5.2. Reading

5.2.1. Discussion spot.

Read the quotation and comment on it.

“Reading is to the mind what exercising is to the body”.

Richard Steele

5.2.2. Discussion spot.

1. How much do you enjoy reading? How old were you when you learnt to read? Who taught you to read?

2. How often do you read newspapers and magazines? What are they?

3. Do you think you read enough? Would you like to read more? What would make you read more?

4. Where do you read newspapers/magazines most often? At home, university, during your journey to university…?

5. How often do you talk with your friends, colleagues or members of your family about the news you have read?

5.2.3. Conduct a reading research in your group. Ask your groupmates 2 questions, fill in the table and present the results of your research by means of a diagram. What conclusions can you make?

Question	Answers	Number of given answers
1. Why do you read?	It helps me understand the world.
	It is fun.
	It helps me find out what I want or need to know.
	I know I should.
2. Which of the following do you read?	websites
	newspapers
	magazines
	factual books
	fiction
	comics
	manuals
	emails
	poetry
	plays
	catalogues
	encyclopaedias
	travel books
	audiobooks
	text messages

5.2.4. Read the following text and do the attached assignments.

Newspapers

It is probably true to say that the majority of literate people around the world receive (1) ____________ from newspapers almost every day of their lives. As well as the hundreds of millions who buy a daily paper, there must be at least as many who get the chance to read a paper (2) ____________ by someone else, or who just glance at the headlines as they walk past a newspaper stand.

Of course there are many different (3) ____________ of newspaper, from those that only contain ‘serious’ news to those that fill their pages with scandals and gossip, often involving the personal (4) ____________ of celebrities. However, most of them contain some political and economic news, along with a section giving opinions on recent events. Of course, the (5) ____________ between fact and opinion is not always clear, as the choice of which stories to include and how to report them often reflects the (6) ____________ perspective of the newspaper in question.

Most historians agree that the first newspapers that looked similar to today’s versions (7) ____________ in Europe in the early 17th century. However not many people read them; the majority of the population was (8) ____________, and in any case the technology to print a large number of copies per day did not yet exist. One of the first papers to become available to a mass audience by using a printing machine capable of printing more than a thousand sheets of paper per hour, was Britain’s The Times in 1814.

In many countries there is a lot of (9) ____________ between different newspapers, and their editors constantly try to come up with new ideas that will increase their readership. One of the world’s biggest selling national newspapers is Yomiuri Shimbun in Japan, with a circulation of well over ten million copies a day. The most (10) ____________ daily newspaper in Europe is reported to be Bild in Germany, which sells almost four million copies a day.

With competition from the internet as well as from television and radio, some media experts say newspapers face a difficult future. It is certainly true that the circulation of many major national newspapers has been falling, and that there are now some newspapers that only (11) ____________ online.

There is no sign, however, that newspapers are going to disappear from our lives in the near future, and perhaps they never will. After all, reading a paper is a different physical experience from using a computer. Even if everyone were able to receive news from the internet, it is quite easy to imagine that many people would still prefer to have physical (12) ____________ with the printed page rather than look at a screen.

5.2.4.1. Fill the twelve gaps in the text on Worksheet A with the correct words from the box below. There are four words that you will not need to use.

popular, illiterate, circulation, exist, line, information, appeared, bought, paper, reading, contact, buy, types, competition, lives, political.

5.2.5. Below are eight quotes on the subject of newspapers. Can you work out what the missing words are?

1. ‘The man who reads n _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ a _ l is better educated than the man who reads nothing but newspapers.’ (Thomas Jefferson, 1743-1826, 3^rd President of the United States)

2. ‘It’s amazing that the _ _ _ _ _ t of news that happens in the world every day always just exactly fits the newspaper.’ (Jerry Seinfeld, American comedian)

3. ‘A _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ts contain the only truths to be relied on in a newspaper.’ (Thomas Jefferson)

4. ‘Jo _ _ _ _ _ _ _ m largely consists of saying “Lord Jones is dead” to people who never knew that Lord Jones was alive.’ (G. K. Chesterton, 1874-1936, English writer)

5. ‘I would rather ex _ _ _ _ _ _ than read a newspaper.’ (Kim Alexis, American model)

6. ‘A good newspaper … is a nation t _ _ _ _ _ g to itself.’ (Arthur Miller, 1915-2005, American playwright)

7. ‘Once a newspaper touches a story, the f _ _ _ s are lost forever…’ (Norman Mailer, 1923-2007, American writer)

8. ‘I think a newspaper should be p _ _ vo _ _ t _ v _ .’ (Rupert Murdoch, Australian-American media executive and owner of many newspapers)

5.2.6. Write a report for a TV programme describing the information shown below.

5.2.7. Discussion spot.

Which newspapers and magazines do you read? Do you usually read the serious news stories first, or do you turn to more light-hearted articles?

5.2.8. Here are some common topics for news stories. Think of at least two more. Read the articles in activity 5.2.8.3. quickly and match them to the headlines.

- accidents - celebrities

- court cases - crime

- rescues

5.2.8.1. Read the headlines below. Choose two headlines below and try to guess what the article is about.

1. Bono’s hat goes first class

2. False alarm at airport

3. Firefighter rescues old flame

4. Home is a dangerous place

5. Lottery winner takes a day off

6. Mum is always there

7. The case of the disappearing bridegroom

8. Trainers make life worth living

5.2.8.2. Can you guess which headlines these words relate to?

air traffic controllers wallpaper

baseball bat giant cheque

hijack ink

marriage register pay off debts

slippers soft toys

5.2.8.3. Read the articles quickly and match them to the headlines

A

Cambodian immigrant who arrived in New York as a teenager has won $128m in the city’s lottery. Phin Suy, a gardener in Central Park, says he will use the money to pay off his debts, but has got no plans to give up his job. He was presented with a giant cheque in a ceremony at Madison Square Garden, where his boss shouted; ‘Phin, is this a vacation day or a sick day?’ to which Suy modestly replied ‘Vacation day’.

B

Raul Hortena, 24, from Barcelona thought he had the perfect plan to escape his marriage any time he wanted. He signed the marriage register in disappearing ink. However, in court last week the judge refused to annul the marriage and Hortena was fined €130.

C

A teenager who tried to rob a bus in Chile was horrified to discover that his mother was one of the passengers. Emilio Sanchez, together with two of his friends, was threatening the driver with knives and a baseball bat, when he heard a familiar voice telling him to stop it at once and ordering him off the bus.

D

There was panic at Chicago airport when PeteTwigger, a passenger boarding a plane greeted the pilot, whom he knew, with the words ‘Hi Jack’. Air traffic controllers listening in the control tower ordered armed security teams to board the plane before realising their mistake.

E

A youth who threatened to jump off a London bridge after breaking up with his girlfriend was persuaded down after an hour when the police offered him a new pair of trainers. Billy Camlin remained on Chelsea Bridge while he tried the Reeboks on for size, then decided that life wasn’t so bad after all.

F

The most ordinary items in your home can cause an accident, according to government figures. Every year, more than 2,000 people are injured by soft toys, 700 by envelopes and 1,500 by tissue paper. Another 37,000 people blame slippers for their injuries, nearly 2,000 blame wallpaper, and almost 18,000 accidents are caused by armchairs. But by far the greatest danger in the home comes from carpets. Last year around 165,000 accidents involving carpets were reported.

G

U2 star Bono reportedly paid out €1,300 to fly his trilby hat first class to Italy. The singer had forgotten to pack his favourite hat for a charity concert with Italian tenor Luciano Pavarotti, so complicated arrangements were made to get the hat safely from England. A taxi took it from West London to Gatwick Airport where it was put in a first-class seat on a British Airways flight to Bologna. A hired driver then picked up the hat and sped to Modena – Pavarotti’s home and the venue for the concert. A spokesman for the star said, ‘including tips and insurance it cost about €1,300 to fly the hat here, but that is nothing compared to the money that will be raised for charity tonight.’

H

When Brisbane firefighter Shaun Kenna rescued a woman from a burning house, her face was so black that he did not at first recognise his ex-wife. ‘Then when I recognised her voice I was amazed,’ said Shaun, ‘I had forgotten how beautiful she is.’ The couple are now planning to remarry.

5.2.8.4. Work in pairs. Cover the articles again.

Can you remember who or what...

a) tried to rob a bus?

b) threatened to commit suicide?

c) caused panic at Chicago airport?

d) was raising money for charity?

e) was fined €130 by a judge?

f) rescued his ex-wife from a burning house?

g) was presented with a giant cheque?

h) has a spokesman?

i) thought there was a hijacker on board a plane?

j) caused 165,000 accidents last year?

k) cause 700 injuries every year?

5.2.8.5. Discuss the following questions in groups.

• Which of the stories have happy endings for the people concerned? Which have unhappy endings?

• Which story do you think is the most romantic, the funniest and the most unbelievable?