1. U.S. Struggling to Get Soldiers Updated Armor Tens of thousands of soldiers are still without the stronger protection because of delays in the Pentagon procurement system.

The effort to replace the armor began in May 2004, just months after the Pentagon finished supplying troops with the original plates - a process also plagued by delays. The officials disclosed the new armor effort Wednesday after questioning by The New York Times, and acknowledged that it would take several more months or longer to complete…

2.After Strike in Heathrow Chaos and Fatigue

British Chaos segued into fatigue and frustration at Heathrow Airport on Saturday as thousands of exhausted, exasperated British Airways passengers left stranded by an unofficial strike desperately searched for news - any news - about when they might get out of Britain.

Airways, facing a public relations disaster as well as losses that could reach tens of millions of dollars, said about 80 percent of flights were running as planned.

But at Heathrow, the center of the airline's worldwide operations, weary customers milled around, swapping grim accounts of canceled flights, disrupted vacations, marooned family members, disappeared luggage and - a constant refrain - airline officials whose desire to help was matched by their inability to provide any information whatsoever…

3. New York, a Steppingstone, Usually Does Not Mind

When Jeanine F. Pirro, the Republican district attorney from Westchester County, announced her decision this week to try to topple Hillary Rodham Clinton, the Democratic senator from New York, her battle cry was this: Do not let Mrs. Clinton fool you, she really wants to be president.

Ms. Pirro was raising an issue that has come up frequently in New York - a state that has produced more than its share of presidential candidates - and one Mrs. Clinton has faced before. But if history is any guide, New Yorkers tend not to worry much about voting for politicians viewed as having grander national ambitions…

4. Big Tobacco, in Court Again. But the Stock Is Still Up.

WASHINGTON, Aug. 13 - On and on they go, mammoth lawsuits against the nation's biggest tobacco companies. Just two weeks ago, Philip Morris USA and five other cigarette makers were sued in a federal court in Boston by a group seeking to recover $60 billion for the government in Medicare benefits for smoking-related diseases. Lawyers for the group, the United Seniors Association, said the law also allowed the court to award an additional $60 billion to the plaintiff.

5. Schröder Rejects Military Force to Stop Iran's Nuclear Work

Chancellor Gerhard Schröder on Saturday rejected the threat of military force against Iran, hours after President Bush said that, on general principle, he could not rule out the use of force as a last resort to press the government to give up its nuclear program.

Mr. Schröder, one of the most prominent European opponents of the American-led war in Iraq, told an election rally in his home city, Hanover, that the threat of force was not acceptable.

6. Plane Carrying 121 Crashes in Greece

A Cypriot plane full of vacationers slammed into a hill north of Athens on Sunday after at least one pilot lost consciousness from lack of oxygen, killing all 121 people aboard -- more than a third of them children…

Greek state television quoted the Cyprus transport minister as saying the plane had decompression problems in the past. However, Helios representative Dimitriou said the plane had ''no problems and was serviced just last week.''

On Cyprus, several callers to radio and television programs said they experienced severe air-conditioning problems on Helios jets in recent months. Some said the cabin was freezing and the crew provided blankets; others said it became unbearably hot.

Task 9. a) Find the words or phrases in the news passages (Task 8) that mean the following:

1. to give sb information about sth, especially sth that was previously secret

2. to make sb lose their position of power or authority

3. the last course of action that you should or can take in a particular situation

4. to move easily and without interruption from one piece of music, part of a story, subject or situation to another:

5. extremely bad or serious:

6. to prevent sb from doing sth; to prevent sth from happening:

7. extremely annoyed, especially if you cannot do anything to improve the situation

8. extremely large

9. the process of obtaining supplies of sth, especially for a government or an organization

10. to cause worry, pain or difficulty to someone or something over a period of time:

11. something that allows you to make progress or begin to achieve sth.

12. a large public meeting, especially one held to support a particular idea or political party.

b)*Translate the following phrases using the words above. The words should be used in the order they appear in Task 9.

1. Представитель отказался сообщать журналистам детали наступательной операции.

2. Церковь принимала активное участие в борьбе, которая привела к свержению диктатуры.

3. Британская полиция должна использовать огнестрельное оружие лишь в крайнем случае.

4. И далее он плавно перешел на обсуждение возможных последствий.

5. Сегодня вечером ожидаются сильные заморозки.

6. Недавняя волна терроризма исключила всякие шансы на мирные переговоры.

7. По мере того, как они задавали вопросы, ее положение становилось все более и более отчаянным.

8. Это - крупномасштабное предприятие, вы уверены, что располагаете достаточными ресурсами?

9. Сообщается, что они располагают значительными средствами для закупки боеприпасов.

10. Звездам шоу-бизнеса приходится привыкать к тому, что им досаждают просьбами дать автограф.

11. Я рассматриваю эту работу лишь как шаг на пути к лучшим возможностям.

12. 5000 человек приняли участие в митинге протеста.

• Fieldwork.

What are today’s top stories in the news? Give an example of one story for each principle of news value.

Listening Comprehension

You are going to listen to the BBC TV interview with Sergei Lavrov, Russian Foreign Minister on the results of London Conference on Supporting the Palestinian National Authority, March, 1st 2005.

(The recording is available at the following link: http://media.mid.ru/video/248.wmv )

The journalist starts with general questions concerning the conference and then asks Mr. Lavrov to comment on the latest developments in Russia that cause major concerns in the developed western countries.

Before listening

Make a list of issues that are likely to be raised by the journalist. Prioritize them from the most important (in the view of the western community) to the least important. Think about the possible wording of the questions.

As you listen

Listen for the first time and check if any of the issues mentioned were on your list.

Play the recording again and note down the exact questions that the reporter asked Mr Lavrov about Russian policies.

Listen again and prepare to summarize Mr Lavrov’s answers to the questions above.

After listening

Compare your list of questions with those by your classmates. Which of them were particularly awkward for the Minister? Discuss the answers given by Mr. Lavrov and the way he handled the most difficult questions. Do you agree with what he said?

Follow-up

Work in pairs. Prepare to act out a similar interview. One student is the reporter and the other one is the Minister. You are free to ask any questions you like, not only the original questions suggested by the BBC reporter. Similarly, you can answer the questions the way you find appropriate.

Discussion Points

• Which of the theories (see the text at the beginning of the unit) best describes the current government-press relationships in the present-day Russia? Justify your choice.

• Given the ubiquity of the Internet, is it possible for any nation today to use the authoritarian approach?

• Which cell (see Task 6) does the Russian media system belong to?

“Newspapers are unable, seemingly, to discriminate between a bicycle accident and the collapse of civilization.” George Bernard Shaw

EXTENSIVE READING

Read the text below and explain how the media interact with the surrounding economy.