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  3. Newspapers are becoming more balanced businesses, with a healthier mix of revenues from readers and advertisers. American papers

Newspapers are becoming more balanced businesses, with a healthier mix of revenues from readers and advertisers. American papers

admin2021-09-17  8
问题     Newspapers are becoming more balanced businesses, with a healthier mix of revenues from readers and advertisers. American papers have long been highly unusual in their reliance on ads. Fully 87% of their revenues came from advertising in 2008, according to the OECD. In Japan the proportion is 35%. Not surprisingly, Japanese newspapers are much more stable.
    The whirlwind that swept through newsrooms harmed everybody, but much of the damage has been concentrated in areas where newspapers are least distinctive. Car and film reviewers have gone. So have science and general business reporters. Foreign bureaus have been savagely pruned. Newspapers are less complete as a result. But completeness is no longer a virtue in the newspaper business. Just look at the fate of Otis Chandler’s creation.
    Thanks to family connections, Chandler ended up in control of the Los Angeles Times in 1960. The paper he inherited was parochial and conservative, reflecting the city it served. Chandler abandoned the anti-union dogma and set about building a west-coast rival to the New York Times. His paper was heavy on foreign news and serious, objective reporting. The result was hugely impressive—but not, as it turned out, suited to the internet era. In the past few years the paper has suffered repeated staff cuts. In 2007 it was acquired by a property magnate and in 2008 filed for bankruptcy protection.
    The problem with such newspapers is that, although they do much that is excellent, they do little that is distinctive enough for people to pay for it. The Los Angeles Times’ foreign reporting is extremely good. But it is hard to argue that it is better than the stuff supplied by the New York Times or foreign papers. Similarly, it has never been clear why each major newspaper needs its own car reviewer: a Corolla is a Corolla, whether it is driven in Albuquerque or Atlanta. Papers should concentrate on what they do best, which means, in many cases, local news and sport. If the rest is bought in from wire services or national organizations, readers are unlikely to complain—as long as there is enough competition between those larger providers to keep up standards. Specialization generally means higher quality.
    It is grim to forecast still more writers losing their jobs. But whether newspapers are thrown onto doorsteps or distributed digitally, they need to deliver something that is distinctive. New technologies like Apple’s iPad only make this more true. The mere acquisition of a smooth block of metal and glass does not magically persuade people that they should start paying for news. They will pay for news if they think it has value. Newspapers need to focus relentlessly on that.
According to the author, Los Angeles Times’ failure is due to its
选项 A、focus on foreign reports.
B、lack of unique features.
C、ignorance of wire service.
D、ignorance of complaints.
答案B
解析 作者在第四段中分析了Los Angeles Times这类报纸失败的原因是they do little that is distinctive，即缺乏特色，所以正确选项为B项。
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