AIMS:
1. To consolidate the acquisition of the words for
the topic `Television`.
2. To practise listening for main ideas
about television in the USA.
3. To practise writing a short report
of an interview.
4. To practise reading for specific information on
television in the USA.
5. To practise speaking on television in the
USA.
I. INTRODUCTION
Hello, I`m glad to see
you. I hope you`re fine today. Today`s lesson is about television in the
USA. We`ll learn some information on TV channels, popular programs and
the largest TV networks in the US.
Why do you think people watch TV?
For news? For entertainment? For another reason?
Are American TV
programs shown in this country? Which ones? What are your favorites?
II. VOCABULARY
1. Look at the words in the box and
put them into categories of your choice.
Commercial soap
opera game show PBS sports documentary cable news satellite CNN sitcom
announcer ABC talk show educational discussion high-definition presenter
quiz conventional NBC host national master music anchorman serial
current affairs commentator channel viewer station
2. Work
in pairs. Do you have the same categories? Do you have the same words in
the categories?
3. In the box there are some words to describe
different types of TV programs. Match them with their definitions.
1. A television comedy series in which the same characters appear
in different stories each week.
2. A television program on which the
presenter, or host, interviews well-known people.
3. A television
program about the continuing daily life and troubles of a group of
characters, broadcast every day, two or three times a week.
4. A
television competition in which the players can win prizes if they
answer questions correctly.
5. A program about important things that
are happening in the world at the present time.
III.
SPEAKING AND LISTENING
1. Listen to Shelley, who`s
American, talking to Francis, who`s English, about television in the
USA. Tick (V) the questions below that Francis asks.
1). How
many television channels are there?
2). How much television do
people watch every day?
3). What are the most popular types of
programs?
4). Is satellite television very popular?
5). Is radio
more or less popular than television?
2. Work in pairs. Can
you remember what Shelley`s answers to the questions were?
Listen
to the conversation again and check the answers.
IV.
WRITING AND SPEAKING
1. Write a report of the interview
with Shelley. Write a brief summary of her replies under each question
you`ve ticked.
2. Tell the class what you`ve learnt from the
interview about television in the USA.
V. READING AND
SPEAKING
1. Read the text about television in the USA.
Find out what the following abbreviations stand for: ABC CBS NBC
PBS CNN HBO FCC.
TELEVISION IN THE USA
There
are a lot of commercial and non-commercial stations. Most commercial
stations are affiliated with one of the national commercial networks:
ABC (American Broadcasting Company), NBC (National Broadcasting
Company), CBS (Columbia Broadcasting System), or Fox Broadcasting
Company. These networks are not television stations or channels or
programs. They are not licensed to broadcast. Networks are essentially
program distribution companies. They buy programs from independent
television production companies and sell these programs to individual
television stations. The network is paid by advertisers to insert
commercial announcements on the program the network buys.
On
the average, American viewers watch TV four hours a day, usually tuned
to one of the national commercial networks: ABC, NBC, CBS, or Fox
Broadcasting Company. These stations attract about 98 percent of TV
audiences. During a sixty-minute TV program, you can expect to see about
twelve minutes of commercials.
The commercial networks
broadcast a variety of shows: news, drama, soap operas, comedy, sports,
music, movies, children`s programs, game shows, and talk shows. There is
a lot of competition for viewers, especially during prime time, from 7
to 11 p.m. Ratings, published in the newspapers, measure the audience
for the top ten programs.
PBS (Public Broadcasting Service),
supported by government and private funding, is the only noncommercial
network. It broadcasts more serious drama, performing arts, science,
public-affairs documentaries, and educational children`s programs.
Sesame Street, the most popular children`s show on PBS, appears on TV
stations all over the world. All five networks broadcast twenty-four
hours a day.
Some viewers pay to receive a wider selection of
programs on cable television. There are up to 500 cable stations. Two
well-known ones are HBO (Home Box Office), which shows movies, and CNN
(Cable News Network), which specializes in news.
All of the
networks have nationwide news programs. All have regularly scheduled
news series. Among the most popular are CBS`s Sixty Minutes and PBS`s
The MacNeil\Lehrer Newshour. The world`s the most durable TV show is
NBC`s Meet the Press. In this show, important political figures and
leaders are interviewed by journalists.
All television stations
in the US, public or private, must be licensed to broadcast by the
Federal Communications Commission (FCC), an independent federal agency.
Each license is given for a few years only.
There are no fees,
charges, taxes or licenses in the USA foe owning television receivers or
receiving anything that is broadcast through the air. There is no
government censorship or `reviewing` of programs and content. But
`family viewing time` from 7 to 9 o`clock in the evening has been
introduced. During these hours programs containing violence and sexual
suggestiveness are kept to a minimum.
2. Speak on:
a)
the sources of financial support of commercial and noncommercial
television;
b) the major television networks;
c) the Federal
Communications Commission;
d) television charges and licenses;
e)
how much television a `typical American` watches;
f) prime time and
family viewing time on TV.
VI. CONCLUSION
I
hope you`ve learned a lot of interesting information about television in
the USA. You`ve worked well today. Let`s remember what we`ve done at
the lesson.
Your home task for the next lesson is to prepare a
report on television in the USA. Your marks for the lessons are : | 
