新托福考试听力特训 CD1-Track17

CD1-track17



Journalism 1: Newspapers and Journalists



1. What is the lecture mainly about?



A Freedom of speech and newspapers.



B Journalism and freedom of the press.



C How the media distorts the truth.



D The history of journalism.



(B)



2. According to the lecture, why is “prizemanship” mainly problematic?



A Journalists may distort the truth.



B Journalists can be invading some privacy.



C Newspapers feel humiliated 2 when their journalists do not win the prize.



D The truth must always be found and never interpreted.



(A)



听力原文：



CD1-track17



Journalism: Newspapers and Journalists



“In the US constitution it is stated that the congress shall make no law abridging 3 the



freedom of speech of the press. This puts forth 4 the foundation of journalism in the



United States. The government and the press are 2 separate entities 5. The people who



wrote the 1st amendment 6 understood that journalists are human beings and that they



can make mistakes. The press even though it is not perfect was to take on the job of



government critic with its responsibility to the citizens of America not to the



government. At the core of the way in which the press operates is independence.



Newspaper owners may support a particular party, but it is becoming more common



for a newspaper and its journalists to be totally independent in every way.



Unfortunately sometimes this is a goal to work towards and not a description which



shows the truth. Staff and the newspaper they represent should show freedom of



thought and action. A newspaper must not print stories for the sole purpose of



promoting people who support it. Journalists cannot receive money, holidays, or gifts



from special groups for favorable news coverage 7. If a newspaper were corrupt 8 it



could not criticize the government for being corrupt. Sometimes things like a free



meal or sports tickets are acceptable though, but this is not practice written in stone.



There are not really any rewards for the type or amount of freedom that the press



enjoys, maybe devotion of the readers in trust. With freedom of the press a newspaper



can still report a story in the way it wished. However, it must still adhere to the laws



of libel. The basic idea is that there must be truth to what the newspaper prints and



the newspaper must be able to show that they are being truthful 9. It is common for a



newspaper to separate its ideas and beliefs from the objective presentation of truth.



The news is presented with sources identified when possible. It is only on the editorial page that the newspaper gives its and other staff members or syndicated writers



personal opinions. For a newspaper to not sound one sided or closed minded to



others it often has a section devoted 10 to letters that people write to the newspaper



about how the news is being reported and other versions of the truth if one or several



happen to exist. The newspapers reserve the right to edit as necessary so that there is



fair presentation. A newspaper must also be sure to remain responsible if it does make



a mistake. Correction should be printed in the same part of the newspaper all the time



so they are easier to be found. A newspaper must also know when to draw the line



when they have crossed the boundary of invading somebody’s private life. It is at this



point that the newspaper must look at what it is saying and doing and re-evaluate the



situation. Journalists must follow the same laws as does everybody else but must be



extremely enthusiastic in uncovering the truth. In doing this they become a type of



supervisor 11 or watchdog. Newspapers must be careful of becoming caught up in



something called prizeman-ship, presenting stories in a certain way with the sole



purpose of the newspaper or the journalist winning a prize. This has happened before.



A journalist made up the story and ended up winning the Pulitzer Prize. In the end the



journalists revealed the truth and quit her job. The newspaper gave the award back



with great humiliation 12. It is okay for newspapers and journalists to receive prizes, but



they should be from people or groups who have no connection to the recipient 13 and



they should be without the recipient knowing it. There is the temptation to exaggerate



the facts but this must always be avoided. Journalists must always remember this last



rule in being a journalist. Above all one must be aware of the possibility that he or



she might be wrong, that a mistake has been made. There can be many viewpoints



which distort the truth. Journalists must remember when an error is made there is



always somebody who is going to be hurt. It is for this that the truth must always be



found and never interpreted.”