็ดีค่ะ
ไม่ว่าจะไปเที่ยวที่ไหน น้อง ๆ สามารถเรียนรู้ศัพท์และ
สำนวนภาษาอังกฤษใหม่ ๆ ได้ตลอดเวลา โดยอาจสังเกต
จากป้ายบอกทางที่เป็นภาษาอังกฤษ แผ่นพับ
ป้ายโฆษณา หรือถามจากคุณพ่อ คุณแม่
เพียงแค่นี้ น้อง ๆ ก็จะเก่งภาษาอังกฤษได้ไม่ยากเลย
ถ้าอย่างนั้นก็ Let’s go. (ไปกันเลย)
Have a good time. (ขอให้เที่ยวให้สนุก)
Have a nice trip./ Bon Voyage.
(ขอให้เดินทางโดยสวัสดิภาพ)
Until next time. Bye. แล้วเจอกันใหม่นะคะ สวัสดีค่ะ
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