Barbies as Role Models & Girl Power K-pop on International Women's Day, an Indian Viewpoint

Sneha Kumari writes the story "Women's Day Vibes: Barbie's cultural reset is redefining the idea of role models" on Indiatimes to mark International Women's Day, 2026. 

This short article can be recommeded for B2 students and above, who will come across interesting expressions like: vibes, a reset, a role model, a trailblazer, a Dream Team, [sky-high] heels, a debut, a [pop-culture] icon, [beauty] standards, fast-forward, a reboot, a brand, a lineup, to honour, one-of-a-kind [dolls], likeness,

a [headline] moment, a doll, in other words, Gen Z, a highlight, a shift, to matter, to flip that script, to bat, [record-breaking] performances, [to push the sport into the] spotlight, packed [stadiums], [trending] hashtags, a [toy] aisle, to spot, the pitch, [the old Barbie fantasy] to land, a disability, to take [an idea] one step further, to inspire, to pick up [a cricket bat], a makeover, to enthral.

Another interesting pop-culture story on International Women's Day is Karen Noronha's "a K-pop playlist by TWICE, MAMAMOO, Jenie and more that embody power, strength and confidence", also found on Indiatimes, where B2 students can listen to several K-pop songs (including Miss-A's - "I don't need a man" in the picture), they can read the text and pick up words like: to embody, bold, self-worth, a track, resilience, empowerment, unapologetic [self-love], to deliver [an anthem], to stand tall, to embrace [individuality], a feel-good [anthem], to blast, a spot, an upbeat [anthem], to let go, to do [you] wrong, girl power, vibes, a statement, to thrive, quirks, a cutie [bluff charm], a rallying [cry], hardship, fearless, a stepping stone, a soaring [anthem], a path, a versatile [journalist], seamlessly.

Finally, you can watch a short clip from CBS19 News (Charlottesville, Va), where the Barbie Dream Team story is discussed. This informal conversation with subtitles is also accessible to B2 students, who will encounter expressions like: to mark (Internation Women's Day), a lineup, a pioneer, a doll, a race-car [driver], a soccer player, [new Barbies'] coming out, a random [Barbie], to make a difference [in the world], actual [people], inclusive, autism, stuff [out there], all around, a teachable [experience for kids].

The Best Tech in the Mobile World Congress, 2026

The Mobile World Congress 2026 has been held in Barcelona from March 2nd to 5th. In the picture you can see the Home Assistant Robot by Grup Saltó which provides robotic care to more than 600 elderly people in Barcelona.  

Next, you can read a short corporate press note about the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra, which has won the "Best in Show" at the Global Mobile Awards (GLOMO Awards). This short text has plenty of technical terms, colourful marketing adjectives and adverbs, so it is recommended for C1 students and above who can find interesting words and collocations like: groundbreaking, impactful, consumer-focused [products], [to set] a benchmark [for technology], the gold-standard, across the [digital] landscape, a seamless [blend] [of hardware and software], a built-in [Privacy Display], a breakthrough, vibrant [viewing], a [customized] chipset, to power, effortless [mobile experiences], compelling [technology], [to push] the boundaries, a meaningful [impact], to address [the needs], a [judging] panel, an agentic AI phone, ongoing [commitment].

Finally, you can watch the video the Best Tech of MWC 2026! (14:19, without subtitles) by Android Authority, which shows the coolest smartphone prototypes in the fair.  The speech is fast, dense and packed with technical jargon and brand names, so it is recommended for C2 students and Experts, who might pick up expressions like: weird, a concept, modularity, a ton of, accessories, a power bank, bulky, modules, to fancy, cool, at first glance, a tagline, a [hidden] display, to prop it up, pixels, textures, [so much] hype, amulet display, glare, coatings, a refresh [rate], a prototype, a [camera] gimbal, footage, gimmicky, a lens, [200] frame [a second], a [camera] rig, to stick with [phones], a foldable [smartphone], flagship [style phones], coating, bizarrely, specs, a grid, gamers, a built-in [cooling fan], by-pass charging, a pop-up [fire starter], wireless, an upgrade, an update, a bargain, to make up for [the not massive battery], a headphone, affordable, a [battery] to run out, padding.

You can read a written article about the Best of  MWC Awards 2026 by Bogdan Petrovan. Or else, you can just relax, watch the images, forget the technical jargon and enjoy the video:

Valentine's Day: The Best Places to Elope in 2026

How are you going to celebrate Valentine's Day? With a romantic walk in a sunny, sheltered forest? With a candle-lit dinner at a rustic restaurant, or tucked-away in your sofa with fluffy pillows and a warm cup of tea?  Eva Sandoval has some travel ideas for the adventurous and affluent who want to elope and get married away from a crowded banquet -and for everyone else who uses their imagination to travel the world!

In the BBC story "Chosen by experts: Where to elope in 2026" B2 students will find lovey-dovery ideas for a Valentine elopement and interesting English expressions like: to elope, [to get] engaged, commitment, [to be] on the rise, soaring [wedding costs], stunning [locations], [increasingly] chic, cheesy, shameful, to trace [the shift back to the mid-2020s], wanderlust, [to push the idea into] the mainstream, to swap, a vow, thrilling, to splash out, wilderness, a no-brainer, to tie the knot, a loch, secluded [wilderness], untouristed, heather, [nuptials] hack, the red tape, alleyways, a cove, to unfold, a dip [in the Mediterranean], the vibe, the cliffside, laid-back [pace], a leap [of faith], overrun, touristy, off the beaten path, a rugged [landscape], a pristine [beach], a mezze [platter], [the coastline] dotted, to crave, to rough it, to be studded, a [major] draw, a melting pot, bougie, a cerulean [sea], to overlook [the ocean], a bliss, the scenery, unmatched, a moose, to blow [your] mind, a glacier, a waterfall, trooper, lush [volcanic topography].

You can also watch this 4:42 video with the Top 5 Adventurous Elopements in U.S. from Simply Eloped, which is recommende for B2 students and above.

Russia Tricks Africans to Die in Ukraine

African young men are being recruited with lies to end up fighting in the frontline in the Ukranian war, Larry Madawo reports for CNN. They are promised high salaries and Russian citizenship for civilian jobs, but they are sent to the most dangerous spots of the Ukrainian war instead, and they are even forced to carry out suicidal missions at gunpoint (Warning: some of the images in the video can be disturbing!).

This harrowing story of human trafficking is suitable for C2 students in the video version and for C1 students in the written version. In the video, students will encounter expressions like: to entice, to lure, to recruit, a land mine, to strap, to storm [positions], a can opener, to trace, traumatising, a [Kenyan] number (person), a growing [number of men], to glamorise, to brag, [to feel] trapped, shrapnel, an ambush, an armour [vest], buttocks, a grenade, to flee, (fled), aimed at [foreign fighters], a sign on [bonus], wounded, [to have] an issue, [to go] underground, a crackdown, to sign up.

In the longer, written story, C1 students will find interesting expressions like: to fight back tears, to reach [somebody], to end up, to serve [in the military], the frontline, a [Kenyan] number (person), a [racist] slur, a can opener, to breach, distraught, his plight, a last-ditch effort, to jolt, to hurl [racist slurs], to be deployed, to uncover [new details], a rosy [promise], a first-hand [account], to entice, to bolster [its ranks], to dupe [into becoming mercenaries], to follow suit, to be coerced, to flee, at gunpoint, a binding [picture of service], to lock [the serviceman into broad obligations], to reimburse, to trigger, to surrender [a passport], to disclose [sensitive information], a screenshot, the enrollment [procedure], to allege [racism], to admonish, pidgin [English], in the target [country], [forced] conscription, [countless] casualties, to rot, a limb, to spotlight, a send-off, committed, a [military] tag, to desert, to handle [firearms], a grenade, to chase [me away], to issue [him with a travel document], buttocks, a pipeline, a windfall, [plans] [to go] awry, to miscarry, a limp [hand], bait [for Ukrainian drones], an assault, a recruiter.

CGTN Africa, the division of the Chinese Global Television Network based in Nairobi, also covered this story last month, as you can see in this 6':37" video whose images are less explicit. This video can be recommended for C1 students:

Sirat: a Gripping Road Movie to Hell

Sirat is a Spanish film that is competing for the Oscars (Best International Feature Film & Best Sound), after having won the Jury Prize of the Cannes Film Festival. Here you can listen to an 8-minute review of the film by NPR & The New Yorker critic Justin Chang.

Film reviews often feature a dense, florid prose, which can prove really tough for EFL students, and indeed, Justin Chang's review is rich in synonyms and precise with collocations, yet, it does not go over the top with cinema or literary references, so the text can be recommended for B2 students, who can expand their lexical base, whereas the audio version is more suitable for C1 students, who can pick up interesting words and collocations like: a gripping [film], a raver, a fitting [title], exhilarating, devastating, an unlikely [traveling companion], to make your way [through a godforsaken stretch of the Sahara Desert], the setting, derivative, a reveler, a dystopian [thriller], to sweep [you up], the propulsive [beat], an unruly [desert], a bacchanal, to vanish, to show up, to break up [the party], the ensuing [chaos], to drive off, bound [for another rave further south], to chronicle, a perilous [journey], the cast, mesmerizing [ability], to feel for [somebody], an off-the-grid [daredevil], a [dangerous] trek, a camper van, treacherous [terrain], reluctantly, to tag along, to help [each other] out, to ford [a small river], a steep [mountain road], an overwhelming [experience], propelled [by that thrillingly percussive score], to strike, a nail-biter, wary, mistrustful, at his bleakest [moments], [his driving skills] to come in handy, tenderness, unrelenting [in its ferocity], [apocalypse] to loom, a pitiless [world]. 

You can watch the official trailer below:

For futher information, you can read the Wikipedia entry for Sirat, which includes its locations in La Rambla de Barrachina (Teruel), in Er-Rachidia and in Erfoud (Morocco). Below, you can also watch director Oliver Laxe talking to Dennis Lim at the 63rd New York Film Festival and actor Sergi López struggling with English to explain his trade with the help of an interpreter. This conversation is recommended for C2 students:

How Rich is Donald Trump?

While the world is talking about President Trump's military action in Venezuela, and his threats over Greenland, there is a question that not many journalists are covering anymore: 

What is Donald Trump's net worth?

Forbes has been calculating Trump's fortune, and last September they gave the figure of $7.3 billion in the article "The Definitive Net Worth of Donald Trump", as his fortune shot up in the first nine months of his presidency with $3 extra billions made on his cryptocurrency ventures, his legal team successes and the licences his branding company has sold to foreign developers. The report includes some personal and family data, like his pension fund ($2 million) and the $50,000 annual interest that his three eldest children pay him for loans that amount to $5 million.

If you want to find out the details of Trump's assets and liabilities, you can read the Forbes article, "The Definitive Net Worth of Donald Trump" which is short, but it is recommended for C2 students for its abundant business & finance vocabulary, where you will encounter interesting American-spelt expressions like:
a tally, to leverage [the presidency for profit], to stall out, a [court] judgement, dormant, a licencing [business], to surge, to clamor, to drop off, a liquid asset, net value, [to be] flush with cash, a stockpile, a memecoin, a token, the buzz, [a coin] to unlock [value], to get off to a [rocky start], to snap up, a pile, to lock up, a stablecoin, to tie [to the dollar], to mint [a stablecoin], to drive [adoption], a venture, a [crypto] exchange, a bundle, a bunch [of cash], a stake [in a firm], from [a financial] standpoint, a net loss, revenue, to bid up [shares], head-scratching [prices], a liability, [Trump's golf game] to take off, a profit, to foreshadow, an indebted [golf resort], [to put it] underwater, [business] to pick up, real estate, a leasehold, retail, to wound, glitzy, to oversee, to refinance, to hedge [a variable interest rate], [a portion, a stake] to float, a condo, a penthouse [apartment], to helm [a business], to boast, to leverage [its network], to pay off [a debt], to unburden [a property], a [residential] lot [of land], a winery, to terminate [a loan], to offload, a shell company, a co-op [unit], to disclose [a price], to list [it for sale], to slash [a price], vacant land, a storage unit, a licencing [business], a branding [business], a tax return, sweetheart, a [legal] liability, an appellate court, to throw out [a €500 million court judgement], to stem [from], [to remain/ to be] on the hook, [interests] to accrue, to keep score.

If you want to do some listening, you can watch the Forbes video below, President Donald Trump's Net Worth Revealed, April 2025, which shows slightly different figures to the September article above, but allows students to hear the pronunciation of a very similar text -this video is also recommended for C2 students. For more background information, you can also read the lengthy Wikipedia entry Wealth of Donald Trump, which is recommended for teachers and experts.

Trump vs the BBC: Litigation and Freedom of Speech in the US

Donald Trump has sued the BBC over the Panorama edit of his speech to the mob that assaulted the Capitol on January 6th, 2021. 

This follows a string of lawsuits to intimidate media outlets that have published critical articles of President Trump, like the "meritless" lawsuit against ABC News, and CBS that ended with out-of-court settlements to fund Donald Trump Library. The Conversation described these lawsuits as "a Corleone-style approach toward media relations" that "will produce a chilling effect in investigative reporters" and could "install a form of internal self-censorship" to appease the would-be editor in chief, Donald Trump: "ABC's and CBS's settlement with Trump are a dangerous step towards the commander in chief becoming the editor in chief"

In addition, Mr. Trump favours the sale of CNN to Skydance, as part of the Warner Bros. merger, Politico informs.  CNN has been critical of Mr. Trump's policies, whereas Skydance is owned by Trump's loyal ally David Ellison, the son of Oracle's boss Larry Ellison, who have played a key role in Trump's media policy since the Skydance acquisition of CBS's parent company, Paramount, as the BBC reported in "Move over Murdoch's -a new family dynasty is shaking up US media".

For futher information about freedom of expression under the Trump administration, you can read the book "Murder the Truth", by the New York Times investigative deputy editor, David Enrich, or listen to this NPR's interview where Mr. Enrich talked about his investigation into the current threats to freedom of speech in the US.

The BBC report on Trump's defamation lawsuit on the Capitol assault is recommended for C1 students who will find legal vocabulary like: defamation, to file a lawsuit, a claim, deceptively, ongoing [legal proceedings], to sue, to cheat, a riot, to leak, malice, to allege, libel, to stand up for [the BBC], shadow [culture secretary], a fee [payer], the Bar, litigation, to cough up [the money]. 

The Conversation story is also suitable for C1 students, who can learn interesting expressions like: a settlement, commander in chief, a surrender, to foresee, seemingly, meritless, a shareholder, liable, the pursuit, to seek [to apply editorial pressure], unrelenting, biased [TV coverage], a newscast, to air, to trade [away the trust], [to break] a scoop, to hold [power] to account. 

The BBC article on the Ellison family's media interests (C2) includes words like: to shake up, to take on [a new dimension], to pursue [deals], to pave the way, to bless [the dealings], to rank, to skew, a [Republican] megadonor, a fundraiser, to broker [a deal], to be poised [to become], a foray, a flop, a takeover, a [significant] leap, a sprawling [operation], a sign-off, anti-bribery [laws], in compliance with, to duck [questions], to sway [news coverage], the kernel, to get your head around [that], a tie-up, a would-be [media] mogul, to go in flames. 

And finally, the long and complex NPR's (Fresh Air) interview to David Enrich, which is recommended for C2 students and Experts, contains words like: a gathering, to overturn [a court decision], a landmark [case], a [media] outlet, the campaign trail, libel, a stump speech, high-power [lawyers], to linger, reckless [disregard for the accuracy], malice, to set out, a rocky [start], to bash [the media], nuanced [understanding of the issue], shoddy, oblivion, to pop up, saber-rattling, the wherewithal, to flinch, to dig into, to chip away [around the edges], kooky [stuff], to mastermind [this campaign], hand-wringing.

You can watch a YouTube interview to David Enrich on Democracy Now! This video with subtitles is also recommended for C2 students and Experts:

Jane Goodall

Jane Goodall (1934- 2025) was a primatologist, an anthropologist and an adventurous woman who pioneered the observation of apes in their own habitats, when young English women were thought to be too fragile to expose themselves to the dangers of the jungle. She died last October at the age of 91.

Here you can listen to parts of two interviews she gave to Terry Gross (Fresh Air, NPR) in 1993 and 1999 where she talks about how she managed to make a career for herself to become the world-leading chimpanzee expert with no previous scientific training but with a passion for wild animals, starting in the 1950's as a secretary to palaeontologist Louis Leaky in Tanzania. She also talks about the complex social interactions of chimpanzees she observed and the similarities she found to human behaviour: how chimps communicate, how they make their own tools, how they bring up their infants, how they make war against rival groups etc. This long interview (37') has a script, so it can be recommended for C1 students and above, who will come across interesting expressions to learn or to activate like: a conservationist, groundbreaking [observations], mating [patterns], a host of [awards], to tackle [problems], offspring, to charge, bristling [hair], to drag [branches], to stamp [on me], to push, a baboon, a bush pig, dull [eyes], to get on with their lives, to lean [away from the microphone], striking, to embrace, to pat (one another on the back) to swagger, to tickle, a Band-Aid, Epsom salts, the undergrowth, a queer (white-skinned ape), to run off, oil [nut] palm, to groom, to peer, involvement, a wimp, a [return] fare, to be impressed, a gorge, a track, a trail, a scheme, to tramp [off], the bush, to stamp, to snort, to be charged [by a buffalo], a close call, a bully, rugged [ground], to knock [me] over, to charge, to drag, to crack [open] [my head], [to get] mad [at him], to squat, a twig, [to seem] unlikely, a mound, to crunch [them] [up], uproar, mothering, attentive, supportive, harsh, a toddling [child], a raid, a splinter [group], to twist, a limb, a prey, [primate] heritage.

For further information, you can watch the following National Geographic documentary (1h:30') Jane Goodall, an Inside Look, by Brett Morgen on YouTube, which can be watched with subtitles and is recommended for B2 students and above: 

Rosalía talks about "Lux"

Rosalía talks to New York Times critics Jon Caramanica and Joe Cascarelli on Popcast about her latest avant-guard pop album, "Lux" and her creative process to produce innovative sounds in flamenco, reggaeton or in pop music. In Lux, Rosalía sings about spirituality, feminine sainthood, words and poetry in 13 different languages. "There has to exist another way of making pop", Rosalía claims.

The New York Times Popcast is very long (1':30"), so it is recommended for C2 students (machine subtitles are available). Some interesting expressions you can come across along the conversation are: to butter [you] up, to break out, lush [string arrangements], to swerve, a [white] canvas, an abyss, to honour, to relate [to an idea], realm, to wrap your head around, hagiography, a [blank] slate, to crave, to haunt, back and forth, [cultural] appropriation, to pursue, to jot down, to anaesthetize [my pain], a relic, to kick up, a rigorous [task], to hang out with, brutalist, breakthrough, to hit a wall, auteur, fair enough, [to lead me] astray, picky, train of thought, haiku, to have an impression, duende, to commit [yourself], to flip [it], a bodega, to grab, a pantry, a wafer, a raspberry, a nuance, puffy, mealy.

Lux is coming out on November 7th, you can also watch the official video of her lead single Berghain.