UNIT

9 The World of News

LE V EL 3 – RE A DING WORK SHEE T: Business PAGE 1 OF 2

READING
Read the text. Is the newspaper business going to be history?

Read All About It!

“Extra! Extra! Read all about it!” Newsboys shouted
this famous phrase in the days when many newspapers
published both a morning and an evening edition, and
if an important event happened between those editions,
the paper published an “extra” edition to cover the
breaking news. Even after radio, and then TV, began
having news broadcasts, the newspaper was still most
people’s main source of news. Newspapers covered not
only the big national and international news of the day,
but also local news and events. Readers could look at
different sections, such as travel, sports, or lifestyle. They
could use the classified ads section to buy a new car or a
used refrigerator.
Since the beginning of the digital age in the 1990s,
people have been predicting the end of newspapers.
Advertisers are buying fewer ads in print newspapers,
and people do not want to wait until the next
morning to read about breaking news. For a number
of years, it seemed that the predictions would be
correct and newspapers would go the way of the
dinosaurs. However, in recent years, newspapers have
not disappeared; in fact, they have increased their
circulation. This does not apply to print newspapers or
to local papers, of course, but large national papers like
The New York Times and The Times are very successfully
making the change from print to digital.
Newspapers are still in business because they are
changing their business model. In the past, subscriptions
were a very small part of a newspaper’s revenue. The big
money came from advertising. Now, a number of major
newspapers report that revenue from advertising in
their online editions is increasing, but revenue from paid
subscriptions is increasing even more. The digital format
allows newspapers to offer readers an enormous variety
of options that were not possible in a print format. Some
papers offer a basic subscription, which gives access
to big news stories and editorials. A full subscription
gives access to all the sections in the print edition. For
an extra fee, readers can subscribe to apps for cooking,
crosswords and other puzzles, travel advice, podcasts,
and many other special sections. Because the digital
format is so flexible, the 21st century is in some ways a
new “golden age” for newspapers. Apart from their regular
daily editions, they can offer many different options, and
they can return to the “Extra! Extra!” days by publishing
stories about breaking news online as it is happening.
The almost endless sources of news available online may
force the major newspapers to offer only the highest
quality of journalism because if they don’t, readers
might just go to other sources for their news. The big
newspapers offer more and more apps and special
sections, and this is good for readers. However, the
negative side is that this is so expensive that smaller local
newspapers cannot do it, and they go out of business.
That means that people are often very uninformed about
local news and events. This is such a big problem that it
should worry everyone. People should subscribe to their
local newspaper in print or digital form in order to save
this valuable source of information.
broadcast (n): a program that is transmitted on radio
or TV
business model (n): the way a business is designed
and operated
revenue (n): money from business activities or taxes

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UNIT

9 The World of News

LE V EL 3 – RE A DING WORK SHEE T: Business PAGE 2 OF 2

VOCABULARY
Complete the sentences with words from the box.

breaking news circulation cover edition subscription

1 I think the newspaper in our city has a/an of about 8,000 copies per day.
2 Our local newspaper doesn’t a lot of international news.
3 Most newspapers now publish only one each day.
4 I have an online to the local newspaper and to the main national paper.
5 Turn on the TV! There is about a massive fire downtown!

COMPREHENSION
Match to complete the sentences.

1 Even with radio and TV, the main source of news was . a subscriptions
2 In recent years, newspaper circulation has . b business model
3 Newspapers in the 21st century have changed their . c local papers
4 Now most of the revenue for big online newspapers comes from . d newspapers
5 The newspapers that are in danger of disappearing are . e increased

THINKING
Is it important for newspapers to continue to exist? Why or why not?

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UNIT

9 The World of News

LE V EL 3 – RE A DING WORK SHEE T: Science PAGE 1 OF 2

READING
Read the text. Can we always trust the medical information we receive?

Science vs. Fake News

If you want information about a medical or health issue
like how much sugar is safe to eat, or how to avoid
getting the flu, do you make an appointment with
your doctor? Probably not. You probably look for the
information on the internet, and if you are searching a
common topic, you may find that there are pages and
pages with long lists of sites for that topic. Most people
click on sites that appear on the first or second page.
Few people take the time to scroll through many pages
and lists of sites, or to check the sources of all the articles
carefully. If a site name or URL contains letters like med
or dr, people think a medical scientist wrote the article,
but that may not be true. In recent years, search engines
have tried to create algorithms to control the quality of
articles so that the ones that appear near the top of the
lists are from reliable sites, but the number of times a site
is visited is still a factor in the site’s position in the lists.
Furthermore, many of the most reliable scientific journal
articles are only available to subscribers to the journal.
A second problem is that even in serious scientific
papers and journals, there is sometimes content that
can be used incorrectly to create false information. One
example of this was a very short letter written to the New
England Journal of Medicine in 1980. In the letter, two
doctors stated that their files showed that there were
very few cases of addiction to narcotics among patients
who were given narcotics for pain during their hospital
stays. This letter has been used by drug companies
to convince doctors and patients that their narcotic
drugs are safe when, in fact, those drugs are extremely
addicting. First, the text was a very short letter to the
editor, not a full article describing a long scientific study.
Because it was a letter, other experts had not checked it
before it was published. Second, the information in the
letter was taken out of context. The letter did not say
that the writers had decided that narcotics were safe.
It just said that when used in a hospital during the time
that patients were there, there were very few cases of
addiction. That is very different from long-term use of
narcotics by people at home.
Finally, social media now plays an enormous part in the
increase in fake science. People usually believe what they
want to believe, and they believe what family, friends,
or media figures tell them. This could cause serious
problems in a situation like a worldwide epidemic. In
the past, people read or listened to news reports that
gave information from sources like the World Health
Organization or government health departments. Now
there are so many pseudo-science articles on the internet
and so much false information passed around social
media that it is hard for official sources to make sure the
public has the correct information. This could be very, very
dangerous in an emergency situation like an epidemic.
epidemic (n): when a disease spreads very quickly
and infects many people

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UNIT

9 The World of News

LE V EL 3 – RE A DING WORK SHEE T: Science PAGE 2 OF 2

VOCABULARY
Complete the definitions with words from the box.

algorithms journal reliable scroll subscriber

1 (n): someone who pays to read a publication or receive a service

2 (v): to move information up or down a computer screen to read it or do a search
3 (n): a magazine with articles in a specific profession
4 (adj): a description of something or someone that you can trust
5 (n): the rules that a computer uses to do calculations

COMPREHENSION
Choose the correct option.

1 The text types that are not mentioned in the article are …
a articles on the internet. b blogs. c journal articles.
2 One way to get reliable medical information is to …
a read journal articles. b click on URLs with med or dr. c look at social media.
3 A problem with medical information on the internet is that …
aa
 lgorithms put reliable sites first. b it is not always easy to find. c doctors write articles.
4 The letter the doctors wrote to the New England Journal of Medicine said that they had …
a done a long study. b proven narcotics were safe. c seen few cases of addiction.
5 It is a problem that people often believe …
a t he opinion of friends and family. b doctors. c official sources of information.

THINKING
What do you do when you read or hear very different kinds of information or advice about medical or
health topics?

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UNIT

9 The World of News

LE V EL 3 – RE A DING WORK SHEE T: Services PAGE 1 OF 2

READING
Read the text. How many types of travel writing are there?

Travel Writing as Journalism

We’ve all read travel articles in newspapers, in
magazines, or online. Sometimes we read them because
we’ve been to or are thinking about going to the place
in the article. Other times we read an article because it’s
about our city or another familiar place in our country.
If you read enough travel articles, you realize that there
are two main types of travel writing. One type functions
primarily as a guide for what to do and see in a place,
while the other type focuses more on the history and
culture of a place and its customs.
Both types of travel writing provide a service to readers,
but the services are a bit different. Typical guidebooks
make recommendations of hotels, restaurants, and local
in the US. The most famous July Fourth celebration is
attractions to tourists who want help with deciding what
in Washington, DC. There are concerts, a parade, and
to do, where to eat, and where to stay. Articles by travel
incredible fireworks in the evening. Washington is a
journalists often have a different purpose. They may
favorite tourist destination at any time, and especially
suggest some places to visit, but the main purpose of
on the Fourth of July. The journalist does not go there.
the writing is not to recommend the best bus tour, hotel,
He visits a small town in Pennsylvania and goes to a
or place to eat. It is not even necessarily for people who
community picnic. He meets one family who has lived
are traveling.
in Pennsylvania for 200 years. He meets another family
In today’s global world, there is a need for and an who arrived in the US from Syria five years ago and
interest in learning about different cultures. The problem have recently become US citizens. He talks to great-
with traditional travel writing is that it can reinforce grandparents and little children. He plays soccer with a
stereotypes about a culture or a place. Let’s consider two group of teenagers. There is food from many different
approaches to travel writing in the US. cultures, and he tries all of it as he talks to people about
A travel writer who writes for a guidebook published in what the Fourth of July celebration means to them.
Australia goes to New York City and visits museums and In the first article, readers get good recommendations
famous tourist attractions like the Statue of Liberty. He visits for things to do in New York City, but do they get a
Harlem and writes about the Apollo Theater, where many picture of what New York is really like? In the second
famous African American artists have performed. He visits article, there are no recommendations for things to do in
Brooklyn and eats at several excellent Jewish delis there. Pennsylvania, so what do readers get from that article?
He spends a couple of hours in Times Square on a busy
summer night in Manhattan. He writes in great detail about
function (v): to work or operate in a certain way
the sights, sounds, and activities in different areas of New
York, and he makes recommendations for visitors to the city. focus on (v): to pay special attention to something

A travel journalist who works for a large newspaper in community (n): a particular area and the people live in it
Italy plans to write an article about the Fourth of July citizen (n): someone who has nationality in a country

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UNIT

9 The World of News

LE V EL 3 – RE A DING WORK SHEE T: Services PAGE 2 OF 2

VOCABULARY
Complete the sentences with words from the box.

get purpose make provide reinforce

1 Guidebooks usually recommendations about things to do.

2 Travel journalists a service for people who want to learn more about other cultures.
3 It can be hard to a picture of what a place is really like by reading a guidebook.
4 Unfortunately, some travel articles stereotypes about a place or its people.
5 Different types of writers might have a different for their writing.

COMPREHENSION
Choose True or False.

1 Both travel writers and travel journalists write about the things they see and do. True / False
2 Travel journalists usually write articles to tell tourists what to do and see. True / False
3 People who read travel journalists’ articles are often not traveling. True / False
4 Travel journalists do not feel obliged to write about famous tourist attractions. True / False
5 Typical travel writing aims to challenge its readers’ ideas about different cultures. True / False

THINKING
How would you answer the two questions at the end of the article?

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