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The Myth of Objectivity 期待媒体客观的迷思

课文朗读

课文讲解

繁體中文譯本

Is objectivity in the media a reasonable expectation for the public to have? Is it even humanly possible to be objective? Experience tells us that two people observing the same event will describe it differently. Our perceptions of the world are unavoidable influenced by ethnicity, sex, and culture. Similarly, reporting is the sum of all of a journalist’s prior experiences, including his own beliefs, education, and prejudices. As a result, reporting is naturally slanted, rather than objective.

公众期待媒体的公正性是合理的吗？人类实际上有可能客观吗？经验告诉我们，两个人观察同样的事件会有不同的描述。我们对世界的看法无可避免地会受到种族、性别和文化的差异所影响。同样地，报导是一个新闻记者先前的经验总和，包括他的个人信仰、教育和成见。因此，报导很自然就会有曲解而无法公正。

Reporters are also influenced by a myriad of other factors. If they want to keep their jobs, journalists must please managers, editors, and publishers. These people are in turn influenced by politicians and business interests. Although we like to believe that media companies strive to provide objective news coverage, we should remember that their main concern is economic survival. If the two goals of objectivity and profit conflict, you can guess which one will prevail.

记者也被其他很多因素所影响。如果他们想要保住饭碗，新闻从业人员必须取悦上司、编辑和出版商。这些人轮流受到政客和商业利益的影响。虽然我们愿意相信媒体单位努力想要提供客观的新闻报导，我们应记住他们的主要关切的是公司的利润。如果客观和利益这两种目标相冲突，你可以猜到何者会占上风。

People who really want to form a balanced opinion on a topic can’t afford to rely on any one news source. Objective media consumption means obtaining your news from a wide variety of media. But although we can’t expect total objectivity from any one news source, audiences can demand accuracy, honesty and integrity.

任何想要对一个主题做平衡报导的人无法依赖任何单一的新闻来源。客观的媒体报导意味着从许多不同的媒体中取得新闻。虽然我们无法期待任何单一的新闻消息来源是绝对客观的，但是观众可以要求正确性、忠实度与完整性。

Vocabulary

单词发音

objectivity [͵ɑbdʒɛkˋtɪvətɪ] n. 客观性；客观

humanly [ˋhjumənlɪ] adv. 从人的角度

perception [pɚˋsɛpʃən] n. 认识，观念；看法

ethnicity [ɛθˋnɪsɪtɪ] n. 种族地位；种族特点；种族渊源

prejudice [ˋprɛdʒədɪs] n. 偏见，歧视

slanted [ˋslæntɪd] adj. 有偏见的

conflict [kənˋflɪkt] v. 矛盾﹐ 冲突﹐ 抵触

prevail [prɪˋvel] v. 占上风, 占优势

can’t afford to 不能冒...之险

consumption [kənˋsʌmpʃən]  n. [此指]报导

integrity [ɪnˋtɛgrətɪ] n. 正直; 诚实

Sentence of the Day

Don't forget that money talks.

别忘了，有钱能使鬼推磨。

money talks  钱能通神。

课文讲解

When we pick up the daily newspaper or turn on the evening news, we expect to learn the truth. We expect journalists to give us the facts, free from personal or external biases. Unfortunately, the frequency with which the media is accused of distorted reporting suggests that this is generallynot the case. And in fact, there are so many obstacles that it is unreasonable to expect impartial journalism.

当我们拿起每天的报纸或打开晚间的电视新闻，我们想要知道的是事实。我们希望记者给我们事实，而非个人的或外在的偏见。不幸的是，媒体频传被控扭曲报导，显示情况经常不是如此。事实上，有许多干扰阻碍媒体的客观性，以致于希望看到公正的新闻报导几乎不可能。

Since September 11, many watchdog organizations have accused media outlets of collaborating with the U.S. government to influence the public’s views as to what the nation’s response to terrorism should be and who the terrorists are. Journalists rarely criticize the government’s actions in fear that any criticism would appear unpatriotic. Reporters do not want to speak out against the prevailing sentiments of their audience because, after all, news organizations are businesses that need viewers to survive.

从911之后，许多监督机构谴责媒体单位与政府勾结来影响大众的观点：国家对恐怖主义应该作何响应，以及谁是恐怖份子。新闻从业人员很少批评政府的作为，因为担心任何的批评会显得不爱国。记者不希望公然与观众的主流观点作对，因为毕竟新闻机构是营利事业，需要观众才能生存。

Common aspects of biased reporting include: misleading terminology, opinions disguising as factual news, selectively omitted details, and the distorting of facts to reachfictional conclusions. As an audience we must be more aware of the potential for partiality on the part of the media, or risk leaving ourselves open to manipulation and misinformation.

偏颇报导的常见现象包括：误导性的措辞，将个人观点伪装成有事实根据的新闻，选择性地忽略细节，和由扭曲事实做成的不实结论。身为观众，我们必须更注意媒体方面可能做出的偏颇报导，否则就会容易让自己受到操纵及误信事实。

－by Howie Phung

Vocabulary

单词发音

bias [ˋbaɪəs] n. 偏见，成见；偏心

distorted [dɪsˋtɔrtɪd] adj. 扭曲的

case [kes] n. 事实，实情

unreasonable [ʌnˋriznəb!] adj. 不合理的；超出情理的；过分的

impartial [ɪmˋpɑrʃəl] adj. 不偏不倚的，公正的，无偏见的

watchdog [ˋwɑtʃ͵dɔg] n.〔确保公司没有从事非法或有害活动的〕监察委员会; 监察人员

media outlets  媒体单位 A publication or broadcast program that transmits feature stories and news to the public through various distribution channels.Media outlets include newspapers, magazines, radio, television, and the Internet.

unpatriotic [͵ʌnpetrɪˋɑtɪk] adj. 不爱国的，无爱国心的

prevailing [prɪˋvelɪŋ] adj. 占优势的；主要的; 流行的；普遍的

sentiment [ˋsɛntəmənt] n. 情绪; 【正式】意见﹐ 观点﹐ 感想

terminology [͵tɝməˋnɑlədʒɪ] n.（总称）术语，专门用语

disguise [dɪsˋgaɪz] v. 把……假扮起来；把……乔装起来

fictional [ˋfɪkʃən!] adj. 虚构的﹐编造的

aware [əˋwɛr] adj. 知道的，察觉的[F][（+of）]

partiality [͵pɑrʃɪˋælətɪ] n. 偏袒﹐偏向; 不公平

misinformation [͵mɪsɪnfəˋmeʃən] n. 错误的消息

Sentence of the Day

We should read between the lines.

我们应细察弦外之音。

read between the lines  领悟言外之意