Passage Twenty-seven (Analysis and Interpretation of the News)
The newspaper must provide for the reader the facts, unalloyed, unslanted, objectively selected facts. But in these days of complex news it must provide more; it must supply interpretation, the meaning of the facts. This is the most important assignment confronting American journalism-to make clear to the reader the problems of the day, to make international news as understandable as community news, to recognize that there is no longer any such thing (with the possible exception of such scribbling as society and club news) as “local” news, because any event in the international area has a local reaction in manpower draft, in economic strain, in terms, indeed, of our very way of life.
There is in journalism a widespread view that when you embark on interpretation, you are entering choppy and dangerous waters, the swirling tides of opinion. This is nonsense.
The opponents of interpretation insist that the writer and the editor shall confine himself to the “facts”. This insistence raises two questions: What are the facts? And: Are the bare facts enough?
As to the first query. Consider how a so-called “factual” story cones about. The reporter collects, say, fifty facts; out of these fifty, his space allotment being necessarily restricted, he selects the ten, which he considers most important. This is Judgment Number One. Then he or his editor decides which of these ten facts shall constitute the lead of the piece (This is important decision because many readers do not proceed beyond the first paragraph.) This is Judgment Number Two. Then the night editor determines whether the article shall be presented on page one, where it has a large impact, or on page twenty-four, where it has little. Judgment Number Three.
Thus, in the presentation of a so-called “factual” or “objective” story, at least three judgments are involved. And they are judgments not at all unlike those involved in interpretation, in which reporter and editor, calling upon their general background, and their “news neutralism,” arrive at a conclusion as to the significance of the news.
The two areas of judgment, presentation of the news and its interpretation, are both objective rather then subjective processes-as objective, that is, as any human being can be. (Note in passing: even though complete objectivity can never be achieved, nevertheless the ideal must always be the beacon on the murky news channels.) Of an editor is intent on slanting the news, he can do it in other ways and more effectively than by interpretation. He can do it by the selection of those facts that prop up his particular plea. Or he can do it by the pay he gives a story-promoting it to page one or demoting it to page thirty.
1. The title that best expresses the ideas of this passage is
[A]. Interpreting the News. [B]. Choosing Facts.
[C]. Subjective versus Objective Processes. [D]. Everything Counts.
2. Why does the writer of an article select ten out of 50 available facts?
[A]. Space is limited. [B]. His editor is prejudiced.
[C]. The subject is not important. [D]. He is entering choppy and dangerous.
3. What is the least effective way of “slanting” news/
[A]. Interpretation. [B]. His editor is prejudiced.
[C]. Placement. [D]. Concentration.
4. Why should the lead sentence present the most important fact?
[A]. It will influence the reader to continue.
[B]. It will be the best way to write.
[C]. Some readers do not read beyond the first paragraph.
[D]. It will gratify the editor.
Vocabulary
1. unalloyed 纯粹的，2. 没有杂物的
3. unslanted 无偏见的，4. 不5. 歪曲的
6. scribble 胡写，7. 乱写；粗制滥造的文章
8. manpower draft 人力征用，9. 券集
10. economic strain 经济紧张，11. 压力
12. embark on 开始，13. 从事
14. choppy 波浪滔滔的，15. 变动频繁，16. 紊乱
17. query 疑问，18. 质问
19. come about 发生
20. allotment 分配
英语100篇精读荟萃（中级篇）27
网络资源 Freekaoyan.com/2008-04-10
相关话题/
领限时大额优惠券,享本站正版考研考试资料!
优惠券领取后72小时内有效，10万种最新考研考试考证类电子打印资料任你选。涵盖全国500余所院校考研专业课、200多种职业资格考试、1100多种经典教材，产品类型包含电子书、题库、全套资料以及视频，无论您是考研复习、考证刷题，还是考前冲刺等，不同类型的产品可满足您学习上的不同需求。 ...考试优惠券 本站小编 Free壹佰分学习网 2022-09-19
