Question

The rise of multinational corporations （跨国公司）, global marketing, new communications technologies, and shrinking cultural differences have led to an unparalleled increase in global public relations or PR．
　　Surprisingly, since modern PR was largely an American invention, America’s relations is being threatened by PR efforts in other countries. Ten years ago, for example, the world’s top five public relations agencies were American-owned． In 1991, only one was． The British in particular are becoming more sophisticated and creative． A recent survey found that more than half of all British companies include PR as part of their corporate （公司的） planning activities, compared to about one-third of U.S. companies．It may not be long before London replaces New York as the capital of PR．
　　Why is America lagging behind in the global PR race? Firstly, Americans as a whole tend to be fairly provincial and take more of an interest in local affairs． Knowledge of world geography, for example, has never been strong in this country． Secondly, Americans lag behind their European and Asian counterparts （相对应的人） in knowing a second language． Less than 5 percent of Burson—Marshall’s U．S．employees know two languages． Ogilvy and Mather have about the same percentage． Conversely, some European firms have half or more of their employees fluent in a second language． Finally, people involved in PR abroad tend to keep a closer eye on international affairs． In the financial PR area, for instance, most Americans read the Wall Street Journal． Overseas, their counterparts read the Journal as well as the Financial Times of London and The Economist, publications not often read in this country．
Perhaps the PR industry might take a lesson from Ted Turner of CNN （Cable News Network）． Turner recently announced that the word “foreign” would no longer be used on CNN news
broadcasts. According to Turner, global communications have made the nations of the world so interdependent that there is no longer any such thing as foreign．
【小题1】Compared with the American PR personnel, what is/are an advantage (s) of the non-Americans involved in PR?
A． They tend to be more internationally minded
B． They speak more and better foreign languages．
C． They usually pay more attention to global financial situation．
D． Both A and B．
【小题2】What is the immediate cause of the downfall of America’s public relations?

A．The number of US public relations agencies had greatly decreased by 1991．

B．Other countries have increased their efforts in public relations．

C．On the global scale, cultural differences have significantly shrunk．

D．The British companies are becoming especially sophisticated and creative in public relations．

【小题3】It could be inferred that the author of the passage is______．

A．an American

B．a Briton

C．Ted Turner

D．an Asian

【小题4】The underlined word “provincial” in paragraph 3 could possibly mean “      ”．

A．strict in thinking	B．like people from rural areas
C．limited in outlook	D．interested in geographical knowledge

Answer 1

【小题1】D
【小题2】B
【小题3】A
【小题4】C

解析试题分析：本文介绍了美国的公共关系公司下滑，海外公共关系公司的不断进步的原因。主要是美国公司太区域化太明显。
【小题1】细节题：从第三段的句子：Conversely, some European firms have half or more of their employees fluent in a second language． Finally, people involved in PR abroad tend to keep a closer eye on international affairs．可知AB都是对的。选D
【小题2】细节题：从第二段的句子：A recent survey found that more than half of all British companies include PR as part of their corporate （公司的） planning activities, compared to about one-third of U.S. companies．可知美国的公共关系公司下滑，其他国家的公司开始努力了。选B
【小题3】细节题：从最后二段的句子：global communications have made the nations of the world so interdependent that there is no longer any such thing as foreign．可以推断出作者是美国人。选A。
【小题4】猜词题：从第三段的句子：Americans as a whole tend to be fairly provincial and take more of an interest in local affairs．可知这个单词是狭隘的，局限的视野。选C
考点：考查社会现象类短文
点评：阅读本文时要注意作者组织本文的结构：引题——论据——论点，只有把握了作者的中心论点，做题时才不会偏离议论中心