2. 外语
  3. The United States Enlarges the Punishment to the Media More than any other industry, America’s multi-billion-dollar entertai

The United States Enlarges the Punishment to the Media More than any other industry, America’s multi-billion-dollar entertai

admin2013-01-10  78
问题                 The United States Enlarges the Punishment to the Media
    More than any other industry, America’s multi-billion-dollar entertainment business is caught in the crossfire of the country’s culture war. Media firms have always had to walk a fine line between giving adults realistic shows and shielding children from sex and bad language. But thanks to the current political influence of social conservatives, TV and radio firms are under more attack than ever for allegedly corrupting America’s youth.
    Congress is threatening to increase sharply fines for airing indecent material. Over 80% of American homes subscribe either to cable or satellite TV, but only broadcast television, which is technically free, is subject to indecency regulation. The media industry fears that new rules could damage its business model.
    The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) ,the media industry’s regulator,defines indecency as language or material that describes sexual actions or organs and which is considered " offensive by contemporary community standards". Solely for the sake of children (present in one-third of American homes), indecency is forbidden from 6 a.m. to 10 p. m. on broadcast TV and radio. In contrast to " obscenity "—illegal all the time—indecency mostly consists of swearing, partial nudity and sexuality.
    America’s current battles over indecency began in 2003 when Bono, a rock star, said "this is really, really fucking brilliant" at a live awards show. The FCC decided to do nothing. Then came a glimpse of Janet Jackson’s breast in Super Bowl, outraging some viewers. Pressed by Congress, the FCC reversed its decision on Bono and said it would get tough on indecency. In 2004 it fined media firms nearly $8 milion, five times what it had levied in the previous ten years combined.
    For these firms such fines are puny. Yet fearing what future measures might be deployed against them, they have increasingly censored themselves. Last year several TV stations declined to air "Saving Private Ryan", a war movie with lots of swearing. The media industry faces a powerful bipartisan coalition of politicians who see votes in cleansing the airwaves. Republicans are leading the effort, but some Democrats are joining in—not surprisingly, as many parents do seem worried.
    One defensive strategy for the media industry is to play the moralizing wing of the Re-publican Party off against its substantial libertarian wing, which is opposed to giving the government more power to censor. News Corporation and General Electric’s NBC have together enlisted the support of the American Conservative Union, Americans for Tax Reform and the US Chamber of Commerce. Advances in technology, these groups argue, mean that the government no longer needs to police the airwaves for indecency. Many parents now have Vchips in their TV sets to block out pornographic material. Set-top boxes for cable and satellite TV also give parents control.
A major difference between indecency and obscenity is that______.
选项 A、obscenity involves more sweating, nudity and sexuality
B、obscenity is forbidden on all channels all the time
C、indecency inflicts more harm on children and young adults
D、indecency is more offensive by contemporary standards
答案B
解析 推理判断题。第三段最后一句提到obscenity是“在任何时候都不能播放的，违法的”；而indecency只是“包括讲脏话、部分裸露和色情”。[B]项符合原文。[A]项只是简单地认为obscenity包含更多的“讲脏话、部分裸露和色情”，并非两者的主要区别；[C]、[D]两项中indecency都应改为obscenity。
转载请注明原文地址:https://www.kaotiyun.com/show/BxhK777K
0

专业英语四级

相关试题推荐
随机试题
最新回复(0)