Breaking News English

Listening (1:59 - 234.2 KB - 16kbps)

THE ARTICLE

Journalism is becoming an increasingly dangerous profession. This is according to the media organization Reporters without Borders (RSF). In a statement made on May 3, World Press Freedom Day, RSF reported that 53 correspondents were killed last year. This makes 2004 the deadliest year for reporters since 1995. Most of the journalists were murdered by people who did not want them to report the news. RSF released an “Enemies of Press Freedom Blacklist” on its website to “name all those who have personally committed crimes or grave offences against journalists.”

Unsurprisingly, Iraq was the world’s most dangerous country for journalists. A total of 56 reporters have been killed there in two years, compared with 49 deaths during the 1991-1995 wars in Yugoslavia. Vietnam is the costliest war: a total of 63 journalists were killed, but that was over a 20-year period from 1955 to 1975. Asia is the second deadliest place to report from, with sixteen journalist deaths last year. RSF put their spotlight on three countries where news reporting proved to be fatal for journalists - Bangladesh, Philippines and Sri Lanka.

WARM UPS

1. CHAT: In pairs / groups, decide which of these topics look most interesting:

journalism / dangerous jobs / freedom of the press / the world’s most dangerous countries / Bangladesh / Philippines / Sri Lanka

Have a chat about the ones you liked. For more conversation, change topics and partners frequently.

2. JOURNALIST: Spend one minute writing down all of the different words you associate with the word “journalist”. Share your words with your partner / group and talk about them.

3. “I’M A REPORTER”: Pretend you are a reporter. Decide what kind of reporter you are (fashion, news, sport etc) and talk to the other “reporters” in the class about your daily life as a journalist. Talk about the story you are writing at the moment.

4. TOPICS: Look at the following list of news topics. Talk with your partner about which of these you are interested in or read every day. Choose three you would love to report on (if you became a news reporter) and three you haze zero interest in. Compare your choices with your partner’s explain your reasons:

5. COOL JOB: Being an international correspondent sounds like a cool job. Which of the following “perks” of being a reporter sound most appealing or attractive to you?

1. You get to travel around the world.
2. Your friends and family see you on TV.
3. You get to see amazing things happening.
4. You meet world leaders.
5. You have the opportunity to change people’s lives with your reports.
6. The money must be good.
7. Telling people you’re an international correspondent sounds cool.
8. You can tell the world the truth about the world’s bad leaders.
9. You see history being made right in front of you.
10. You get a BBC / CNN… T-shirt.

PRE-READING IDEAS

1. WORD SEARCH: Use your dictionary / computer to find word partners (collocates), other meanings, synonyms or more information on the words ‘press’ and ‘freedom’.

2. TRUE / FALSE: Look at the article’s headline and guess whether these sentences are true (T) or false (F):

1. Journalists around the world are facing ever more increasing dangers.  T / F
2. Last year was the deadliest year ever for correspondents.  T / F
3. Most journalists are killed in wars.  T / F
4. Many people put journalists in graves.  T / F
5. Somalia was cited as world’s most dangerous country for journalists.  T / F
6. Vietnam is the costliest war in terms of journalist deaths.  T / F
7. Asia is the second deadliest place in the world to report from.  T / F
8. News reporting is dangerous in Bangladesh, Philippines and Sri Lanka.  T / F

3. SYNONYM MATCH: Match the following synonyms from the article:

4. PHRASE MATCH: Match the following phrases from the article (sometimes more than one combination is possible):

WHILE READING ACTIVITIES

1. WHICH WORD? Circle the word in the pairs of words in italics you think is correct.

Journalism becoming deadlier

Journalism is becoming an increasingly / decreasingly dangerous profession. This is according to the media / medium organization Reporters without Borders (RSF). In a statement made on May 3, World Press Freedom Day, RSF reported that the 53 correspondents were killed / culled last year. This makes 2004 the deadliest year for reporters since 1995. Most of the journalists were murdered by people who did not want them to report the news. RSF released an “Enemies of Press Freedom Blacklist” on its website to “name all those who have personally committed crimes or grave offences against / for journalists.”

Unsurprisingly / surprisingly, Iraq was the world’s most dangerous country for journalists. A total of 56 reporters have been killed there in two years, compared with 49 deaths during the 1991-1995 wars in Yugoslavia. Vietnam is the costliest / cheapest war: a total of 63 journalists were killed, but that was over a 20-year period from 1955 to 1975. Asia is the second deadliest / deadly place to report from, with sixteen journalist deaths last year. RSF put their spotlight / highlight on three countries where news reporting proved to be fatal for journalists - Bangladesh, Philippines and Sri Lanka.

2. TRUE/FALSE: Check your answers to the T/F exercise.

3. SYNONYM MATCH: Check your answers to this exercise.

4. PHRASE MATCH: Check your answers to this exercise.

5. QUESTIONS: Make notes for questions you would like to ask the class about the article.

6. VOCABULARY: Circle any words you do not understand. In groups, pool unknown words and use dictionaries to find their meanings.

POST READING IDEAS

1. WHICH WORD? Check your answers to this exercise. What was wrong with the other words?

2. QUESTIONS: Ask the discussion questions you thought of above to your partner / group / class. Pool the questions for everyone to share.

3. VOCABULARY: As a class, go over the vocabulary students circled above.

4. STUDENT JOURNALIST SURVEY: In pairs/groups write down questions about journalists. Ask other classmates your questions and report back to your original partner/ group to compare your findings.

5. ‘PRESS’ / ‘FREEDOM’: Make questions based on your findings from pre-reading activity #1. Ask your partner / group your questions.

6. DISCUSSION:

1. Did you like this article?
2. Do you have more respect for journalists after reading this article?
3. Would you like to be a journalist?
4. What strong points are needed to be a good journalist?
5. Do you think you would be a good journalist?
6. Are there any particular journalists whose reporting you like?
7. What kind of lifestyle do you think international reporters have?
8. Which news agencies or TV stations have the best journalists?
9. How important are journalists?
10. What kind of journalism is bad journalism?
11. Are the paparazzi real journalists?
12. Why do people want to report the news knowing their lives may be in danger?
13. Would you have gone to Iraq as a journalist during the Iraq War?
14. If you were a journalist, what topic would you report on?
15. Can you think of a more interesting job than a BBC or CNN world affairs reporter?
16. Which is better, CNN or the BBC?
17. Do you believe everything you read in the newspapers or watch on TV?
18. Is there freedom of the press in your country?
19. Is there freedom of the press in countries like the USA or the UK?
20. Did you like this discussion?
21. Teacher / Student additional questions.

7. AT THE SCENE: You are a news reporter at the scene of some breaking news. In pairs / groups, choose your story (one that is in today’s news) and make a news report. You will soon have to give this report in front of TV cameras. When you have finished, present your report to a different partner / group. Your new partners will ask you questions about your story. The following table may help make your story:

HOMEWORK

1. VOCABULARY EXTENSION: Choose several of the words from the text. Use a dictionary or Google’s search field (or another search engine) to build up more associations / collocations of each word.

2. INTERNET: Search the Internet and find information on Reporters without Borders (RSF). Share your findings with your class in the next lesson.

3. LOCAL NEWS: Write a news report on an item of very local news – perhaps in your neighbourhood or even within your own family. Report your news to the class next lesson.

4. A DAY IN THE LIFE: Imagine you are a news reporter in a different part of the world. Write your diary / journal entry for one day in your life. Tell your classmates what you wrote in your next lesson.

ANSWERS

TRUE / FALSE:

1. Journalists around the world are facing ever more increasing dangers.  T
2. Last year was the deadliest year ever for correspondents.  T
3. Most journalists are killed in wars.  F
4. Many people put journalists in graves.  F
5. Somalia was cited as world’s most dangerous country for journalists.  T
6. Vietnam is the costliest war in terms of journalist deaths.  T
7. Asia is the second deadliest place in the world to report from.  T
8. News reporting is dangerous in Bangladesh, Philippines and Sri Lanka.  T

SYNONYM MATCH:

PHRASE MATCH:

WHICH WORD?

Journalism becoming deadlier

Journalism is becoming an increasingly dangerous profession. This is according to the media organization Reporters without Borders (RSF). In a statement made on May 3, World Press Freedom Day, RSF reported that the 53 correspondents were killed last year. This makes 2004 the deadliest year for reporters since 1995. Most of the journalists were murdered by people who did not want them to report the news. RSF released an “Enemies of Press Freedom Blacklist” on its website to “name all those who have personally committed crimes or grave offences against journalists.”

Unsurprisingly, Iraq was the world’s most dangerous country for journalists. A total of 56 reporters have been killed there in two years, compared with 49 deaths during the 1991-1995 wars in Yugoslavia. Vietnam is the costliest war: a total of 63 journalists were killed, but that was over a 20-year period from 1955 to 1975. Asia is the second deadliest place to report from, with sixteen journalist deaths last year. RSF put their spotlight on three countries where news reporting proved to be fatal for journalists - Bangladesh, Philippines and Sri Lanka.