Listening

Warm Up

Helpful Words and Phrases

Listen and repeat.

  1. air
    • ex. The show airs every Wednesday night at 8:30.
  2. an ad
    • ex. That new ad for chocolate milk is really funny.
  3. bizarre
    • ex. I don’t know if I liked the movie or not… It was bizarre.
  4. beat
    • ex. The Yankees beat the Red Sox 4 to 3.
  5. make the list
    • ex. I’m surprised that my favorite actor didn’t make the list of best-dressed celebrities.

Article

Read the article below and answer your tutor's questions.

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This year, companies paid a record-breaking $6.5 million (about ¥764 million) for a 30-second commercial spot during Super Bowl 56. The price was almost $1 million (about ¥118 million) more than the highest price paid last year. According to NBC, the network that aired Super Bowl 56, most ad spots had been sold out since September 2021.

Many people enjoy watching Super Bowl commercials, which are four times more effective than regular TV ads. Some companies create inspiring commercials, while others make funny or bizarre ones, and they do research after the game to check how successful their ads were. In recent years, they also upload their commercials to YouTube and count those views as well. After the Super Bowl, viewers and the media rank the best and worst ads.

The Los Angeles Rams beat the Cincinnati Bengals in Super Bowl 56, which had over 101 million TV viewers and 11 million streaming viewers. This year, commercials from Amazon, Planet Fitness, and Toyota made the list of best Super Bowl ads, while commercials from Budweiser and UberEats were ranked among the worst.

Discussion

Choose a topic and discuss the questions with your tutor.

Commercials

  • Are you interested in watching some of the Super Bowl 56 commercials on YouTube? Why or why not? Discuss.
  • What was the best commercial that you've ever seen? Why? Discuss.
  • What kind of commercials are popular in your country (ex. funny commercials, commercials with celebrities)? Why? Discuss.

Ads

  • In your opinion, what's the most effective type of ad (ex. a TV commercial, a sign on the train)? Why? Discuss.
  • In your opinion, do ads sometimes STOP people from buying things? Why or why not? Discuss.
  • Should some things NOT have ads (ex. political parties, alcohol)? Why or why not? Discuss.