Extended reading and writing is something small elite groups do

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keannu

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Source : Korean SAT English 2021 by Korean Education Broadcasting System - Test3.6

As Marshall McLuhan famously said in the 1960s, we are now a postliterate society. Our culture has returned to a kind of medieval attitude toward print. Extended reading and writing is something small elite groups do. Secondary schools and universities are trying desperately to keep these activities at the centre of schooling, but even some of the most conservative Ivy League schools have replaced listening to lectures and writing essays with field work, role-playing games, online discussion, and other forms of experiential, interactive “e-learning.” Having a book published was once seen as the ultimate way of getting your message out to a wide audience. Today, a blogger can get millions of hits a day or an online video can have millions of views. If a book sells five thousand copies in Canada it is considered a bestseller. The Kony 2012 video now stands at over 96 million views — a shocking statistic for a thirty-minute video!

Is the underlined part in accordance with "medieval attitude toward print(people are not much interested in literacy)"?
Does it mean that reading and writing is disliked by many people, favored by only a minority like small elite groups?

Extended reading and writing is something small elite groups do.
 

Charlie Bernstein

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Is the underlined part in accordance with "medieval attitude toward print(people are not much interested in literacy)"?
Does it mean that reading and writing is disliked by many people, favored by only a minority like small elite groups?

Extended reading and writing is something small elite groups do.
Yes.

The word elite means very different things to different people. Whom do you think this writer is talking about?

I never heard of the "Kony 2012" video, so I just Googled it and watched for about three minutes. It didn't really seem very interesting. Ninety-six million views, huh? People are so interesting!
 
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BobisMe

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I would say that, like during medieval times, people today view traditional reading and writing skills as being less relevant to their lives. Few people during medieval times needed to be able to read and write and the article is saying that, due to technology, younger people today are thinking more like that. It really has nothing to do with liking or disliking.
 
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