GUESSING VOCABULARY FROM CONTEXT

The following items contain important vocabulary from Part One of the lecture.

Work with a partner. Using the context and your knowledge of related words, take turns trying to guess the meanings of the words in bold.

1 So many new stories appear every day that it’s impossible to keep up with them.

2 She should keep in contact with civic organizations in the neighborhood. 3 The reporter can anticipate many of the details.

4 The reporter will probably see a few lines about the crime in the police log.

5 She can begin to interview witnesses.

___ 6 These details will make the story more credible.

7 It’s important not to report anything that is scandalous.

8 Sire will go back to the newsroom to write the story.

9 She might talk to her editor to decide whether she has a good story.

Work with your partner. Match the vocabulary’ terms with their definitions by writing the letter of each definition below’ in the blank next to the sentence containing the correct term in step 1. Check your answers in a dictionary if necessary.

a supervisor of reporters

b groups of citizens who organize activities to help and improve the neighborhood c read all of, stay informed about d know’ in advance e people who see a crime happen f shocking, related to scandals g easy to believe

h office at a newspaper where new’s is prepared for publication і record of crimes

Q NOTE TAKING: CHOOSING A FORMAT FOR ORGANIZING YOUR NOTES

Remember that you do not always have time to choose the best format for organizing your notes clearly w’hen you are listening to a lecture. If the notes you took during a lecture are disorganized, choose an appropriate format and put your notes into that format as soon after the lecture as possible. It is important to have clear notes so that they are useful tools with w’hich you can study. The more you practice taking notes, the easier it will be to choose an appropriate format for them while you listen.

1 Look at the three examples of notes on Pan One of the lecture below. Example 1 is an example of a student’s disorganized notes on Part One of the lecture. They were taken while the lecturer was speaking. Examples 2a and 2b show two different ways that the same information can be organized into clear formats. Example 2a is in column form and Example 2b is in outline form.

Example 1: Disorganized notes of Part One of the lecture, “The Work of a Journalist,” that were taken by a student during the lecture

M?. Sarah Coleman: from Pvent to StDry — Making. It to the – New?
Pt. 1: The Work – of a Journalist

New? — everywhere (radio, TV, newspaper?, Internet) journalist? (= reporters)

entertainment і’?

? port? ‘ erime

r’ship w/orgl?. £>/: poliee, fire dept, politieianS, religious/evie orgi?

£>х: fight, knife

Example 2a: The first part of notes clearly organized in column format based on the information in Example 1

Ms. Sarah <Joleman: from £vent to Story — Making. It to the New?
Part One: The Work, of a Journalist

Petail?

radio, TV, newspapers, Internet

diff’ types of journalist? (reporter?), entertainment, sports, erime

poliee/fire dept?., politieianS, relig/ei’/ieorgis

Example 2b: The first part of notes clearly organized in outline format based on the information in Example 1

M?. Sarah Coleman. "From Cvent to Story — Mating, It to the – News
Fart Onto: The – Wodc of a Journalist

I News everywhere: radio, TV, newspapers, Internet

II Journalists report news

A Jiff’ tijpeS of journalists (reporters}

1 entertainment

2 Sports J erlme

6 J’s establish r’ship w/or^.’S

1 poliee/fre Jepts.

2 politicians

^ reli^/ciu’ic ok^Is

Now listen to Part One of the lecture and take notes on your own paper. Pay attention to the signal words to help you follow the lecture.

Decide whether you want to organize your notes for Pail One of the lecture in column format or outline format. Then, complete the notes in Example 2a (column format) or 2b (outline format) by adding information from the notes you took in step 2.

In this section you will hear and lake notes on a two-part lecture given by Ms. Sarah Coleman, a journalist. The title of the lecture is From Event to Story – Malting It to the News. Ms. Coleman will explain the steps journalists take and the difficulties they face as they write the stories we read in the newspaper.

BEFORE THE LECTURE

PERSONALIZING THE TOPIC

People often discuss the role of newspapers in society, and they frequently disagree about what newspapers should and should not do. Discuss the following questions with a partner.

1 What is a newspaper’s role? Should newspapers give us only information, or opinions too?

2 Should journalists write a story even if they do not have all the facts or if they are not sure that all the facts are correct?

3 What do you think is the most difficult thing about a journalist’s job?

THINKING CRITICALLY ABOUT THE TOPIC

1 Read the guidelines for responsible journalism below. Then with a partner, choose an event that happened recently in your community or country. Find two or three articles about the event in different newspapers. Analyze each article using the guidelines.

Do not tell lies – only tell the truth.

Do nol include unnecessary details – only include details that directly affect

the story.

Do not use sensationalism to make the story more interesting.

Be fair and present all sides of the story.

Do not confuse news and entertainment.

One of the issues that the public faces is how to know if the information that appears in newspapers is accurate. Discuss the following questions with your partner in relation to the articles you read for step I. Support your answers.

1 How do you know the journalists wrote the truth?

2 How do you know if they were fair and presented all sides of the story?

When you are reading a text, you can see how it is organized because it is divided into paragraphs. It may also have section headings. You can also read a text slowly, underline parts you do not understand, and come back to them later.

In a lecture, it is more difficult to follow the organization of the speakers ideas. However, signal words can help you. These words act as markers or signposts that indicate what kind of information the speaker will give next. In Chapter 1, you learned signal words for introducing examples and definitions. Signal words can be used for other purposes, too. Here are some examples of commonly used signal words:

today, nowadays, sometimes, usually, at that point in fact, actually

first of all, then, after that, finally and, also, in addition, furthermore but, however, on the other hand

1 The signal words in the left column are used by the lecturer. Read them and match each one with a synonym from the column on the right. Fill in each blank with the correct answer.

Now listen to some parts of the lecture that include the signal words in step l. As you listen, fill in the blank with the correct word(s). Then compare your answers with a partner.

1 _________________ , more than ever before, we are surrounded by news.

2 _________________ ., so many new stories appear every day that it’s impossible

to keep up with them!

3 _________________ , there are different kinds of journalists.

4 _________________ , journalists are called reporters because they "report”

the news.

5 , unplanned events are more exciting!

6 , it’s important not to report too much personal

information or anything that is scandalous.

Here are some words and phrases from the interview with Carol printed in bold and given in the context in which you will hear them. They are followed by definitions.

The news is based on what’s going to keep people tuned in: watching TV

People are interested in plastic surgery or celebrities: medical surgery to improve your physical appearance / famous people

Find out how this woman lost weight: became thinner It’s shallow: without serious meaning

There are these people doing voice-overs: speaking “off-cantera” about what the viewer is watching

It’s equating those types of information: giving equal value to

Like a sitcom: TV series in which the same characters appear week after week (abbreviation for "situation comedy")

It’s like instant gratification: immediate satisfaction

TV news has to be reported by news anchors who are physically attractive: the main news reporters on TV

Do you think newspapers give you better coverage?: reporting I know I’m being sucked in!: tricked into watching

^ ANSWERING MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS

1 Read the questions below before you listen to the interview with Carol.

1

According to Carol, news on TV a is mostly about health issues, b is mostly international.

c is mostly entertainment.

2 In Carol’s opinion, the evening news a is boring to most people.

b tricks people into watching, c is an important source of information.

3 Carol thinks that political problems

a don’t get reported in the way they should be reported, b are not really interesting for most people, c are presented well by TV reporters.

4 Carol believes that most people

a are very interested in war and politics, b want information quickly, c don’t watch the news.

5 Carol says that if TV news anchors are not physically attractive, a people will not watch TV news.

b viewers will complain, c viewers will change channels.

6 According to Carol, newspapers

a have a wider audience than TV. b can be read quickly, c have the same problems as TV.

7 Carol feels that news on the Internet a is worse than the TV.

b is hai’d to find, c is too general.

8 Carol

a ahnost never watches the news on TV. b watches TV news even though she doesn’t think it’s good, c avoids the mass media.

2 Now listen and circle the one correct answer for each question.

3

Work with a partner and discuss your answers. Do you agree with Carol?

INTERVIEW WITH SHARI AND FRANK: Reading the newspapers

Here are some words and phrases from the interview with Shari and Frank printed in bold and given in the context in which you will hear them. They are followed by definitions.

The news is really depressing: unhappy and without hope

It’s a prestige thing to cover the international news: something done to look important The human interest stories can be really uplifting: positive, inspirational It was shocking that the judicial system had failed: legal

I read the main stories, especially the scandals: shocking stories about people who have committed crimes or immoral acts

You have to take it with a grain of salt: not believe all of it

It’s a lot of half-truths: stories that are partly true and partly false

It’s really biased: presented from only one point of view, one-sided, not objective,

his unit is about the mass media and its effects on our lives.

Chapter 5 concerns the news coverage provided by the media. You will hear interviews with three people about the strengths and weaknesses of the news we get from television, radio, and the newspaper. In the lecture, a journalist gives her insight into how an event becomes a news story. In Chapter 6, you will hear people discuss the positive and negative effects of various forms of the media. The lecture is about the dangerous effects the media can have on us.

D getting started

In this section you arc going to discuss the mass media and think about what makes news interesting and relevant to our lives.

READING AND THINKING ABOUT THE TOPIC

1 Read the following passage.

The modern world depends on extensive communication between people, organizations, and governments. Rapid transportation and electronic communication have shortened the distances between us, and most of us are now aware of what is going on in places far away. Much of our new awareness comes from die mass media, including newspapers, magazines, movies, TV, and the Internet, which allows information to be communicated quickly throughout the world.

However, the rapid growth in the mass media sometimes raises questions about its value. For example, although we gel more information and news from the mass media

than ever before, some people believe that today’s news is not necessarily of good quality. Technological advances have given us the impression that we understand the world better because we have access to more information about it. But this is not always tine. The information we get may be inaccurate, one-sided, or incomplete.

Answer the following questions according to the information in the passage.

1 How is the modern world connected?

2 What does the mass media allow us to do?

3 Why do some people question the value of the mass media?

Read these questions and share your answers with a partner.

1 What kinds of mass media do you use most?

2 Do you think that the quality of the news we get from newspapers, radio, TV, and the Internet is good? Why or why not?

3 Do you believe that technology helps us understand the world better than we used to? Why or why not?

LISTENING FOR SPECIFIC INFORMATION

1 Read the headlines below. Then listen to the news stories that correspond to the headlines. Choose the headline that goes with each story by writing the number of the storv next to its headline.

2 Compare your answers with a partner.

3 If the headlines in step 1 appeared in a newspaper you were reading, which stories would you read first? Why? Discuss vour answers with your partner.

Q AMERICAN VOICES: Carol, Shari, and Frank

In this section you will hear three people discuss different perspectives on the news. Carol, a teacher, will explain her mixed feelings about the news she watches on TV. Shari, a student in her twenties, and Frank, a retired postal worker, will discuss their reactions to the news they read in the newspaper.

BEFORE THE INTERVIEWS

SHARING YOUR OPINION

1 Look at the following chart. In each column, circle the word or words that best describe your answer to the question.

2 Discuss your responses with a partner and explain your opinions. Which questions prompted similar answers? Where did you disagree?

GUESSING VOCABULARY FROM CONTEXT

1 The following items contain important vocabulary from Part Two of ihe lecture. Work with a partner. Using the context and your knowledge of related words, take turns trying to guess the meanings of the words in bold.

1 the AIDS crisis

2 the way the mass media treats women

3 the way they stereotype women

4 The language question is also on the minds of international organizations.

5 The girls just stand in the background.

6 By focusing on the language we use about women, we may be able to change their expectations.

7 Does Lhis controversy exist in other languages, too?

8 It is definitely receiving more attention worldwide.

Work with your partner. Match the vocabulary terms with their definitions bv writing the letter of each definition below in the blank next to the sentence or phrase containing the correct term in step 1. Check your answers in a dictionary if necessary.

a channels of communication – such as television, radio, and newspapers – that reach large numbers of people b ideas that we have about the way people should behave c in a position of less importance d everywhere in the world

e Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome – a very’ serious disease f being considered by

g present a fixed, narrow idea of what they are like h debate, dilemma

Q NOTE TAKING: USING TELEGRAPHIC LANGUAGE

1 Read the following questions about gender and language. Think about the kind of

information you might hear in response to these questions.

1 There are many very serious gender issues facing society today. How important is the language question?

2 If we change the way we talk about people, does that mean we change the way we think about them?

3 Docs gender-specific language occur in other languages besides English? Does the same controversy exist everywhere about using gender-neutral language?

Now listen to Part Two of the lecture. Take notes on your own paper using telegraphic language. Use the questions in step 1 as a guide to help you listen for the important points.

Work with a partner. Looking at the telegraphic language you and your partner have used, take turns answering the questions in step 1 orally.

AFTER THE LECTURE

APPLYING WHAT YOU HAVE LEARNED

Finding ways to apply what you have learned is a good way to deepen your understanding of new subject matter.

Read the following excerpt from a student’s essay. Notice how difficult it is for the student to use pronouns correctly. Rewrite the paragraph using plural nouns and pronouns where appropriate. In this way, you can avoid sexism and also avoid using he/she, his/her, or him/her. You may also need to change verbs to agree with the subject. Compare your completed paragraph with two other classmates.

According. to an article – I Just read, the, ijuality of a university doer, not just teachers,

depend on the – – teacher; but on the – stvele+it. The – teaeher has to make Sure his/her lessons are challenging. and stimulating. 6ut the student is also responsible for doing, her homeworiq brin^in^. her ideas to the classroom discussions, and contributing, her opinions on the topie. He/she must make Sure that he is not being. passive, but are making, full use of the opportunities that are being. offc-rcd to them at the university. For example, the student should be ready to join clvbs and partieipate with her/his classmates on Speeial prjects. He/she ean also leam a lot by having, a job that will bring, him into conrict with all the members of the university. These activities also contribute to a Successful college experience.