Bias through Language and Pictures

1. There is a difference between the world of events and the world of words about events. The job of an honest reporter is to try to find words and the appropriate tone in presenting them that will come as close to evoking the event as possible. But since no two people will use exactly the same words to describe an event, we must acknowledge that for every verbal description of an event, there are multiple possible alternatives. For a television viewer this means that he must never assume that the words spoken on a TV news show are exactly what happened.

2. Words have connotative meaning. Language tends to be emotion-laden as it contains the history of a people's feelings about the world. This suggests that even when attempting to use purely descriptive language, a journalist cannot avoid expressing an attitude about what he or she is saying.

 

II. The following list of Violations of Media Objectivity may also be helpful in avoiding bias:

Violation №1. Misleading Definitions and Terminology

By using terminology and definitions in a way that implies accepted fact, the media injects bias under the guise of objectivity.

Violation №2. Imbalanced Reporting

Media reports frequently skew the picture by presenting only one side of the story.

Violation №3. Opinions Disguised as News

An objective reporter should not use adjectives or adverbs, unless they are part of a quotation. Also, the source for any facts and opinions should be clear from the report, or alternatively it should be stated that source is intentionally undisclosed. Even so-called " opinion pieces" must bear a modicum of objectivity.

Violation №4. Lack of Context

By failing to provide proper context and frill background information, journalists can dramatically distort the true picture.

Violation №5. Selective Omission

By choosing to report certain events over others, the media controls access to information and manipulates public sentiment.

Violation №6. Using True Facts to Draw False Conclusions

Media reports frequently use true facts to draw erroneous conclusions.

Violation №7. Distortion of Facts

In today's competitive media world, reporters frequently do not have the time, inclination or resources to properly verify information before submitting a story for publication.

 

Вопрос 3

Вопрос 4

Talks between heads of government or other very important representatives are summits, and officials negotiations. A meeting or a series of related meetings of this kind is a round of talks.

Where preparation is needed before the main talks, for example to decide on the meeting place and the participants, they may first hold talks about talks.

An official organisation where representatives meet regularly to give speeches and exchange opinions, but which has no real power, is a talking shop.

 

A negotiating position, particularly one unlikely to change, is a stance. A stance is often described as tough or aggressive.

Negotiators try to reach agreement by making concessions, demanding less than they demanded earlier, hoping to get concessions from the other side, thus reaching agreement through compromise.

If one side refuses a proposal during talks, it vetoes it, or uses its veto.

Where there is disagreement, the two sides are at loggerheads, and where there is no prospect of a change in negotiating positions, commentators talk about deadlock, or an impasse. Talks in this state are deadlocked.

WAR AND THREATS OF WAR

If the differences between two sides increase, there is escalating tension between them. A standoff is a period of extreme tension that may or may not lead to violence. If two sides are very close to war, they are teetering on the brink of war.

If a war is prevented, perhaps by talks, it is averted. If not, hostilities begin or break out.

A hot spot is a place where tension is high and fighting may break out at any moment.

WARRING PARTIES

Before or during a war, one side may accuse the other of belligerent statements, remarks or actions: things that make war more likely, or prolong or intensify a war that has already started.

Belligerents, combatants or warring parties, countries or factions participate in a war, or wage war against each other. Combatants are also people physically doing the fighting.

Casualties are people killed and hurt, or wounded, especially those severely wounded. They may include civilian casualties, those not in the military. Military casualties may be referred to as losses. Where there are many casualties or losses, they are described as heavy. Casualties and losses are inflicted by one side on the other. Military casualties killed or wounded by members of their own side are victims of friendly fire. Unintended civilian casualties and damage to non-military targets may be referred to by the military, euphemistically, as collateral damage.

VICTIMS OF WAR

If a war intensifies, it escalates. A country devastated by war is, in media terms, war-torn.

One side may accuse the other of atrocities: for example, forcing civilians to leave an area for reasons of ethnic origin – ethnic cleansing. Or they may accuse them of the mass killing of civilians for racial or political reasons: genocide.

People fleeing war-zones are refugees or evacuees, and the help provided to them by organisations is relief or relief aid. Organisations such as the Red Cross are relief organisations.

Вопрос 5

A genre is a particular type of artistic, musical, cinematic or literary expression.

Fiction refers to stories and books about people and events invented by the author. Faction is a genre that uses techniques usually associated with fiction to recount real events, usually ones that have happened quite recently.

 

A profitable film or play is a box office success, smash or hit. A very successful and profitable film, play or book is a blockbuster.

Unsuccessful films are box office failures or box office disasters. Films like this flop or bomb and are known as turkeys.

A sleeper is a film, relatively unknown when it comes out, that does unexpectedly well.

Money taken at the box office is known as the take, receipts or gross receipts. A film is often judged by how much it makes or grosses at the box office.

 

A film buff is someone who likes films a lot and knows a lot about them.

A cult movie or cult film is one that perhaps not many people know about but that has a devoted band of followers who watch and discuss it repeatedly.

 

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