Learn English with the News | | John Cena Sparks Controversy in China Referring to Taiwan as a Country

John Cena, Hollywood superstar and… international diplomate? Maybe not yet! After recent remarks referring to Taiwan as a country, he has received massive criticism from one of the biggest film markets in the world, China. Fortunately for future ticket sales, he has apologized. Watch the video and then do the accompanying English language exercises !!

The news is a consistent source of entertainment, knowledge and discovery that never ceases to exist and always comes out with more and more material each day. Because it plays such a vital part in our lives and is so important to keep up with, it is without a doubt a piece of your everyday routine that can’t go ignored.

Whether it is to understand the ramifications of recent legislation passed, to hear about recent events and grasp the potential consequences to your country, or simply hear about what is happening in other countries in order to compare them to what’s happening in yours, the news is certainly a staple in our lives and the most consistent way to get information.

This is why Scrambled Eggs has decided to unite two of your biggest worlds: learning English and keeping up with what is happening in the world. We hope our challenging daily exercises, composed of listening, vocabulary and comprehension exercises in English, will satisfy both of those above worlds in a satisfactory and also entertaining way.

So enough about introductions, let’s get to today’s Learn English with the News topic:

Adapted from this article.

John Cena Sparks Controversy in China Referring to Taiwan as a Country - Definition Match

Put the following words to the correct definitions.

John Cena Sparks Controversy in China Referring to Taiwan as a Country - Fill in the Blank

Fill the empty spaces with the proper words.

John Cena Sparks Controversy in China Referring to Taiwan as a Country - True or False

Nice work! Did you get the result you were expecting? If not, feel free to take the quiz a second time!

Full Text:

“John Cena, the star of “F9,” professed his love for China after calling Taiwan a “country” during an interview. This action generated a backlash among fans in Hollywood’s most important international market.
The controversy unfolded after Cena gave an interview to a Taiwanese broadcaster promoting the film.
China claims Taiwan as its sovereign territory despite Taiwan being a self-governed democratic island. The two sides have been ruled separately since the end of the civil war over 70 years ago. According to China, Beijing specifically, any suggestion of Taiwan’s independence crosses its “red line.” China has increasingly been trying to use its economic power to police speech on the topic around the world.
Cena then offered an apology. Speaking in Mandarin, he did not refer to Taiwan by name or discuss the incident in detail, but he did say that it was a mistake.
Some critics are still angry about his remarks, and accused him of not going far enough in the apology.
Beijing often polices the way global brands talk about China or any of its political interests. In 2018, for example, the Chinese government demanded that several airline companies in the United States change the way they referred to Taiwan. Refusal to do so would risk sanctions for their companies in China, one of the world’s biggest markets for air travel. Also that year, hotel group Marriott’s website and app were blocked for a week after it listed Tibet, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan as separate “countries” in its emails and app.
While the controversy around Cena’s comment is likely to fade soon, Beijing’s attempt to control free speech around the world is unlikely to stop.”

Learn English with the News: Trump 14 points behind Biden a month before election, new poll shows

As the United States presidential election edges nearer, sitting president Donald Trump suffered a bit of a scare after being diagnosed with COVID-19 in October. How will this effect the outcome of the election, if at all! Only time will tell! Watch the video and then do the accompanying English language exercises.

The news is a consistent source of entertainment, knowledge and discovery that never ceases to exist and always comes out with more and more material each day. Because it plays such a vital part in our lives and is so important to keep up with, it is without a doubt a piece of your everyday routine that can’t go ignored. 

Whether it is to understand the ramifications of recent legislation passed, to hear about recent events and grasp the potential consequences to your country, or simply hear about what is happening in other countries in order to compare them to what’s happening in yours, the news is certainly a staple in our lives and the most consistent way to get information.

This is why Scrambled Eggs has decided to unite two of your biggest worlds: learning English and keeping up with what is happening in the world. We hope our challenging daily exercises, composed of listening, vocabulary and comprehension exercises in English, will satisfy both of those above worlds in a satisfactory and also entertaining way.

So enough about introductions, let’s get to today’s Learn English with the News topic:

Adapted from this article.

Now that you’ve had a listen, let’s put your knowledge to the test with some of our vocabulary and comprehension exercises:

Trump 14 points behind Biden a month before election, new poll shows | Definition Match

Match the words to the correct definitions.

Trump 14 points behind Biden a month before election, new poll shows | Fill in the Blank

Put the following words to the correct definitions.

Trump 14 points behind Biden a month before election, new poll shows | True or False

Decide if the statement is true or false.

 

And that’s it for today’s English lesson, where you can improve your English with the news and current events. Do you have any comments or special requests for us for the next edition of Learn English with the News? Be sure to leave any feedback you have in the comments section below, as we would love to help you on your quest to learn the English language!

For other Learn English with the News segments, be sure to check out the rest of our posts:

https://scrambledeggsinglese.it/tag/learn-english-with-the-news/

Full Text:

Donald Trump’s beleaguered campaign team woke up to another setback on Sunday as the
president began his second full day in hospital: a new national poll showing their candidate 14
points behind his challenger Joe Biden with less than a month until the election day.
The NBC/Wall Street Journal survey indicating a 53-39% advantage for the Democratic party’s
nominee injected urgency for Trump’s advisers already scrambling to find a strategy for the final
weeks of the campaign until 3 November.
It was becoming clear that Vice-President Mike Pence, who has tested negative for coronavirus,
and members of Trump’s family, once they emerge from quarantine, will assume leading roles at
virtual, then in-person rallies until or unless Trump himself recovers in time to resume
campaigning.
Pence has public campaign events planned in Arizona, Nevada and Washington DC, and will
travel to Salt Lake City for Wednesday’s vice-presidential debate with Kamala Harris, Biden’s
running mate, at which the Trump team is looking for a strong performance.
The NBC poll showing Biden widening his lead over Trump was taken immediately after last
Tuesday’s tumultuous first presidential debate in Cleveland, at which an argumentative president
constantly interrupted both his rival and the moderator Chris Wallace.
Jason Miller, another senior adviser to the Trump campaign, said he had “no concerns” about
Pence travelling and campaigning.
Meanwhile, Biden’s campaigning since Trump’s hospitalisation on Friday night has been low
key.
The Biden campaign announced on Friday that it was suspending negative messages attacking
the president while he was in hospital.
Despite Sunday’s early cessation of campaign activity, Biden’s team has said it has no plans to
scale back events as long as the candidate and those around him continue to test negative for
Covid-19. “

Scrambled Eggs Consiglia – 5 Film su Netflix per migliorare il tuo inglese a Settembre!

Con l’arrivo di Settembre e l’inizio delle attività lavorative assieme ai nuovi anni scolastici, i buoni propositi si fanno sentire, e ci spronano a dare il massimo di noi stessi!

Se la tua voglia d’inglese durante l’estate appena passata non è per niente diminuita – e anzi ti senti in forze per approcciarti a questa lingua in una maniera nuova e che non hai mai affrontato prima – allora prosegui nella lettura di questo blog!

Non c’è cosa più efficace, quando si impara l’inglese, che una buona conversazione con una persona madrelingua. Non sempre però abbiamo la possibilità di farlo – vuoi per gli svariati impegni delle nostre frenetiche vite, vuoi per altre ragioni – ma…

Sì, c’è un ‘MA’! Quando torni a casa stanco dal lavoro, o magari non hai fatto altro tutto il giorno che studiare per un imminente esame all’università, quello che vorresti fare è semplicemente rilassarti, magari godendoti l’ultimo episodio della tua serie preferita, oppure un film con quell’attore o attrice che tanto ti piace.

Bene, oggi, noi di Scrambled Eggs ti proponiamo 5 titoli che potrai sfruttare per migliorare il tuo inglese mentre ti stai semplicemente rilassando con Netflix. Il bello è che puoi farlo guardandoli in lingua originale! Questo ti farà fare un salto decisivo nella padronanza della lingua.
(Se sei un principiante, aiutati prima per qualche tempo con i sottotitoli in italiano, e poi potrai provare – se te la senti – a passare a quelli in inglese.)

Ecco quindi i 5 titoli che ti proponiamo per questo mese; mettiti comodo, ce n’è per tutti i gusti! 😉

ENOLA HOLMES           (2020, United Kingdom \ United States)

Se ti appassionano le avventure dell’investigatore più famoso del mondo – Sherlock Holmes – allora non potrai perderti questo nuovissimo film, che racconta la storia della sorella sedicenne Enola – appunto – alle prese con la misteriosa scomparsa della madre. Tra scene buffe e adrenaliniche, questa pellicola può essere ottima per la sua leggerezza e utile per avventurarti nella lingua inglese. I tanti dialoghi presenti la rendono un ottimo esercizio!

MY OCTOPUS TEACHER               (2020, South Africa)

Restiamo ancora nella più assoluta modernità, ma cambiamo genere. Questo docu-film racconta la storia di un uomo (Craig Foster) ed un polpo selvatico. Le riprese, iniziate nell’ormai lontano 2010, ci offrono una visione straordinaria dei fondali marini e ci fanno immergere in quella che davvero è la routine di un animale nella sua più totale libertà. Da questa ‘invasione’ della sua libertà, umano e animale trarranno un rapporto del tutto particolare.

In questo caso i dialoghi sono ridotti all’osso, ed è principalmente la voce del protagonista narrante quella con la quale entriamo in contatto. Il ritmo della sua narrazione è lento, quasi ovattato per farci immergere completamente nelle splendide riprese sui fondali marini. Un ottimo esercizio per restare in contatto con la lingua inglese e godersi uno spettacolo straordinario.

DJANGO UNCHAINED                   (2012, United States)

Su Netflix a settembre arriva un vero capolavoro di quest’ultima decade. Si tratta del settimo film di Quentin Tarantino, e quasi sembrano già passati secoli da quel lontano 2012, quando faceva il suo debutto nelle sale.
È la storia di Django Freeman, uomo nero e libero – come dice il suo cognome – nell’America della schiavitù e della segregazione razziale del diciannovesimo secolo.

I dialoghi, forse, in questo caso sono più complessi e spesso schizofrenici, taglienti. Ma ne vale davvero la pena perché si possono vedere in originale attori del calibro di Leonardo DiCaprio, Jamie Foxx, Christoph Waltz e Samuel L. Jackson. Quindi esperienza consigliatissima, come d’obbligo anche i sottotitoli!

A LOVE SONG FOR LATASHA                 (2020, United States)

Questo non è propriamente un film, ma abbiamo voluto comunque inserirlo nella lista e presto capirete il perché. È un cortometraggio di 19 minuti, con stile documentaristico, e sarà disponibile su Netflix a partire dal 21 settembre.

È un’opera che rende omaggio alla vita di Latasha Harlins, ragazzina afro-americana uccisa da un colpo di pistola alla nuca per uno spiacevole malinteso in un negozio di liquori; malinteso creato dalla fomentazione razziale che imperversava allora nelle strade di Los Angeles.
Dopo 29 anni – era il marzo del 1991 – purtroppo il fatto è ancora di estrema attualità. Urge mobilitarsi e noi, nel nostro piccolo, lo facciamo omaggiandola ed inserendola in questa speciale lista.

THE TERMINAL                                        (2004, United States)

Chiudiamo la classifica con un vero blockbuster di qualche anno fa. Tom Hanks è il protagonista di questo film diretto da Steven Spielberg, che annovera inoltre la partecipazione di Stanley Tucci e Catherine Zeta Jones, per un cast di tutto rispetto.
Film visionario e forse troppo sottovalutato nella filmografia di Spielberg, The Terminal narra la storia di Viktor Navorski, cittadino di un immaginario stato dell’Europa dell’Est, che rimane bloccato per mesi nel terminal dell’aeroporto di New York. Il motivo? Resta a voi scoprilo… buona visione!

E con questo è tutto per oggi! Speriamo che tu abbia apprezzato l’articolo.
Per caso conosci qualche altro titolo che potresti consigliare su Netflix per migliorare la padronanza della lingua inglese? Faccelo sapere qua sotto nei commenti!

Have a Good Day!