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.
19.The old farmhouse the family lived in was to be replaced by a new 500,000 home.
這家人住的舊家舍將由一座價(jià)值50萬(wàn)美元的新住宅所取代。
語(yǔ)言點(diǎn):be replaced by的意思是“由…代替”。
20.Reporters kept pressing for interviews so lawyers had to be employed to act as spokes-men for the family at press conferences.
由于記者紛紛要求會(huì)見(jiàn)，他們不得不請(qǐng)了律師充當(dāng)他們家的發(fā)言人舉行記者招待會(huì)。
21.While the five babies were still quietly sleeping in oxygen tents in a hospital nursery, their parents were paying the price for fame.
眼下，五胞胎還靜靜地躺在醫(yī)院嬰兒室的氧氣帳里，他們的父母卻為這名聲付出了代價(jià)。
語(yǔ)言點(diǎn):pay for的意思是“為…而付出代價(jià)”。
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.
19.The old farmhouse the family lived in was to be replaced by a new 500,000 home.
這家人住的舊家舍將由一座價(jià)值50萬(wàn)美元的新住宅所取代。
語(yǔ)言點(diǎn):be replaced by的意思是“由…代替”。
20.Reporters kept pressing for interviews so lawyers had to be employed to act as spokes-men for the family at press conferences.
由于記者紛紛要求會(huì)見(jiàn)，他們不得不請(qǐng)了律師充當(dāng)他們家的發(fā)言人舉行記者招待會(huì)。
21.While the five babies were still quietly sleeping in oxygen tents in a hospital nursery, their parents were paying the price for fame.
眼下，五胞胎還靜靜地躺在醫(yī)院嬰兒室的氧氣帳里，他們的父母卻為這名聲付出了代價(jià)。
語(yǔ)言點(diǎn):pay for的意思是“為…而付出代價(jià)”。