英语报刊选读离线作业答案

浙江大学远程教育学院

《英语报刊选读》课程作业答案

作业一

A. Multiple Choices.

1. A

2. C

3. C

4. A

5. B

6. C

7. A

8. B

9. C

10. A、D、E、H、I

B. Read the following statements and decide whether they are true (T) or false (F). True: 1、4、5、8、10

False: 2、3、6、7、9

作业二

Keys:

1. Give the definition of the following terms.

1) feature

a prominent or special article, story, or department in a newspaper or periodical.

2) editorial

an article in a publication expressing the opinion of its editors or publishers.

3) op-ed

of or being a newspaper page, usually opposite the editorial page, that features signed articles expressing personal viewpoints

4) inverted pyramid

The inverted pyramid is a traditional form of writing in which the news is stacked in paragraphs in order of descending importance. The lead summarizes the principal items of a news event. The second paragraph and each succeeding paragraph contain secondary or supporting details in order of decreasing significance. All the paragraphs in the story contain newsworthy information, but each paragraph is less vital than the one before it. Inverted-pyramid form puts the climax of a story at the beginning, in the lead.

5) lead

A lead is a terse opening paragraph that provides the gist of the story and invites

readers inside.

2.What is the difference between hard news and soft news?

Hard news events, such as killings, and speeches by leading government officials, are timely and are reported almost automatically by the media. Soft news events, such as a car wash by a fourth-graders to raise money for a classmate with cancer, are not usually considered immediately important or timely to a wide audience. These events still contain elements of news, however, and the media often report them.

3.What is the difference between news and features?

A news story emphasizes the facts of the event, while the feature displaces the facts to

accommodate the human interest of the story.

4.What are the major criteria for newsworthiness?

Proximity

Prominence

Timeliness

Impact

Conflict and Controversy

Uniqueness

Human interest

5.What are the principles of news writing?

News writing tends to be:

1. Impersonal to make it appear objective (to distance the reporter from the story)

hence:

–Written in the third person

–Use of direct speech or indirect speech which is attributed to someone other than the reporter,

–Some use of passive verbs but usually only when someone who is being quoted wants to distance themselves from an issue and to show objectively

about n issue.

2. About something that has taken place so mostly written in the past tense.

3. Simple –In fact close to the way we talk –relatively short sentences and

words and some use of clichés which the whole audience understand.

4. Punchy –it must grab the reader’s attention so often uses:

–short rather than long words

–active verbs

–relatively short sentences

–concrete rather than abstract vocabulary

–sometimes emotive and colorful vocabulary

–some use (but not overuse) of adjectives

5. But also relatively formal hence:

–no use of contractions

–sentences written in full (no elision) or elliptical sentences

6. sometimes imagery is used to help create a clearer mental picture for the reader.

7. often including the reporter’s by-line and/or a date-line

6.Read the following headlines and analyze the features of the language they

use.

a)More Iraqis Said to Flee Since Troop Rise

When passive voice is used in headlines, “to be” is always omitted. Here “are” in “More Iraqis are said to flee…”is omitted. Nouns and noun phrases are often used in headlines to save space. Noun phrases which actually express actions or state are heavily used, and they are derived from verb phrases in order to make