Australian Popular Magazines – IELTS Reading Answers

The Academic passage, Australian Popular Magazines IELTS Reading Answers, is a reading passage that consists of 16 questions. With diligent practice, the IELTS Reading  module can be the top-scoring category for IELTS aspirants. To score well, you must understand how to approach and answer the different question types in the Reading Module.

By solving and reviewing Sample Reading questions from past IELTS papers, you can ensure that your Reading skills are up to the mark. Take the practice test Australian Popular Magazines below and try more IELTS reading practice tests from IELTSMaterial.com.

Reading Passage for Australian Popular Magazines Reading Answers

Read through the Australian Popular Magazines Reading Answers passage below using the reading techniques to achieve a high IELTS band score! 

Australian Popular Magazines 

A The magazine as a product for leisure reading, enjoyment, and information, or, as the Gentlemen of the day would have put it ‘edification’, had its origins in England during the early years of the eighteenth century where the innovator was Daniel Defoe, the writer of Robinson Crusoe. The word magazine comes from the French Magasin which originally meant a store-house, an apt term since the first printed magazines were holdings for a miscellany of writings on various subjects. Defoe titled his magazine ‘The Review’, which, five years after the first issue, was followed by two other now-famous magazines The Trailer and The Spectator, both publications founded by the same partner — writers Richard Steele and Joseph Addison.

B As for Australian popular magazines, initially, during the founding days of the colonies, readers at the time depended on the slow sailing ships from home to bring them, among the other necessary items, newspapers, and journals.

C It was not until 1855 that Australia produced its own and first popular magazine. This was the highly successful Melbourne Punch, which had a lifespan reaching into the first quarter of the twentieth century.

D Popular illustrated magazines rapidly became an important and significant factor to the literate in Australia, who were forming our national image, as were the singers of ballads and strolling entertainers who were also making a major contribution. Out of this background, the now famous old Bulletin emerged in 1880. From the start, The Bulletin policy was to foster and encourage Australian writers and artists: it succeeded in making the names and reputations of Henry Lawson, ‘Banjo’ Paterson, Steele Rudd, and scores of others. It created a new, unique school of black-and-white art which, for instance, gave Phil May his big chance and eventual world recognition. The influence of The Bulletin was such that this era of the legendary ‘nineties’ is regarded as the source of our national culture.

From this Australian pre-Federation era a number of fascinating magazines not only founded, but many were originated and owned by distinguished writers of the day. These included the writers Henry Kendall, Marcus Clarke, Rolf Boldrewood, Randolph Bedford, Edward Dyson, Norman Lindsay and C J Dennis among others.

E As they were developed technical advances were promptly exploited, the most sensational being the development of photo—process engraving which allowed, for the first time, the reproduction of ‘half—tone’ photographs. This ingenious method simply required a photograph to be re-photographed through a dotted glass screen onto a metal sheet where, after an acid bath, the tones are simulated by a pattern of a minute, raised dots varying in size. When inked the metal sheet is ready for reproducing a facsimile photograph made of tiny dots. Previously, a scene or an event was drawn in reverse, or back to front, by an artist onto a prepared block of wood. This was then given to an engraver who, with a variety of delicate cutting tools, would gouge away areas of the drawing leaving a raised surface which when inked and pressure applied would give a black and white impression of the image. And for the first time photo-engraving enabled an artist to draw a cartoon, for instance, in any manner or style he chose and the printed result which could now be enlarged or reduced in size would be accurate in every detail just as it was drawn.

Other not so significant technical developments have been high-speed printing presses, simultaneous multi-color printing, and certain electronic ‘scanner’ equipment for preparing color illustrations.

F By and large, contemporary Australian magazines today do not differ greatly in content from those of the last century. There are some new directions: the high political content of The Bulletin, for instance, reflects an awareness that Australia is increasingly being drawn into the wider international community — the features and articles about ‘Big Business’, home and overseas reflect this appreciation.

Whilst some one-time popular and very successful magazines — Pix and the original People for example – have not survived the years following World War Il into the 1980s, the long-running Australasian Post has managed not only to survive for 120 years (with a slight name change in 1946) but the magazine has been, for quite some time now, heading the list of the largest circulation for an Australian magazine of its kind. A large part of this success has resulted from a conscious editorial policy with an emphasis on Australiana. Other contemporary magazines like the Australian Penthouse and Playboy, Cleo, and Cosmopolitan—there are others—have no policy to pursue national identity, but rather to embrace an international quality or, in the case of Penthouse, some other point of interest.

G Today, at a time of renewed national assessment, publications of the past that may have seemed inconsequential assume fresh importance as a source for the broad study of our culture. The changes in social behavior, tastes, attitudes, fashion and manners which they reflect have become a large part of our conception of ourselves.

Types of Questions in Australian Popular Magazines Reading Answers

You will only have 60 minutes to attempt all 40 questions given in the reading module. So, you must be aware of the questions that you will encounter and practice more IELTS reading topics for General and Academic to gain confidence for the test day. 

The question types in Australian Popular Magazines Reading Answers include:

• IELTS Reading Matching Headings (Q. 1-6)
• IELTS Reading Matching Features (Q. 7-11)
• IELTS Reading Matching Information (Q. 12-16)

Questions 1-6

Example C                          Answer iv

HEADINGS 

i. Daniel Defoe wrote Robinson Crusoe

ii. Culture of Australia and The Bulletin

iii. Australia’s magazines today

iv. The country’s first magazine

v. The very first magazines

vi. Australians rely on the news from England.

vii. The historical significance of magazines

viii. Printing technology advancements

ix. Photographic printing

x. Some periodicals have passed away.

1 Paragraph A

2 Paragraph B

3 Paragraph D

4 Paragraph E

5 Paragraph F

6 Paragraph G

Question 7-11

N New method of printing illustrations

O Old method of printing illustrations

B Both methods of printing illustrations

7 a wooden block

8 a metal sheet

9 a glass screen

10 inking

11 image is reversed

Questions 12-16

Example: The first magazine Answer: The review

12 is no longer published

13 the first Australian magazine

14 has a strong political focus

15 has changed its name

16 does not emphasize Australiana

Answer Key

Australian Popular Magazines Reading Answers with Location and Explanation

Compare your answers for the questions with the IELTS Academic Reading, Australian Popular Magazines Reading answers to the answer key. Each answer's location and explanation are provided for convenient reference.

1 Answer: v

Question type: Matching Headings

Answer location: Paragraph A, line 3

Answer explanation: In the mentioned line, it is given “Defoe titled his magazine ‘The Review’, which, five years after the first issue, was followed by two other now-famous magazines The Trailer and The Spectator, both publications founded by the same partner — writers Richard Steele and Joseph Addison.”. It can be inferred from the above quoted lines that the first paragraph discusses the beginnings of magazines and informs us of the very first magazines, namely ‘The Review’, ‘The Trailer’ and ‘The Spectator’. Hence, the answer is v (The very first magazines).

2 Answer: vi

Question type: Matching Headings

Answer location: Paragraph B

Answer explanation: In the second paragraph, it is stated that “As for Australian popular magazines, initially, during the founding days of the colonies, readers at the time depended on the slow sailing ships from home to bring them…”. It can be pointed out that the second paragraph informs that the readers of the Australian magazines depended on news from England (home) as it was a colony then. Hence, the answer is vi (Australians rely on the news from England.).

Tips for Answering the Question Types in Australian Popular Magazines Reading Answers

Now let’s get started with the IELTS exam preparation tips for band score of 8+ and solve each question type in the Australian Popular Magazines Reading Answers. It will help you understand how to approach the problem of each question type.

Matching Headings (Questions 1–6)

• Read the headings first: Skim through all headings to get a sense of the themes and keywords. Then underline keywords such as ‘first’, ‘culture’, ‘technology’, ‘photographic’, or ‘historical significance.’

• Skim each paragraph for its main idea: Focus on the first 2–3 sentences of each paragraph. These often contain the topic sentence. Also check the last line, which might summarize or reinforce the paragraph’s theme.

• Match ideas, not just words: The heading and paragraph may not share the same vocabulary, so look for paraphrased ideas. For example, if a heading mentions ‘photographic printing’ and the paragraph discusses ‘photo-process engraving’, they likely relate.

• Watch out for distractors: Some paragraphs may contain multiple ideas, but your task is to identify the main idea, not secondary details.

• Eliminate headings that clearly don’t match: As you go, strike through irrelevant headings to reduce confusion. Note that you may not use all headings — some are included as distractors.

• Don't be rigid with word matching: If the heading says ‘Australians rely on the news from England’, and the paragraph says ‘colonial readers depended on slow ships to bring publications from home’, this is the same idea paraphrased.

• Check consistency in your answers: Make sure your selected headings differ meaningfully from each other. Remember that no two should be nearly identical in idea.

Matching Features (Questions 7–11)

• Scan for keywords related to each item: Use scanning techniques to quickly find mentions of terms like wooden block, metal sheet, glass screen, etc.

• Pay attention to time indicators: Words like ‘previously’, ‘before’, ‘then’, or ‘developed’ can show you which era the technique belongs to.

• Match each feature with direct evidence: For example, if it says, ‘a scene was drawn in reverse… onto a block of wood’, you can classify that under O (Old method). If it mentions ‘photo-process engraving… onto a metal sheet’, then it clearly belongs to N (New method).

• Use the process of elimination: If an option does not appear in a certain method, eliminate that category.

• Re-read for overlapping methods (B): For features like ‘inking’, which is common in both old and new processes, the text may mention it in multiple contexts. Be alert to such cross-mentions.

Matching Information to Specific Sections (Questions 12–16)

• Read the statements carefully before going to the passage: Underline the key detail in each statement — for example: ‘no longer published’, ‘strong political focus’, ‘does not emphasize Australiana’. 

• Scan the passage for magazine names: Skim through the passage and highlight all magazine titles (like Melbourne Punch, Pix, People, The Bulletin, Australasian Post, Playboy, etc.). These are proper nouns and easy to locate quickly.

• Use keyword scanning to verify context: Once you’ve found where a magazine is discussed, read the 2–3 sentences around it. Look for supporting clues: lifespan, content focus, popularity, or changes over time.

• Look for synonyms and paraphrasing: The passage rarely repeats the statement exactly. For example: ‘No longer published” might appear as: ‘has not survived into the 1980s’ and ‘Changed its name’ could be ‘with a slight name change in 1946’.

• Be precise — only one correct answer: Each magazine fits one specific statement. Don’t generalize. Even if multiple magazines stopped publishing, pick the one explicitly matching the wording.

• Use elimination logic: After matching one statement, rule that magazine out for the others unless the instructions allow reuse.In this task, it seems you’re to choose ONE correct magazine per statement, so avoid double-assignments.

• Double-check timeline and facts: Many answers depend on time references like ‘first’, ‘still running’, or ‘no longer exists’ Always verify the sequence of events (e.g., which magazine was first, which changed names, etc.

To conclude, we highly recommend practising with more IELTS actual reading tests and Academic Reading passages like Australian Popular Magazines, especially those with detailed explanations, as they can be incredibly helpful for your preparation. 

If you're looking to improve your weak areas and boost your reading score, join our free IELTS online classes and chat with an experienced IELTS expert. Don’t miss our interactive webinars, where you’ll discover valuable tips and strategies to excel in the reading section. Let us know in the comments how these resources have supported your preparation!

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