Television Has Destroyed Communication Among Friends and Family - IELTS Task 2 Sample Essays

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Model Essay 1

Television is often blamed for silencing dinner tables, yet the claim that it has destroyed communication is overstated. I disagree. While indiscriminate viewing can displace conversation, the medium itself can also catalyse richer talk. This essay argues that (1) television’s effects depend on how households structure viewing, and (2) when harnessed deliberately—through co-viewing and reflective discussion—it strengthens, rather than weakens, family and friendship bonds.

First, the caricature of families wordlessly staring at a screen confuses correlation with causation. Quiet homes frequently reflect deeper pressures—exhausting work hours, cramped schedules, or existing relational strain—long before the remote is picked up. In such contexts, television becomes a scapegoat for a broader erosion of time and attention. Moreover, shared viewing often provides the very scaffolding that spontaneous conversation lacks: a common reference point, fresh topics, and safe entry cues for shy speakers. News bulletins spark debate on values; documentaries open space for empathy; even sports finals cultivate rituals—predicting outcomes, arguing tactics, celebrating or commiserating together—that thicken group identity. The key variable is not the screen, but household norms: whether devices are muted during meals, whether episodes are paused to invite opinions, and whether competing screens (phones, tablets) are parked to preserve turn-taking.

Second, television can be deliberately engineered to deepen dialogue when treated as a tool, not a trance. Families who curate content, set time boundaries, and embed debriefs transform passive reception into active meaning-making. A weekly film night with rotating “host” duties—choosing the title, previewing themes, and posing three questions—elevates mere consumption into a mini-seminar where each voice matters. Friends who watch a series separately and meet to compare interpretations practise perspective-taking and respectful disagreement. Even children benefit when adults model metacognitive questions (“Why did that character change her mind?”), which trains listening, inference, and turn management. By contrast, harms typically arise from unstructured bingeing and algorithm-driven drift, not television per se. Intentionality—content selection, timeboxing, and post-view reflection—converts a potential distraction into a conversation engine.

In sum, television has not “destroyed” communication; unreflective habits have. When households set purposeful rules and co-view with curiosity, the screen becomes a shared campfire—fuel for stories, debate, and connection. Properly used, television amplifies voices at home rather than muting them.

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Model Essay 2

Modern television, once envisioned as a tool for shared learning and entertainment, has ironically fractured genuine communication among family members and friends. I fully agree that television has eroded interpersonal connection. This essay will argue that constant exposure to passive entertainment replaces meaningful dialogue within families, and that the emotionally manipulative and isolating nature of screen culture gradually weakens empathy and human interaction.

To begin with, television suppresses organic conversation by transforming living rooms into silent theatres rather than spaces for engagement. Families once gathered around dinner tables to exchange daily experiences; now, they assemble in front of screens, their focus hijacked by fictional characters and commercial breaks. This passive mode of consumption discourages listening and reflection—core elements of healthy communication. When visual narratives dictate the emotional rhythm of the evening, individuals lose the habit of expressing their own thoughts or asking questions. For instance, a study by the University of Cambridge found that households watching more than three hours of TV per night reported 40% fewer family interactions than those that limited screen use. The medium’s immersive nature creates an illusion of companionship while fostering emotional distance among real people in the same room.

Furthermore, television reshapes social expectations and emotional responses in ways that dilute authentic human connection. The constant exposure to idealised relationships, dramatized conflicts, and exaggerated lifestyles distorts how people perceive and respond to one another in reality. Over time, friends who bond primarily through shared shows or celebrity gossip may substitute genuine empathy with shallow commentary. Emotional cues once exchanged face-to-face—tone, hesitation, sincerity—are replaced by screen-fed mimicry. In psychological terms, television cultivates “vicarious intimacy,” where individuals feel connected to on-screen personalities but detached from actual relationships. The result is a generation fluent in reaction yet deficient in reflection—people who can discuss fictional dilemmas for hours but struggle to listen to a friend’s real one.

In conclusion, television has indeed dismantled traditional communication by replacing conversation with consumption and empathy with artificial emotion. As entertainment substitutes exchange and spectacle replaces sincerity, the screen has become not a window to the world but a wall within our homes, quietly dividing those who sit beside it.

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