单选题
When television is good, nothing—not the theatre, not the
magazines, or newspapers—is better. But when television is bad, nothing is
worse. I invite you to sit down in front of your television set when your
station goes on the air and stay there without a book, magazine, newspaper, or
anything else to distract you and keep your eyes glued to that set until the
station signs off. I can assure you that you will observe a vast wasteland. You
will see a procession of game shows, violence, audience participation shows,
formula comedies about totally unbelievable families, mayhem, more violence,
sadism, murder, Western bad men, Western good men, private eyes, gangsters,
still more violence and cartoons. And, endlessly, commercials that scream and
sweet-talk and offend. And most of all, boredom. True, you will see a few things
you will enjoy. But they will be very, very few. And if you think I exaggerate,
try it. Is there no room on television to teach, to inform, to
uplift, to stretch, to enlarge the capacities of our children? Is there no room
for a children's news show explaining something about the world for them at
their level of understanding? Is there no room for reading the great literature
of the past, teaching them the great traditions of freedom? There are some fine
children's shows, but they are drowned out in the massive doses of cartoons,
violence, and more violence. Search your conscience and see whether you cannot
offer more to your young beneficiaries whose future you guard so many hours each
and every day. There are many people in this great country, and
you must serve all of us. You will get no argument from me if you say that,
given a choice between a Western and a symphony, more people will watch the
Western. I like Westerns and private eyes, too, but a steady diet for the whole
country is obviously not in the public interest. We all know that people would
more often prefer to be entertained rather than stimulated or informed. But your
obligations are not satisfied if you look only to popularity as a test of what
to broadcast. You are not only in show business: you are free to communicate
ideas as well as give relaxation. You must provide a wider range of choices,
more diversity, and more alternatives. It is not enough to cater to the nation's
whims—you must also serve the nation's needs. The people own the air. They own
it as much in prime evening time as they do at 6 o'clock in the morning. For
every hour that the people give you, you owe them something. I intend to see
that your debt is paid with service.
单选题
The purpose of the first two sentences in Para. 1 is
A. to describe television is good enough.
B. to show television is bad enough.
C. to arouse readers' interest in television program.