第11章 新闻媒体、广播和电视

I. Explain the following in English:

1. The Times

Key: (1)It is the most famous of all British newspapers and is read by the most important British all over the world.

(2)Politically it is independent, though it is traditionally inclined to be more sympathetic to the Conservative Party.

(3)It is not an organ of the Government and has a reputation for extreme caution in its attitude.

(4)The quality of the paper and printing is remarkably good.

2. The Guardian

Key: (1)It is a national paper which is equal with The Times in quality, style and reporting.

(2)It is radical in politics. It is favorable to the Liberal Party and tends to be rather closer in sympathy to the Labor Party than to the Conservatives.

(3)It has made great progress during the past fifteen years.

3. ‘quality' paper

Key: (1)It is one of the two groups of the national dailies.

(2)The “quality” papers give more comprehensive coverage of all aspects of news.

(3)They cost more than popular papers do.

4. ‘popular' paper

Key: (1)It is one of the two groups of the national dailies.

(2)The “popular” papers aim for a more general readership.

(3)They cost less.

5. tabloid

Key: (1)It is usually printed on paper smaller than the size for a newspaper.

(2)It uses many pictures, strip cartoons and stories to attract readers.

(3)The Mirror and Sun, for example, are tabloids.

6. The Sunday Times

Key: The Sunday Times has been part of the Thomson group since 1959, and when the daily Times was also taken over by Lord Thomson in 1967 a new arrangement was made covering the editorial independence of both papers. Before then there was no connection between these two; since 1967 they have been closely connected. The Sunday Times, genuinely independent, has become a pioneer in investigative journalism with a social purpose.

7. The Economist

Key:The Economist is the most influential and the most substantial;it is mildly radical,but at the same time a long way from sympathizing with the Labor Party. It has a long section devoted to American affairs, and seriously attempts to comment each week on every event of any political or economic interest that has taken place in any part of the world.

8. The B.B.C.

Key: (1)It does all sound broadcasting, in which news reporting is excellent.

(2)It also puts out two television programmes.

(3)For sound broadcasting, it has four channels.

(4)There is no advertisement on any B. B.C. programme.

(5)It is financed by payments which must be made by all people who possess television receiving sets.

(6)It has a Board of Governors, appointed by the Government.

II. Fill in the blanks:

1. The dominating position of the national daily morning papers is due to _____.

Key: a lack of regional identity

2. The national daily papers are divided into _____ and _____.

Key: ‘quality'; ‘popular’

3. _____, _____ and _____ are the three ‘quality' papers mentioned in the text and _____, _____, and _____ are three of the ‘popular' papers in Britain.

Key: The Times,The Guardian,The Daily Telegraph;Daily Mail,News of the World,Daily Mirror

4. The Times is controlled by_____group.

Key: The Thomson

5. The Times is politically more sympathetic to_____while The Guardian is more favorable to_____.

Key: the Conservative Party, the Liberal Party

6. _____ is in fact an organ of the Conservative Party.

Key: Daily Telegraph

7. The two best quality Sunday papers are _____ and _____.

Key: The Observer,The Sunday Times

8. _____ and _____ are the two daily newspapers produced as ‘tabloids'.

Key: The Mirror,Sun

III. Tick the correct answer to each of the following:

1. Which of the following about The Times is not true?

A. The circulation is very small.

B. This is the most famous of all British papers.

C. The most important British people all over the world still read it.

D. It is most critical of established interests.

【答案】A

2. Which of the following papers, according to the author, is rather nationalistic and imperialistic?

A. The Guardian.

B. Daily Express.

C. Daily Telegraph.

D. The Times.

【答案】B

3. Which of the following papers has the largest circulation?

A. The Times.

B. Daily Telegraph.

C. Daily Mirror.

D. The Guardian.

【答案】B

4. During the past few years quite a revolution has taken place in Sunday papers.This revolution is reflected_____.

A. in the increasing interest in crime and scandal by the public.

B. in the increasing desire of the public for more meaningful material.

C. in the fact that Sunday papers are carrying more and more extremely good news.

D. in the fact that Sunday papers have added color supplements.

【答案】B

5. Which of the following periodicals is the most influential and the most substantial?

A. The Economist.

B. The New Statesman.

C. The Spectator.

D. New Society.

【答案】A

IV. Answer the questions:

1. What is the major difference between the‘quality'papers and‘popular'papers?Use The Times and Daily Mirror as examples to point out some of the characteristics of the ‘quality' papers and ‘popular' papers respectively.

Key: The national dailies in Britain are generally classed as either “quality” or “popular”. The major difference between the two classes is that the “quality” papers give more comprehensive coverage of all aspects of news while the “popular” papers aim for a more general readership.

The Times,for example,is a typical“quality”paper.It is the most famous of all British newspapers and is read by the most important British people all over the world. It is traditionally inclined to be more sympathetic to the Conservative Party. The contents of The Times are serious. Its articles are influential and have a reputation for extreme caution in the attitude. The quality of the paper and printing is remarkably good.

The Daily Mirror,on the other hand,is produced as a“popular”paper,to be specific,a tabloid.It is printed on paper half the normal size for a newspaper. Since it aims for a more general reader- ship, its political reporting is rather slight while pictures, strip cartoons and human interest stories are dominant. Its special appeal is to young people, now it has the biggest circulation in the western world.

2. Why does the author say that the Sunday Press has for a long time been notorious for its extremes of good and bad quality?

Key: Because they the enormous circulations of some of the more scandalous papers.

3. What are some of the arguments against the portrayals of violence and crime on television programmes?

Key: Against: On the other side there is room for serious concern about the probable negative effects of some television programmes in which scenes of violence and crime are presented as among the more interesting of human phenomena. The criminals are confident, articulate, well dressed, daring and dominant. They have fast cars and drive them dangerously and selfishly without accident or penalty—except when the show requires an extravagant crash in a thrilling chase. The women are attractive, the men successful in winning their admiration.

For: It would be absurd to blame television wholly for the increase in crime and anti-social behavior in the last two decades. It may be observed that some anti-social people, young and old, have not seen much television violence, and that vast numbers of addicts of crime-and-violence films behave well themselves; but such statistical findings do not prove anything.