PRESS IN BRITAIN
Probably in no other country are there such great differences between the various national
daily newspapers — in the type of news they report and the way they report it.
On the one hand, there are the "quality" newspapers; The Times, The Independent, The
Guardian, the Financial Times and The Daily Telegraph. These concern themselves, as far as
possible, with factual reports of major national and international events, with the world of politics
and business and with the arts and sport.
On the other hand, there are the "populars" and "tabloids", so-called because of their smaller
size. The tabloids — the most widely read of which are The Daily Mail, The Daily Express, the
Daily Mirror, The Sun and The Daily Star — concentrate on more emotive reporting of stories
often featuring sex, violence, the Royal Family, film and pop stars, and sport. It is often said that
the popular press aims to entertain its readers rather than inform them.
The tabloid press is much more popular than the quality press.
In some countries, newspapers are owned by government or by political parties. This is not the
case in Britain. Newspapers here are mostly owned by individuals or by publishing companies,
and the editors of the papers are usually allowed considerate freedom of expression. This is not to
say that newspapers are without political bias. Papers like The Daily Telegraph, The Daily
Express and The Sun, for example, usually reflect Conservative opinions in their comment and
reporting, while the Daily Mirror and The Guardian have a more left-wing bias.
In addition to the 12 national daily newspapers there are nine national papers which are
published on Sundays. Most of the "Sundays" contain more reading matter than daily papers, and
several of them also include "colour supplements" — separate colour magazines which contain
photographically-illustrated feature articles. Reading a Sunday paper, Шее having a big Sunday
lunch, is an important tradition in many British households.
Besides, nearly every area in Britain has one or more local newspapers.
The British are one of the biggest newspaper-reading nations in the world,
(from Anglia, abridged)
Names
The Times
The Independent
The Gardian
The Financial Times
The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Mail
The Daily Express
The Daily Mirror
The Daily Star
The Sun
Vocabulary
various
national
daily
to report
on the one hand
"quality" newspapers
to concern oneself with
factual
major
—различный, разнообразный
— национальный, государственный
— ежедневный
— сообщать, писать, печатать
— с одной стороны
— пресса "высокого качества" (дня бизнесменов,
политиков и т.д), газеты полного формата
— заниматься, интересоваться
— фактический, основанный на фактах
— главный, основной
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— международный
— политика, политические взгляды, убеждения
— с другой стороны
— газета для широкой публики
— малоформатная газета со сжатым текстом и
большим количеством иллюстраций; бульварная
пресса
— сосредоточиваться на
to concentrate on
— эмоциональная подача материала
emotive reporting
— помещать в газете (на видном месте)
to feature
— насилие
violence
— королевская семья
royal family
— часто говорят
it is often said
— стремиться
to aim
to entertain rather than inform — скорее развлекать, чем информировать
— владеть
to own
— He так обстоит дело в Британии.
This is not the case in Britain.
— личность, индивидуум, частное лицо
individual
— издательство
publishing company
— редактор
editor
— разрешать, предоставлять
to allow
— значительная свобода
considerate freedom
— предубежденность, пристрастие, уклон
bias
— отражать
to reflect
— консервативный
conservative
— комментарий
comment
— левый
left-wing
— кроме, помимо
in addition to
— газеты, публикуемые по выходным
"Sundays"
— материал
matter
— приложение
supplement
— большая статья в газете (посвященная какойfeature article
либо одной теме), очерк
— семья; люди, живущие в одном доме
household
— местный
local
international
politics
on the other band
"popular"
"tabloid"
Questions
1.What "quality" newspapers do you know?
2.What do they concern themselves with?
3.What does a "tabloid" mean?
4.What "popular" newspapers do you know?
5.It is often said that the aim of the popular press is to entertain its readers rather than inform
them.
What kind of materials do these newspapers concentrate on?
6.Are "quality" papers more popular than "tabloids"?
7.In some countries, newspapers are owned by government or by political parties. What about
Britain?
8.What’s the difference between daily newspapers and "Sundays"?
9.What does a "colour supplement" mean?
10. Are the British one of the biggest newspaper-reading nations in the world?
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