If there is one thing I’m quite sure about, it is that
in a hundred years from now we still be reading newspapers. Not those
newspapers are a necessity. Even now some people get most of the news from the
television or have the radio switched on in the background or in the car. Many
buy a paper only on Saturday or Sunday. But for most people a newspaper has
become a habit passed down from generation to generation.
The basic British character won’t change, and one of
the characteristics of the British is that we don’t much like talking to each
other when we get up. So what better way is there to keep yourself thinking in
the morning than to wrap yourself in a newspaper?
Over the past couple of centuries, human beings have
developed a close relationship with the newspaper. It has become as natural as
breathing or enjoying the sun. And it is not just the British who love
newspapers. On suburban trains in Calcutta, for instance, just one person in
the whole car will buy a newspaper and read aloud the best bits to his fellow
passengers, much to everybody’s enjoyment.
The nature of what is news may change. What
essentially (本質(zhì)上) makes news is what affects our lives and
the big political stories, the coverage of the wars, earthquakes and other
disasters, will continue much the same. I think there will be more coverage of
scientific research, though. It’s already happening in areas that may directly
affect our lives, like genetic engineering. In the future I think there will be
more coverage of scientific explanations of why we feel as we do, whether it’s
love or depression. We develop a better understanding of how the brain operates
and what our feelings really are.
It’s quite possible that in the next century newspaper
will be transmitted electronically from the national equivalents of Fleet
Street (倫敦的艦隊(duì)街，以報(bào)館集中而著稱) and printed out in our own homes. In
fact, I’m pretty sure that that is how it will happen in future. You’ll be
probably selecting from a menu, making up your own bespoke newspaper by
picking out the things you want to read and say. You might even have an
intelligent screening device (裝置) to do the job for you.
I think people have got it wrong when they talk about
the competition between the different media. They actually have a relationship,
feeding off each other. It was once predicted that television would kill off
newspapers, which hasn’t happened. What is read on the printed page is more
enduring (持久的) than pictures on a flickering screen or
sound lost in the sky. And as for the Internet, it’s never really satisfying to
read something just on a screen.
1.The author of the passage is most probably from
_______________.
A．Russia B．India C．Britain D．America
2.According to the passage, the future of newspapers
____________.
A．will be
mainly connected with scientific research
B．will report
more important political activities
C．will directly
cover more on scientific research
D．will build a
bridge between different people
3.The underlined part “bespoke newspaper” of
the passage probably refers to _____________.
A．a(chǎn) newspaper
which dares to report the truth
B．a(chǎn) newspaper
edited to one’s own interest
C．a(chǎn) newspaper
edited and published for the public
D．a(chǎn) newspaper
which only covers the life of family members
4.Which of the following is TRUE according to the
passage?
A．It was
centuries ago that newspapers came into being .
B．Televisions
have taken the place of newspapers .
C．The Internet
will gradually take the place of newspapers.
D．The nature of
news may remain the same over generations.
