Why do so many Americans distrust what they read in their newspapers? The American Society of Newspaper Editors is trying to answer this painful question. The organization is deep into a long self-analysis known as the journalism credibility project.
Sad to say, this project has turned out to be mostly low-level findings about factual errors and spelling and grammar mistakes, combined with lots of head-scratching puzzlement about what in the world those readers really want.
But the sources of distrust go way deeper. Most journalists learn to see the world through a set of standard templates （patterns） into which they plug each day's events. In other words, there is a conventional story line in the newsroom culture that provides a backbone and a ready-made narrative structure for otherwise confusing news.
There exists a social and cultural disconnect between journalists and their readers, which helps explain why the standard templates of the newsroom seem alien to many readers. In a recent survey, questionnaires were sent to reporters in five middle size cities around the country, plus one large metropolitan area. Then residents in these communities were phoned at random and asked the same questions.
Replies show that compared with other Americans, journalists are more likely to live in upscale neighborhoods, have maids, own Mercedeses, and trade stocks, and they're less likely to go to church, do volunteer work, or put down roots in a community.
Reporters tend to be part of a broadly defined social and cultural elite, so their work tends to reflect the conventional values of this elite. The astonishing distrust of the news media isn't rooted in inaccuracy or poor reportorial skills but in the daily clash of world views between reporters and their readers.
This is an explosive situation for any industry, particularly a declining one. Here is a troubled business that keeps hiring employees whose attitudes vastly annoy the customers. Then it sponsors lots of symposiums and a credibility project dedicated to wondering why customers are annoyed and fleeing in large numbers. But it never seems to get around to noticing the cultural and class biases that so many former buyers are complaining about. If it did, it would open up its diversity program, now focused narrowly on race and gender, and look for reporters who differ broadly by outlook, values, education, and class.
59. What is the passage mainly about?
[A] Needs of the readers all over the world.
[B] Causes of the public disappointment about newspapers.
[C] Origins of the declining newspaper industry.
[D] Aims of a journalism credibility project.
60. The results of the journalism credibility project turned out to be ________.
[A] quite trustworthy
[B] somewhat contradictory
[C] very illuminating
[D] rather superficial
61. The basic problem of journalists as pointed out by the writer lies in their ________.
[A] working attitude
[B] conventional lifestyle
[C] world outlook
[D] educational background
62. Despite its efforts, the newspaper industry still cannot satisfy the readers owing to its ________.
[A] failure to realize its real problem
[B] tendency to hire annoying reporters
[C] likeliness to do inaccurate reporting
[D] prejudice in matters of race and gender
重点词汇：
journalism /5dVE：nElizEm/（新闻；新闻业）即journal+ism，journal（期刊；日志），-ism后缀。journalism—that with which you may fill the space between advertisements新闻-用以填充广告与广告之间的空隙的东西。
credibility /7kredi5biliti/（可信性）即cred+ibility，cred词根相信（如credit→cred+it→信用），-ibility名词后缀可……性（如ability←a+（i）bility）。credibility gap—what happens to the same news between the morning telecast and the evening paper信用差距-早间电视新闻与晚报之间同一条新闻发生的情况。
survey /sE：5vei/（v.n.俯瞰；调查）即sur+vey，sur-前缀=super，vey词根看，故从上面看→俯瞰→引申为调查。An informal survey shows that what most people wanted for Christmas was two more weeks to prepare for it.一项非正式调查显示，大多数人圣诞节想要的东西是再给两个星期准备过节。
volunteer in not-for-profits and stay physically fit.保持业余爱好-自愿做无利可图的事情而保持身体健康。
sponsor /5spCnsE/（v.发起；赞助n.主办者）←spons（e）词根+or后缀；参response，2001年Passage 1.The longest word in the English language is the one following the phrase： And now a word from our sponsor.英语中最长的单词是由此引发的：现在请赞助者×××。←此处×××不好译，因为显然不能译为说一个词，而译为说几句话则失去了原句的一语双关。
contradictory /7kCntrE5diktEri/（反驳的；矛盾的；对立物）即contra+dict+ory，contra-前缀相反，dict词根说（如dictate→dict+ate动词后缀→口述；命令），-ory后缀；contradict（v.反驳；矛盾）←contra+dict.Assertion is not argument， to contradict the statement of an opponent is not proof that you are correct.坚定的看法不是论据，反驳对手的说法不能证明你是正确的。
illuminating /i5lju：mi7neitiN/（照明的；启发的）即illuminat（e）+ing形容词后缀，illuminate（照明；启发）可看作illumin+ate，illumin谐音一路明，-ate动词后缀，使一路明→照明→引申为启发。The man of science， like the artist， may easily have more facts than he can use. Both seek the one fact out of a million that will illuminate their idea. Both find that it is rarely to be had without research.与艺术家一样，科学家可以轻易得到用不尽的事实。他们都在上百万的事实中寻求能说明自己想法的那一个，都发现未经调查研究而得到它几乎是不可能的。
superficial /sju：pE5fiFEl/（表面的；肤浅的）即super+fici+al，super-前缀上面的，fici看作face表面，-al形容词后缀，表面上的→肤浅的。To know things well， we must know them in detail； but as that is almost endless， our knowledge is always superficial and imperfect.为了充分认识事物，我们必须详细了解它们，然而那几乎是没有穷尽的，所以我们的知识总是肤浅和不完善的。
be known as称为；alien to为……所不熟悉；put down roots in定居；get around to抽时间做。
难句解析：
①Sad to say， this project has turned out to be mostly low-level findings about factual errors and spelling and grammar mistakes， combined with lots of head-scratching puzzlement about what in the world those readers really want.▲本句主语是this project，谓语是has turned out to be，findings为宾语，mostly low-level是宾语的定语修饰成分，about factual errors and spelling and grammar mistakes是宾语的补语成分。combined with lots of head-scratching puzzlement about what in the world those readers really want是过去分词引导的伴随状语，其中about what in the world those readers really want是puzzlement的补语。
△要正确理解本句，一定要注意lots of head-scratching puzzlement about what in the world those readers really want这一部分并不包含在findings里面，而应该是与findings属于同一层次上的东西，换言之，可以把turned out to be后面的表语看成是由两个并列的意思构成的。
②In other words， there is a conventional story line in the newsroom culture that provides a backbone and a ready-made narrative structure for otherwise confusing news.▲本句的主干是there is a conventional story line……，后面的that provides a backbone and a ready-made narrative structure for otherwise confusing news是定语从句修饰conventional story line.
△本句的理解重点在单词意思：a story line一种写新闻报道的故事主线；newsroom culture报社文化；backbone本义为脊柱，此处是主干；otherwise否则
③There exists a social and cultural disconnect between journalists and their readers， which helps explain why the standard templates of the newsroom seem alien to many readers.▲此句的结构和上句非常类似，主句也是一个there加系动词的用法。而表语后都有一个定语从句。本句的定语从句是which helps explain why the standard templates of the newsroom seem alien to many readers.
△alien本义为异国的，此处是相差甚远，背道而驰。如果考生不了解standard templates的意思，可以从上下文中找与其有相同作用和功能的词组，如上句中的a story line和backbone，那么就应该知道它们指的都是记者们在写新闻和评论时固定的套路和思维。
④The astonishing distrust of the news media isn‘t rooted in inaccuracy or poor reportorial skills but in the daily clash of world views between reporters and their readers.▲本句的主干是一个not…… but结构。注意这个结构引导的是两个方式状语。其核心词分别是inaccuracy和the daily clash.
△to be rooted in……根源在于……；另外注意not…… but结构中，but后面的部分总是阅读的重点。
⑤If it did， it would open up its diversity program， now focused narrowly on race and gender， and look for reporters who differ broadly by outlook， values， education， and class.▲it代表上文提到的a troubled business，即问题重重的新闻界。now focused narrowly on race and gender是插入语，也是修饰program的定语。本句在would后面有两个并列宾语open up和look for.
△此句中含有一个虚拟语气：If it did， it would open up……。另外注意前两个逗号之间是对diversity program（多样化项目）的修饰成分。
