The Power of the Press 媒體的力量
In democratic countries any efforts to restrict the freedom of the press are rightly condemned. However, this freedom can easily be abused. Stories about people often attract far more public attention than political events. Though we may enjoy reading about the lives of others, it is extremely doubtful whether we would equally enjoy reading about ourselves. Acting on the contention that facts are sacred, reporters can cause untold suffering to individuals by publishing details about their private lives. Newspapers exert such tremendous influence that they can not only bring about major changes to the lives of ordinary people but can even overthrow a government.
The story of a poor family that acquired fame and fortune overnight, dramatically illustrates the power of the press. The family lived in Aberdeen, a small town of 23,000 inhabitants in South Dakota. As the parents had five children, life was a perpetual struggle against poverty. They were expecting their sixth child and faced with even more pressing economic problems. If they had only had one more child, the fact would have passed unnoticed. They would have continued to struggle against economic odds and would have lived in obscurity. But they suddenly became the parents of quintuplets, four girls and a boy, an event which radically changed their lives. The day after the birth of the five children, an aeroplane arrived in Aberdeen bringing sixty reporters and photographers.
The rise to fame was swift. Television cameras and newspapers carried the news to everyone in the country. Newspapers and magazines offered the family huge sums for the exclusive rights to publish stories and photographs. Gifts poured in not only from unknown people, but from baby food and soap manufacturers who wished to advertise their products. The old farmhouse the family lived in was to be replaced by a new $500,000 home. Reporters kept pressing for interviews so lawyers had to be employed to act as spokes-men for the family at press conferences. While the five babies were still quietly sleeping in oxygen tents in a hospital nursery, their parents were paying the price for fame. It would never again be possible for them to lead normal lives. They had become the victims of commercialization, for their names had acquired a market value. Instead of being five new family members, these children had immediately become a commodity.
4.Though we may enjoy reading about the lives of others, it is extremely doubtful whether we would equally enjoy reading about ourselves.
我們都喜歡看關(guān)于別人生活的報(bào)道，但是否同樣喜歡看關(guān)于自己生活的報(bào)道，就很難說了。
語言點(diǎn):句子結(jié)構(gòu)分析:此句中的it作先行主語，指代whether引導(dǎo)的主語從句，本意是“是否同樣喜歡看那關(guān)于自己生活的報(bào)道就讓人懷疑了?！?BR> 5.Acting on the contention that facts are sacred, reporters can cause untold suffering to individuals by publishing details about their private lives.
記者按事實(shí)至上的論點(diǎn)行事，發(fā)表有關(guān)別人生活的細(xì)節(jié)，有時(shí)會給當(dāng)事人造成極大的痛苦。
語言點(diǎn):acting on的意思是“按照…做”，要表達(dá)類似的意思還可以說:according to,in the light of,by…,as…,in pursuance of,base on。
6.Newspapers exert such tremendous influence that they can not only bring about major changes to the lives of ordinary people but can even overthrow a government.
新聞具有巨大的威力。它們不僅可以給尋常人家的生活帶來重大的變化，甚至還能*一個(gè)政府。
語言點(diǎn):exert influence的意思是“對…產(chǎn)生影響”。
In democratic countries any efforts to restrict the freedom of the press are rightly condemned. However, this freedom can easily be abused. Stories about people often attract far more public attention than political events. Though we may enjoy reading about the lives of others, it is extremely doubtful whether we would equally enjoy reading about ourselves. Acting on the contention that facts are sacred, reporters can cause untold suffering to individuals by publishing details about their private lives. Newspapers exert such tremendous influence that they can not only bring about major changes to the lives of ordinary people but can even overthrow a government.
The story of a poor family that acquired fame and fortune overnight, dramatically illustrates the power of the press. The family lived in Aberdeen, a small town of 23,000 inhabitants in South Dakota. As the parents had five children, life was a perpetual struggle against poverty. They were expecting their sixth child and faced with even more pressing economic problems. If they had only had one more child, the fact would have passed unnoticed. They would have continued to struggle against economic odds and would have lived in obscurity. But they suddenly became the parents of quintuplets, four girls and a boy, an event which radically changed their lives. The day after the birth of the five children, an aeroplane arrived in Aberdeen bringing sixty reporters and photographers.
The rise to fame was swift. Television cameras and newspapers carried the news to everyone in the country. Newspapers and magazines offered the family huge sums for the exclusive rights to publish stories and photographs. Gifts poured in not only from unknown people, but from baby food and soap manufacturers who wished to advertise their products. The old farmhouse the family lived in was to be replaced by a new $500,000 home. Reporters kept pressing for interviews so lawyers had to be employed to act as spokes-men for the family at press conferences. While the five babies were still quietly sleeping in oxygen tents in a hospital nursery, their parents were paying the price for fame. It would never again be possible for them to lead normal lives. They had become the victims of commercialization, for their names had acquired a market value. Instead of being five new family members, these children had immediately become a commodity.
4.Though we may enjoy reading about the lives of others, it is extremely doubtful whether we would equally enjoy reading about ourselves.
我們都喜歡看關(guān)于別人生活的報(bào)道，但是否同樣喜歡看關(guān)于自己生活的報(bào)道，就很難說了。
語言點(diǎn):句子結(jié)構(gòu)分析:此句中的it作先行主語，指代whether引導(dǎo)的主語從句，本意是“是否同樣喜歡看那關(guān)于自己生活的報(bào)道就讓人懷疑了?！?BR> 5.Acting on the contention that facts are sacred, reporters can cause untold suffering to individuals by publishing details about their private lives.
記者按事實(shí)至上的論點(diǎn)行事，發(fā)表有關(guān)別人生活的細(xì)節(jié)，有時(shí)會給當(dāng)事人造成極大的痛苦。
語言點(diǎn):acting on的意思是“按照…做”，要表達(dá)類似的意思還可以說:according to,in the light of,by…,as…,in pursuance of,base on。
6.Newspapers exert such tremendous influence that they can not only bring about major changes to the lives of ordinary people but can even overthrow a government.
新聞具有巨大的威力。它們不僅可以給尋常人家的生活帶來重大的變化，甚至還能*一個(gè)政府。
語言點(diǎn):exert influence的意思是“對…產(chǎn)生影響”。