Objectives:
• to broaden students' knowledge the topic "Mass media. Press"
• to present and practise words and expressions on the topic
• to develop learners' skills of intensive reading
• to develop students' cognitive and creative skills
Warm up
Try to explain why press is called a mirror of current affairs.
Introducing the Topic
Vocabulary
Key words:
the press: the national press; the foreign press; the daily press; to
appear in the press; freedom of the press.
daily: a daily newspaper; to appear daily, weekly: a weekly newspaper; a
weekly magazine, monthly: a monthly magazine.
to subscribe: to subscribe to a newspaper and a magazine.
subscriber, subscription: a subscription to a newspaper or a magazine.
issue, to issue: the issue of a newspaper; the latest issue; to buy the
latest issue; a topical issue; international and domestic issues; to issue a
newspaper.
to edit, edition: a cheap edition; a popular edition; an evening edition
of a newspaper; English edition; to publish a new edition; an edition of 25,000
copies.
editor: editor-in-chief; newspaper editor; magazine editor, editorial:
board.
item: news item; an item on the programme.
Listening
Pre-listening task
Listen to the text and try to predict the answers to the questions.
1. What kinds of mass media do you know?
2. What was the earliest kind of mass media?
3.
What advantages do newspapers have over the other
kinds of mass media.
4.
What is the difference between the newspaper and the
magazine?
MASS MEDIA AS THE MOST POWERFUL PROPAGANDA WEAPON
Mass media are one of the most characteristic features of modern civilization.
People are united into one global community with the help of mass media. People
can learn about what is happening in the world very fast using mass media. Mass
media consists of the press, radio and television. The press is considered to
be the fourth power of a state alongside with legislative, executive and
judicial power. And it is quite natural because the press has the tremendous
influence upon people's minds and souls.
This century is called the age of information. People in different
far-off continents get to know the latest news immediately. A great number of
newspapers and magazines are published every day in the world. They are
published in different countries and in different languages, they provide
various sorts of information, present it in quite different ways, but each
issue of a newspaper influences its readers, makes contribution to the
formation of the readers' outlook.
The earUest kind of mass media was newspaper. The first newspaper was
Roman handwritten news sheet called "Acta Diurna" started in 59
B.C. Magazines appeared in 1700's. They developed
from newspapers and booksellers' catalogs. Radio and television appeared only
in the 20th century.
Newspapers can present and comment on the news in much detail in comparison
to radio and TV news casts. Newspapers can cover much more events and news.
Magazines do not focus on daily, rapidly changing events. They provide
more profound analysis of events of preceding week. Magazines are designed to
be kept for a longer time so they have covers and bindings and are printed on
better paper.
Vocabulary:
news sheet — письмо
news casts — обзор новостей
covers — обложки, обертки
bindings — палитурки
Post-listening activity
Check your predictions if you were right or wrong.
Relaxation
Guess the riddle: What is it that is black and white, and yet red all
over? The answer: A newspaper. (The paper is white and the words are black and
it is read all over.)
Reading
Work in groups.
The students of the first group read the text about newspapers and
answer the questions to the text. The students of the second group read the
text about magazines and answer the questions about the magazines.
After this the students of different groups exchange their
representatives and they tell the students of the other group all the
information they know about newspapers and magazines.
Group 1
Read the text using the following interactive reading strategy: put some
marks on the margins:
S — information you know;
--information that
contradicts your ideas;
+ — new information;
? — information you are interested
NEWSPAPER
Newspaper is a publication that presents and comments on the news.
Newspapers play an important role in sharing public opinion and informing
people of current events.
The first newspaper were probably handwritten newssheets posted in public
places. The earliest daily newssheet was "Acta Diuma" ("Daijy
Events") which started in Rome in 59 B.C. The first printed newspaper was
Chinese publication called "Dibao" ("Ti-pao") started in
A.D. 700's. It was printed from carved wooden blocks. The first regularly
published newspaper in Europe was "Avisa Relation" or
"Zeitung", started in Germany in 1609.
Newspapers have certain advantages over other mass media — magazines, TV
and radio. Newspaper can cover more news and in much detail than TV or radio
news cast can do. Magazines focus on major national and international events of
the preceding week. But newspaper focuses on local news as well as provides
information and comments faster than magazines can do.
There are about 1,700 daily and 7,500 weekly newspapers in the US. The
circulation of some weeklies is no more that a few hundred of copies per issue
and the circulation of some dailies is over a million of copies.
There are daily and weekly newspapers. Daily newspapers print world,
national and local news. Many dailies are morning papers, others are afternoon
papers. Sunday issues of the dailies are usually larger than the weekday ones.
They may include special sections on such topics as entertainment,
finance and travel or Sunday magazine, a guide to TV programmes, colored
comics.
Weekly newspapers serve usually for smaller areas. They are printed in
small communities where people know each other and are interested in activities
of their friends and neighbours.
Vocabulary:
carved wooden block — резбленная деревянная доска
advantage — преимущество
news cast — обзор
новостей
circulation — тираж
guide to TV programme — программа передач
Questions.
1. What are the
names of the first newspapers?
2. What are the
advantages of newspapers over the other mass media?
3. How many
newspapers are there in the USA?
4. What do weekly
newspapers focus on?
5. What do daily
newspapers print?
Group 2
Read the text using the following interactive reading strategy: put some
marks on the margins:
S — information you know;
--information that
contradicts your ideas;
+ — new
information;
? — information you
are interested
MAGAZINE
Magazine is one of the major mass media. Magazine is a collection of
articles and stories. Magazines also contain illustrations.
The earliest magazines developed from newspapers and bookseller catalogs.
Such catalogs first appeared during the 1600's in France. In the 1700's
pamphlets pubUshed a regular intervals appeared in England and America. They
were literary publications. One of the first British magazines "The Gentleman's
Magazine" was pubUshed from 1731 to 1814. The first American magazine was
caUed "American Magazine" or "A Monthly View". Magazines
provide information on wide range of topics such as business, culture, hobbies,
medicine, religion, science and sport. Magazines are designed to be kept for a
longer time in comparison with newspapers and that's why they are printed on a
better paper and have covers and bindings. Magazines, unlike newspapers, do not
focus on daily, rapidly changing events.
There are specialized magazines intended for a special business,
industrial and professional groups, and consumer magazines intended for general
public. There are several kinds of consumer magazines.
Children's magazines contain stories, jokes, articles on subjects
especiaUy interesting for children and instructions for making games or useful
items.
Hobby magazines are intended for collectors of coins, stamps, and other
items; People interested in certain sports or games; photography enthusiasts.
Intellectual magazines provide analysis of current cultural and
political events. Many of them publish fiction and poetry as well.
Men's magazines focus on such topics as adventure, entertainment, men's
fashion and sports.
Woman's magazines deal with child-bringing, fashion, romance. They offer
ideas on cooking and home decorating. Many of the monthlies with big
circulation are women's magazines.
Vocabulary: pamphlet — брошура fiction — художній твір entertain
— розважати to focus —
зосередитися
Questions.
1.
What did magazines develop from?
2.
What is the name of the first US magazine?
3.
What kinds of information do magazines provide?
4.
What is the difference in contents between a magazine
and a newspaper?
5.
What kinds of magazines are there?
6.
What do they deal with?
Work in groups
Group 1
The students of the first group make up cinquaint
NEWSPAPER
Group 2
The students of the first group make up cinquaint magazine.
Magazines are designed to be kept for a longer time in comparison with
newspapers and that's why they are printed on a better paper and have covers
and bindings. Magazines, unlike newspapers, do not focus on daily, rapidly
changing events.
There are specialized magazines intended for a special business, industrial
and professional groups, and consumer magazines intended for general public.
There are several kinds of consumer magazines.
Children's magazines contain stories, jokes, articles on subjects
especially interesting for children and instructions for making games or useful
items.
Hobby magazines are intended for collectors of coins, stamps, and other
items; People interested in certain sports or games; photography enthusiasts.
Intellectual magazines provide analysis of current cultural and
political events. Many of them publish fiction and poetry as well.
Men's magazines focus on such topics as adventure, entertainment, men's
fashion and sports.
Woman's magazines deal with child-bringing, fashion, romance. They offer
ideas on cooking and home decorating. Many of the monthlies with big
circulation are women's magazines. | 
