题目内容
In June 2016, Huffington Post and Mail Online reported that three-year-old Victoria Wilcher, who had suffered facial scarring, had been kicked out of a KFC because she was frightening customers. Later, KFC announced that no evidence had been found to support the story. This phenomenon is largely a product of the increasing pressure in newsrooms that care more about traffic figures.
Brooke Binkowski, an editor, says that, during her career, she has seen a shift towards less editorial oversight in newsrooms. “Clickbait is king, so newsrooms will uncritically print something unreal. Not all newsrooms are like this, but a lot of them are.”
Asked what the driving factor was, a journalist said, “You’ve an editor breathing down your neck and you have to meet your targets. And there are some young journalists on the market who are inexperienced and who will not do those checks. So much news that is reported online happens online. There is no need to get out and knock on someone’s door. You just sit at your desk and do it.”
Another journalist says, “There is definitely pressure to churn out (粗制滥造) stories in order to get clicks, because they equal money. At my former employer in particular, the pressure was on due to the limited resources. That made the environment quite horrible to work in.”
In a February 2017 report for Digital Journalism, Craig Silverman wrote, “Today the bar for what is worth giving attention to seems to be much lower. Within minutes or hours, a badly sourced report can be changed into a story that is repeated by dozens of news websites, resulting in tens of thousands of shares. Once a certain critical mass is reached, repetition has a powerful effect on belief. The rumor(传闻) becomes true for readers simply by virtue of its ubiquity.”
And, despite the direction that some newsrooms seem to be heading in, a critical eye is becoming more, not less important, according to the New York Times’ public editor, Margaret Sullivan. “Reporters and editors have to be more careful than ever before. It’s extremely important to question and to use every verification(验证) method available before publication.” Yet those working in newsrooms talk of doubtful stories being tolerated because, in the words of some senior editors, “a click is a click, regardless of the advantage of a story”. And, “if the story does turn out to be false, it’s simply a chance for another bite at the cherry.”
Verification and fact-checking are regularly falling victim to the pressure to bring in the numbers, and if the only result of being caught out is another chance to bring in the clicks, that looks unlikely to change.
1.According to Brooke Binkowski, newsrooms produce false news because _____.
A. clicks matter a lot B. resources are limited
C. budgets are inadequate D. journalists lack experience
2.What does the underlined sentence in Paragraph 5 probably mean?
A. Lies can’t sell without an atom of truth.
B. Rumors are like a flame blown by the wind.
C. You can hear rumors, but you can’t know them.
D. A lie, repeated often enough, will end up as truth.
3.What’s Margaret Sullivan’s attitude towards false news online?
A. Negative. B. Supportive.
C. Skeptical. D. Neutral.
4.What is the passage mainly about?
A. Consequences of false stories. B. Causes of online false news.
C. Incompetence of journalists. D. A craze to get clicks.
Memorandum(备忘录) To: Members of all departments From: Annette Derringer Subject: Year-end party Date: November 26 |
This is just a quick note to let you all know the arrangements for next month’s year-end party. As you know, the party will be held at the Green Vale Country Club, which we have reserved between 6:00 pm and 10:00 pm on the evening of December 21st. 1 have received replies from almost all of you confirming attendance, but if you have not let me know yet, please do so in the next day or two. Tickets for all employees have been covered by the company. The manager of Green Vale has asked me to explain one or two things to those of you who have not been there before. Basically, there is enough parking space for only 100 vehicles, so he would like to ask those of you planning to drive to try car pool(拼车)as much as possible. Also, the number of lockers available is small, so guests should try to keep belongings to a ,minimum. Thanks in advance, Annette |
To: Annette Derringer aderringer@belway.com From: Kype Berwick Subject: Year-end party Date: November 28 |
Annette, I will be able to attend the year-end party at the Green Vale Country Club on December 21st although I do not think I will be able to arrive before 7:30. I was wondering if it would also be possible to bring a couple of guests. I know it is a bit of a last-minute request, but my brother and his wife are planning to visit us at that time, and they would love to see the Green Vale. If it is not a problem, then could you let me know how much I should pay for their tickets? Also, assuming this is OK, we are planning to drive down in a single car to reduce the need for paring and also to allow us to keep our belongings in the ear. I will have a couple of days off before the party, and I will not be in my office December 17th, so could you get back to me before then? Thanks a lot, Kyle |
1.Which of the following is NOT mentioned in the memorandum?
A. Payments for extra guests.
B. Time of the year-end party
C. Parking restrictions.
D. Storage of personal items.
2.Kyle Berwick writes to Annette Derringer mainly to____.
A. ask the price of movie tickets
B. explain why he cannot to the party
C. confirm the route to the hotel.
D. ask if he can bring guests to the party.
3.What can we infer from the passage?
A. The manager of the Green Vale doesn’t want the members to go there by car.
B. Annette is in charge of making arrangements for the year-end party.
C. The members can take as many belongings as they can with them.
D. Kype Berwick won’t bring guests to the party if he as to pay for the tickets.