voa慢速英语视频:News Literacy Lesson 3: Establishing the Truth

News Literacy Lesson 3: Establishing the Truth

新闻素养第三课：建立真理

Let’s examine the verification process a little closer. Becoming a literate news consumer requires us to be able to identify legitimate journalism. Legitimate journalism seeks truth. But how do we define that truth?

让我们仔细研究一下验证过程。成为一个文学新闻的消费者需要我们能够识别合法的新闻，合法新闻追求的是真理。但我们要怎样定义真实呢?

Truthful reporting comes from using facts that can be confirmed. All the details may not be known. But a news story should include the latest version of events based on verified facts.

真实的报道使用的是可以证明的事实，虽然不可能知道所有的细节，但新闻报道应该包括基于事实的最新事件。

Truth is a journey that evolves over time. It is not possible for us to read one newspaper on one day and get a complete picture of world events. We must seek out multiple sources: newspapers, magazines, television and – yes – the internet.

真理是一段随时间而演变的旅程，我们不可能在某一天读一份报纸，了解到世界上所有事件的全部情况。我们必须通过多种渠道寻找：报纸、杂志、电视，当然还有互联网。

In Iran recently, massive street demonstrations took place throughout the country.

最近，伊朗全国各地都发生了大规模的街头示威活动。

When news organizations reported on these events, the evidence was clear. Images of the protests appeared on television, in newspapers and on the internet. Literate news consumers could be certain the demonstrations took place.

当新闻机构报道这些事件时，证据是明确的，抗议活动的图像出现在电视、报纸和互联网上，文学新闻的消费者可以确信发生了示威活动。

But not all evidence is captured on digital equipment. Sometimes evidence comes in the most unreliable form – memory. It is well known that if a police officer interviews 10 witnesses about a crime, he will receive 10 different versions of events. Yet all were witnesses. A journalist seeking the truth should interview as many witnesses as possible in search of the true story.

但并不是所有的证据都是在数字设备上捕捉到的，有时证据以最不可靠的形式出现-记忆。众所周知，如果一名警官询问一个案件的10名目击者，他将收到10种关于事件的不同版本的说法，但他们都是目击证人。寻求真相的记者应该采访尽可能多的证人，以寻找事件的真相。

One of the most exciting developments in the “smart phone age” is the ability to record events as they happen.

“智能手机时代”中最令人兴奋的发展之一是，当事件发生时，能随时记录。

In May of 2017 former North Charleston, South Carolina police officer Michael Slager admitted in court to shooting and killing Walter Scott. But two years earlier, Officer Slager stated that Scott, pulled over for a traffic violation, had grabbed for his gun. Many news organizations reported Slager’s version of the incident. But the next day, a video emerged clearly showing that Slager was lying. He shot Scott in the back as he ran away. News organizations quickly corrected and updated their earlier reporting.

2017年5月，前北查尔斯顿的南卡罗来纳州警官迈克尔·斯雷格在法庭上承认枪杀了沃尔特·司各特。但是两年前，斯雷格警官说司各特因为交通违规而被逮捕，并抢了他的枪。许多新闻机构报道了斯雷格对这起事件的陈述，但第二天，一段视频的出现清晰地显示出斯雷格在撒谎，当司各特跑走时，他在背后冲司各特开了枪。新闻机构迅速更正和更新了他们先前的报道。

Verification is the responsibility of both news organizations and journalists. But a literate news consumer also checks often for updates or for corrections in stories because he realizes that sometimes – even journalists make mistakes.

核查是新闻机构和记者共同的责任。但是，一个文学新闻消费者也经常核查以更新或修正新闻，因为他意识到，有时即使是记者也会犯错。

Next, we will examine balance and fairness.

接下来，我们将研究平衡和公平。

Words in This Story

verification - n. to quickly take and hold (someone or something) with your hand or arms

literate - adj. one who can read, write and understand

consumer - n. one who uses or buys things

journey - n. a trip

multiple - adj. many, more than one or two

grab - v. to quickly take and hold (someone or something) with your hand or arms

emerge - v. to become known or apparent