Where Is the News Leading Us

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Unit 9

• Where Is the News Leading Us

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I. Teaching objectives

• 1. Understand the role of the news media in
  social life.
• 2. Develop an ability to criticize the social
  function of the news media.
• 3. Learn to use argument in combination with
  other expository means.

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?.Language points

• nitrogen fixation(????)
• The formation of nitrogenous compounds by the
  metabolic assimilation of atmospheric nitrogen by
  certain soil bacteria.

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Example

• - those living symbiotically on the root nodules
  of various leguminous plants
• When these bacteria die, the fixed nitrogen is
  made available in the soil as plant food.

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IV. Organization of the text

• Part I (Para 1 - 4)
• Introducing the topic by referring to a
  question raised in a public symposium
• (Why are the newspapers and the television news
  programs so disaster-prone?)
•  

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IV. Organization of the text

• Para 1 An introduction of the public symposium
  and the other two speakers.
• Para 2 The purpose of the symposium.
• Para 3 The question asked by the gentleman
• Para 4The answer and the reaction by the
  anchorman and the editor

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IV. Organization of the text

• Part II (Para 5 -- 10)
• By defining the word news, the author
  explains why bad news is always reported while
  good news overlooked. He goes on to point out
  the adverse consequence of such practice.

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IV. Organization of the text

• Para 5
• The author interprets the question raised by the
  gentleman and the answer given by the anchorman.

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IV. Organization of the text

• Para 6-7 The author gives his definition of
  news. (News is supposed to deal with
  happenings of the past 12 hours24 hours at
  most.).

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IV. Organization of the text

• The definition helps to explain partly why bad
  news(eruptive) is mostly reported whereas good
  news(i.e. progress which comes in bits and
  pieces) is neglected.

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IV. Organization of the text

• Para 8 The author criticizes the normal practice
  of the media by pointing out the harm done to the
  public mood by medias obsession in bad news.

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IV. Organization of the text

• Para 9 The authors self-defense for the
  necessity of reporting both good and bad news
  ( Im not suggesting Nor do I define
  What Im trying to get across is the notion )

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IV. Organization of the text

• Para 10 The author further elaborates and
  strengthens his viewpoint by citing examples of
  what he considers positive developments of the
  world.

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IV. Organization of the text

• Part III (Para 11-13)
• The author argues that the media are obliged to
  serve as the public philosopher, responsible
  for affecting the public attitude in the right
  manner (obligations of the media) . And this
  explains why progress (good news ) should be
  reported.

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V. Rhetorical focus

• Argument in association with other expository
  devices
• Argument a reason or a set of reasons.

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Argument

• The aim
• 1) to convince others that an action/idea is
  right or wrong so that they will give up their
  belief and accept what is said to be right.
• 2) to persuade others to believe in sth. so that
  they will act in accordance with what they are
  advised to do.

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Argument

• The essay aims to argue for the premise that the
  responsibility of the news media is to search out
  and report on important events. It also aims at
  persuading newsmen and women to take up this
  responsibility.

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Other Expository Means

• In order to make his argument reasonable,
  convincing and valid, the author resorts to other
  modes of expression and expository means,
  including

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Other Expository Means

• 1. Narration
• Happenings at the symposium descriptions of the
  two speakers, questions raised at the symposium,
  etc.

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Other Expository Means

• 2. Definition
• news,
• civilization,
• progress,
• positive news

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Other Expository Means

• 3. Cause-and-effect
• Cause people being over-informed about disasters
  while under-informed about progress
• Effect
• a public mood of defeatism and despair,
• detrimental to society inhibiting progress

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Other Expository Means

• 4. Exemplification
• nitrogen fixation, which is not eruptive,
  but which will make a contribution to human life
  and progress.

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Other Expository Means

• 5. Quotation From Walter Lippmann and
  Bernard de Chatres to illustrate the role the
  media should play.

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Other Expository Means

• 6. Analogy
• between History and News
• to illustrate that reporting more good news can
  better improve ourselves

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• So, the present argument is well-knit and
  convincing, and will undoubtedly be accepted by
  sensible and responsible newsmen and women.

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The Use of nominalization

• Compare
• A You would not be so fat if you took more
  exercise.
• B Taking more exercise would keep you thinner /
  help you to loose weight.
• ??????????????

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• ????????????????
• If the pound is further devaluated, it will
  surely cause monetary crisis.
• Further devaluation of the pound will surely
  cause monetary crisis.

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• ????????,????????
• My friend offered accommodation immediately, and
  this relieved my anxiety.
• My friends immediate offer of accommodation
  relieved my anxiety.

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• ???????,??????????
• When you arrive at your hotel, please notify me
  on my mobile.
• On arrival at your hotel, please notify me on my
  mobile.

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• ?????,?????????????
• While you are absent, be sure to keep in contact
  with me through the cellphone.
• During your absence, be sure to keep in contact
  with me through the cellphone.

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• ?????????,?????????
• Further progress was impossible because there
  were deep snowdrifts all over the place.
• Deep snowdrifts all over the place made further
  progress impossible / blocked further progress.

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• ?????????????,???????
• We cant write on the blackboard today because we
  have no chalk.
• There is no writing on the blackboard today
  because we have no chalk.

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• ??????????,?????????
• She is ignorant of the unwritten rules in
  showbiz so she has failed to accomplish anything
  so far.
• Her failure to accomplish anything so far is due
  to her ignorance of the unwritten rules in
  showbiz.

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• ??????????????????????
• He wrote a letter of recommendation for himself
  in the name of a professor, which was regarded as
  forgery.
• His writing of a letter of recommendation for
  himself in the name of a professor was regarded
  as forgery.

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• ?????????????????????????,?????
• It is a delight to watch while the old man plays
  chess on line with his little granddaughter in
  the United States.
• The old mans playing chess on line with his
  little granddaughter in the United States is a
  delight to watch.

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• Text II
• Should the Press be Human?

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Teaching objectives

• 1. Examining the professional ethic of journalism
  and other professions.
• 2. Discussing the conflicts between professional
  ethic and human nature.
• 3. Knowing something about John F. Kennedy, his
  family and the assassination.

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Organization of the text

• Part I (Para 1) Introducing the
  
  
  topic
• A hypothesis concerning the action of the
  photographer who shot the picture of the death of
  Oswald in the assassination case of J. F. Kenney.

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Organization of the text

• Part 2 (Para24) What a journalist should do
  when facing the dilemma in work.
• Para 2 Journalists professional ethic vs. their
  cold-bloodedness.
• (Development pattern the thesis statement
  illustrations of a photographer in India and a
  soundman in Nigeria.)

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Organization of the text

• Para 3 A dilemma of journalists to join in and
  take sides or to be absolutely objective.
• Para 4 The guidelines of the profession of
  journalism.

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Organization of the text

• Part Three (Para 5 7)
• Further argument Although journalists should
  try hard to fulfill their duty, there should be
  some point where they should behave as a human
  being.

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Organization of the text

• Para 5 The case of a birdman accident in which a
  journalist who behaved inhuman. (But it leaves
  out a lot i.e. it is more than that.)

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Organization of the text

• Para 6 When our professional ethic is in
  conflict with other things, we should try to
  stick to it.

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Organization of the text

• Para 7 In any profession, there may be something
  more important than just sticking to professional
  ethic.

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Organization of the text

• Part 4 ( Para 8) The conclusion
• The author presents her thesis statement
  explicitly, i.e. what I think a news man should
  do.

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Rhetorical focus

• Sliding Scale
• Persuasion ?
  Argumentation 

1. appeal to emotion
2. aim to convince the reader move him to some
   action
3. achieved by arousing in the reader emotional
   responses that are likely to urge his to take
   some action.

• appeal to reason
• aim to show the truth of a statement make the
  reader acknowledge its correctness
• 3) achieved by rigid and careful reasoning

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Rhetorical focus

• Persuasion and argumentation are used almost
  interchangeably and we can hardly have one
  without the other.

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Rhetorical focus

• The present author not only handles her reasoning
  by using examples to prove that what she says
  (i.e. the behavior on the part of the journalists
  and TV people who are far from being human) is
  nothing but the truth, but also relies on diction
  and tone in the examples (staggering pictures,
  amazingly cold-blooded, making sorrowing Indian
  family bury and rebury its dead, holding up a
  Nigerian execution ( followed by next page)

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Rhetorical focus

• while he adjusted his sound equipment, ) to stir
  the feeling of the reader who might feel outraged
  at those journalists and an urge for immediate
  action.

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• Thank You For Your Attention