A wave of mass hysteria seized thousands of radio listeners between 8:15 and 9:30 o'clock last night when a broadcast of a dramatization of H. G. Wells's fantasy, "The War of the Worlds," led thousands to believe that an interplanetary conflict had started with invading Martians spreading wide death and destruction in New Jersey and New York.New York Times, "Radio Listeners in Panic," October 31, 1938How does the New York Times article "Radio Listeners in Panic" give the audience the background knowledge needed to understand the story?A.By including a copy of H. G. Wells's classic novel with the newspaperB.By supplying the necessary information in the article's first sentenceC.By making fun of the way people acted during the broadcastD.By telling people they should have been listening to the broadcast

In the New York Times article "Radio Listeners in Panic," what was the purpose of including stories of mass hysteria caused by the radio broadcast of The War of the Worlds?A.To make people angryB.To emphasize Welles's crimeC.To frighten people againD.To sell more newspapers

The main, or central, idea of the passage is As a result of a news-style radio performance, some War of the Worlds listeners believed the broadcast to be true. How does the detail in bold develop the main idea?"Martian cylinders are falling all over the country!" proclaimed a voice on the radio. It was Halloween night, 1938, and Orson Welles was in the midst of a performance of the H. G. Wells story The War of the Worlds. Most listeners were aware that it was fiction; after all, an explanatory announcement had been given at the program's beginning. However, listeners who tuned in late missed the program's introduction. In addition, Welles was a magnificent performer, interspersing his "report" with sound effects and eyewitness "interviews." Consequently, some audience members believed they were hearing a real news account. They listened in increasing terror as Welles described the "invading army from the planet Mars." Fearing for their lives, some took refuge in their basements or fled their homes. When Welles concluded the show with the admission that it had been a Halloween prank, reactions ranged from amusement to fury.It explains why some people were frightened during the broadcast and others were not.It establishes that some people truly believed that the performance was real.It elaborates on Welles's use of realistic performance methods.Submit

What reason does Orson Welles give at the press conference for his reaction to the panic caused by his radio broadcast of The War of the Worlds?A.The H. G. Wells novel is a classic and the story is well known.B.The broadcast included announcements that the events were not real.C.Listeners had already heard advertisements for his adaptation of The War of the Worlds.D.The police had informed the audience that nothing was happening.

What can you infer about some people in the audience from their reactions to the 1938 broadcast of The War of the Worlds?A.They really enjoyed being frightened by scary stories told on the radio.B.Because of recent world events, they were ready to believe they were under attack.C.They were poorly educated and didn't have access to H. G. Wells's novel.D.They weren't afraid of the Martians and thought they could defeat them easily.

What did the radio version of The War of the Worlds do to ensure that the audience would understand it was fictional?A.Pretended that everyone in the audience had already read the H. G. Wells novelB.Sent letters to all households with a radio letting them know about the showC.Asked listeners to call in if they were frightened or afraid of the actionD.Announced before, during, and after the broadcast that the events were not realSUBMITarrow_backPREVIOUS