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That the explosion of podcasting across sub-Saharan Africa a medium
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10 Jun 2026, 08:58
10 Jun 2026, 08:58
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Question Stats:
42% (00:46) correct
57% (01:07) wrong based on 19 sessions
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That the explosion of podcasting across sub-Saharan Africa — a medium whose cultural penetration and blistering growth far outstrip those of print journalism in the region — has drawn such ________ scrutiny from global media scholars remains a puzzling lacuna in the field, one that younger researchers are only now beginning to address.
| Two Answers |
|---|
| A. unwarranted |
| B. meager |
| C. perfunctory | D. concentrated | E. paltry |
| F. waning |
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Re: That the explosion of podcasting across sub-Saharan Africa a medium
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12 Jun 2026, 00:22
12 Jun 2026, 00:22
Expert Reply
Explanation
The sentence hinges on the word lacuna, which means a gap, blank space, or missing part in a book, manuscript, or field of study.
The author describes the explosion of podcasting in sub-Saharan Africa as having "blistering growth" that beats out print journalism. Because it is growing so fast and has so much cultural influence, the fact that it has received so little attention from scholars is called a "puzzling lacuna" (a confusing gap in research).
Therefore, the blank needs a pair of words that mean "very little," "small," or "deficient," to explain why there is a gap in the research that younger scientists are just now starting to fix.
Meager (B) means lacking in quantity or quality; inadequate.
Paltry (E) means an amount ridiculously or insultingly small.
Both words perfectly describe the small, insufficient amount of scholarly attention the podcasting boom has received.
Perfunctory (C): This means carried out with a minimum of effort or reflection (careless/hasty). While it is negative, it refers to the quality of the effort rather than the amount of scrutiny. It also lacks a clear synonym match among the other choices.
Warranted (A): This means justified or deserved. If the scrutiny was justified, it wouldn't create a "puzzling gap."
Concentrated (D): This means intense or focused. If scholars gave it concentrated scrutiny, there would be no gap (lacuna) in the research.
Waning (F): This means decreasing or fading. This implies there used to be a lot of scrutiny and now it's fading, but the text suggests it was largely ignored from the start until younger researchers stepped in.
Answer: B,E
The sentence hinges on the word lacuna, which means a gap, blank space, or missing part in a book, manuscript, or field of study.
The author describes the explosion of podcasting in sub-Saharan Africa as having "blistering growth" that beats out print journalism. Because it is growing so fast and has so much cultural influence, the fact that it has received so little attention from scholars is called a "puzzling lacuna" (a confusing gap in research).
Therefore, the blank needs a pair of words that mean "very little," "small," or "deficient," to explain why there is a gap in the research that younger scientists are just now starting to fix.
Meager (B) means lacking in quantity or quality; inadequate.
Paltry (E) means an amount ridiculously or insultingly small.
Both words perfectly describe the small, insufficient amount of scholarly attention the podcasting boom has received.
Perfunctory (C): This means carried out with a minimum of effort or reflection (careless/hasty). While it is negative, it refers to the quality of the effort rather than the amount of scrutiny. It also lacks a clear synonym match among the other choices.
Warranted (A): This means justified or deserved. If the scrutiny was justified, it wouldn't create a "puzzling gap."
Concentrated (D): This means intense or focused. If scholars gave it concentrated scrutiny, there would be no gap (lacuna) in the research.
Waning (F): This means decreasing or fading. This implies there used to be a lot of scrutiny and now it's fading, but the text suggests it was largely ignored from the start until younger researchers stepped in.
Answer: B,E
Re: That the explosion of podcasting across sub-Saharan Africa a medium
[#permalink]
12 Jun 2026, 04:00
12 Jun 2026, 04:00
1
Expert Reply
Key clues:
- "explosion of podcasting" / "blistering growth" / "cultural penetration far outstrip print journalism" → This is a huge, important phenomenon.
- "has drawn such ______ scrutiny from global media scholars"
- "remains a puzzling lacuna in the field" → A "lacuna" is a gap; the lack of scrutiny is the gap.
- "younger researchers are only now beginning to address" → The gap is now starting to be filled.
So the blank must mean insufficient, inadequate, too little - the phenomenon is massive, yet scholarly attention has been surprisingly scarce.
Examining choices:
- A. unwarranted = unjustified, not deserved. Doesn't fit — the point is not enough attention, not unjustified attention.
- B. meager $=$ lacking in quantity, insufficient. Fits perfectly.
- C. perfunctory = done with minimal effort, cursory. Could work, but the sentence emphasizes quantity/scarcity of scrutiny, not the manner of it.
- D. concentrated = focused, intense. Opposite of what's needed.
- E. paltry = very small, meager, trivial. Fits perfectly.
- F. waning = decreasing. Implies there was scrutiny that is now fading - but the sentence says there's a lacuna (absence) that's only now being addressed, not a decline.
Pairing synonyms:
The only two words that both mean "too little/insufficient" are B. meager and E. paltry.
- "explosion of podcasting" / "blistering growth" / "cultural penetration far outstrip print journalism" → This is a huge, important phenomenon.
- "has drawn such ______ scrutiny from global media scholars"
- "remains a puzzling lacuna in the field" → A "lacuna" is a gap; the lack of scrutiny is the gap.
- "younger researchers are only now beginning to address" → The gap is now starting to be filled.
So the blank must mean insufficient, inadequate, too little - the phenomenon is massive, yet scholarly attention has been surprisingly scarce.
Examining choices:
- A. unwarranted = unjustified, not deserved. Doesn't fit — the point is not enough attention, not unjustified attention.
- B. meager $=$ lacking in quantity, insufficient. Fits perfectly.
- C. perfunctory = done with minimal effort, cursory. Could work, but the sentence emphasizes quantity/scarcity of scrutiny, not the manner of it.
- D. concentrated = focused, intense. Opposite of what's needed.
- E. paltry = very small, meager, trivial. Fits perfectly.
- F. waning = decreasing. Implies there was scrutiny that is now fading - but the sentence says there's a lacuna (absence) that's only now being addressed, not a decline.
Pairing synonyms:
The only two words that both mean "too little/insufficient" are B. meager and E. paltry.
