本周考题虽然在近些年没有出现,但烤鸭们应该感到很开心,因为这实在是个太熟悉的话题了,也许我们经常讨论这个话题,尤其是在我们所处的互联网时代。
2012年6月9日曾经考过一个有关“新闻”的题目,原题如下:Some people think news has no connection to people's lives, so it is a waste of time to read the news on the newspaper and watch television news programs. To what extent do you agree or disagree? 这个题目要求我们讨论的观点是:新闻与我们的生活无关,因此阅读报纸或看电视新闻节目是浪费时间。就这个题目而言,我们完全可以反驳其前提条件去论证新闻与我们的生活息息相关,因此阅读报刊和看电视新闻是非常重要的。
回到本次考题,我们发现题目要求与2012年6月9日不同,这次问的是关于获知新闻的方式:阅读报纸是不是获知新闻的最好方式?是否还有其他更好的方式?这种提问方式我们也不陌生,2018年3月3日和3月10日两次考试就是这种提问方式,其中3月3日问的是监狱是不是解决犯罪问题的最好方式,3月10日问的则是提高车价和油价是不是解决交通和污染问题的最好方式。回答这种问题的思路通常是先肯定题目中提供的方式的有效性,然后提出这个方式存在的问题,最后提出其他更好的方式。比如本次考试,我们就可以先论证报纸的确是获知新闻的很好途径(包括阅读心理、深度分析等),但报纸的问题就是出版速度慢,而且需要花钱购买,携带也不方便,而电视、网络则可以解决这方面的问题,因此可以通过各种媒介来获取新闻,而不是仅仅依靠报纸。
The newspaper will remain to be an important source of people’s news consumption, even though other media may get the upper hand. Many predict that the print’s days are numbered due to strong competition from television, radio and the Internet. In terms of popularity, newspaper is statistically down but is not emotionally out.
尽管其他媒体可能占上风,但报纸仍将是人们新闻消费的重要来源。许多人预测,由于来自电视、收音机和互联网的激烈竞争,印刷品的日子已经屈指可数了。就受欢迎程度而言,报纸在统计意义上会下降,但在情感上却不会出局。
Statistically, it can be said that the print news audiences are dwindling, which means newspaper readership is getting eclipsed by other ways of learning about news. It is a long, slow and painful downward spiral to the point that the newspaper, like vinyl records and film cameras, is a relic for collectors. According to research reports on the news industry, local television is the number one source of news for the majority of people, with digital news coming in second, followed by the radio, and then by the newspaper. One possible explanation why the newspaper is being left far behind is that many people do not see the point in buying a print newspaper if they believe they can get all the news they need elsewhere for free.
从统计上说,印刷新闻的受众正在减少,这意味着报纸的读者群正在被其他的新闻获取方式所蚕食。这是一个漫长、缓慢和痛苦下降螺旋线,最后报纸会像乙烯基唱片和胶卷相机一样,成为收藏家的古物。根据新闻业的研究报告,本地电视台是大多数人的第一新闻渠道,数字化新闻排在第二位,其次是电台,最后是报纸。报纸被远远抛在后面的一个可能的解释是,如果人们相信可以从其他地方免费获取新闻,那么花钱买报纸是没有意义的。
Nevertheless, for emotional reasons print newspapers will continue to exist for a good while. To begin with, the feeling of a warm newspaper right off the press is one of traditional readers’ favorite moments to begin a regular day. Unlike other ways of delivering news, a print newspaper can be physically held in a reader’s hands, and this is a huge pro for print editions. In addition, newspapers can provide opportunities for longer, more in-depth feature articles that tend to be read in full. Instead of becoming a thing of the past, print newspapers are still widely read and preferred by many audiences.
尽管如此,由于情感原因,印刷报纸仍将继续存在一段时间。首先,传统读者的日常一天就是拿到一份刚出炉的报纸那个温暖时刻开始的。与其他的新闻传递方式不同,纸质报纸可以拿在读者手中,这是印刷版新闻的最大优势。此外,报纸还可以刊登更长、更深入的特写文章,供读者全文阅读。因此,印刷版报纸没有成为过去时,仍被广泛阅读,并被众多读者喜欢。
In conclusion, the golden days of print news are gone forever, but nothing is like the feeling of physically holding a newspaper in hands. After all, the different ways of learning about news are not mutually exclusive. Each news media outlet is effective in its own way. (338 words)
总之,印刷新闻的黄金时代已经一去不返了,但没有什么比手拿报纸的感觉更好了。毕竟,获知新闻的不同方式之间并不相互排斥,每一种新闻媒体都以其自己的方式产生作用。
news media 新闻媒体
news consumption 新闻消费
to get the upper hand 占上风
to predict 预测
the days are numbered 日子不多了
the news industry 新闻业
to see the point 看出道理
for a good while 一段时间
not mutually exclusive 互不排斥
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