(单词翻译:单击)
听力文本
I’m Faith Lapidus.
And I’m Steve Ember with PEOPLE IN AMERICAin VOA Special English. Today, we tell the story of Edward R. Murrow, a famousradio and television broadcaster. He helped create and develop modern newsbroadcasting.
Egbert Roscoe Murrow was born innineteen-oh-eight in the state of North Carolina. His parents lived on a farmin an area called Polecat Creek. The Murrows were members of the Quakers, areligious group known for its humanitarian activities and opposition to war.
When he was a boy, the Murrow family movedacross the country. They settled in the western state of Washington, near theborder with Canada. In college, Egbert Murrow changed his name to Edward. Hecompleted his college education at Washington State College in nineteen-thirty.Edward was active in college politics. He served as president of the NationalStudent Federation. He organized debates and other events for the studentorganization. He also traveled throughout the United States and Europe. EdMurrow joined the Institute of International Education in nineteen-thirty-two.He served as assistant director of the group. During this period, he married ayoung woman he had met at a student conference. Her name was Janet Brewster.They later had one child, a son.
Edward R. Murrow accepted a job with theColumbia Broadcasting System in nineteen-thirty-five. His job was to get famouspeople to speak on CBS radio programs. Two years later, Murrow was nameddirector of the CBS European office and moved to London, England. His job wasto get European officials and experts to provide comments for CBS broadcasts.Murrow was twenty-nine years old and the company’s only representative inEurope.
The situation in Europe was becoming tense.Adolf Hitler and his Nazi party had come to power in Germany. Up until thattime, radio news in the United States was mostly opinions, or commentary. CBSofficials were concerned about permitting news broadcasts by reporters. Murrowoffered a job to William L. Shirer, a newspaper reporter. The two men wanted todo something different. They wanted to present radio reports about what theyhad seen and heard. In March, nineteen-thirty-eight, the two men made radiobroadcasting history. They produced a thirty-minute broadcast to report on theseizure of Austria by Nazi Germany. That meant getting people in Berlin andother European capitals to comment on the news story. Murrow traveled to Viennato report on Nazi forces entering the Austrian capital. The broadcast alsoincluded reports from London, Berlin, Paris, France and Rome, Italy. It was ahuge success.
Murrow returned to London and continued hisbroadcasts as World War Two started. He opened the reports with the words,“This is London.” Murrow was an excellent reporter who chose his words withgreat skill. His reports seemed to bring the war home to Americans. Forexample, he described the Battle of Britain as he saw and experienced it. Insome of his reports, listeners could hear the sound of bomb explosions or airraid warnings. Once, Murrow broadcast from the top of a building and describedwhat he saw. Here is part of one report from August thirty-first,nineteen-thirty-nine. Murrow describes plans by British officials to movechildren away from coastal areas:“School children will be taken by their teachers to homes in saferdistricts where they will be housed by people who have already offered toreceive them and look after them. All parents of school children are stronglyurged to let their children go. Parents will be told where their children areas soon as they reach their new homes.” Murrow organized a team of reporterswhose names would become well known to American listeners. They includedCharles Collingwood, Robert Trout, Eric Severeid, and Howard K. Smith. The teamhad eleven members. They were called “the Murrow boys.” They reported news fromthe major European capitals. Their reports were heard on the CBS radio program“World News Roundup.” These men established the traditions of broadcastjournalism. Most of the reporters had worked for newspapers or magazines. Theyhad learned to work quickly and clearly, much-needed qualities in radio. TheMurrow boys were to have a powerful effect on American broadcasting for yearsto come.
Edward R. Murrow took his listeners placesthey had never been. He let them experience things they could not imagine. Forexample, after World War Two, he was among the first Allied reporters to visitthe Buchenwald prison camp operated by the Nazis in Germany during the war.This is how he described the prisoners there:“As we walked intothe courtyard, a man fell dead. Two others, they must have been over sixty,were crawling toward the latrine. I saw it, but will not describe it. Inanother part of the camp, they showed me the children, hundreds of them. Somewere only six.
One rolled up his sleeve and showed me hisnumber. It was tattooed on his arm.”
Murrow was famous when he returned home tothe United States after the war. His work in Europe guaranteed him a place inthe history of news reporting. He was appointed vice president of News at CBSin nineteen-forty-six. However, he resigned from the position the followingyear and returned to broadcasting. Murrow recorded a series of record albumswith a producer, Fred Friendly. The series was called “I Can Hear It Now.”
These programs presented historical eventsthrough recordings of speeches and news broadcasts.
Later, Murrow and Friendly developed asimilar weekly radio show. It was called “Hear It Now.” In the United States,the rise of television in the nineteen-fifties ended the period called theGolden Age of Radio Broadcasting. Most of the popular shows disappeared fromradio. More and more people started watching television. So Ed Murrow and hisboys moved to television. He joined with Fred Friendly to create the series“See It Now.” This show lasted from nineteen-fifty-one to nineteen-fifty-eight.The first “See It Now” showed the first television pictures broadcast from bothcoasts. It showed the Brooklyn Bridge in New York City and the Golden GateBridge in San Francisco, California.
In one program, “See It Now” examinedaccusations made by Senator Joseph McCarthy. He had accused governmentofficials of being supporters or members of the Communist Party. The programshowed that Senator McCarthy had no real evidence for the accusations. Somepeople say the program helped to end the senator’s hunt for Communists. Expertssay the program was important in the history of television. Other broadcasts on“See It Now” concerned important issues of race, war and government dishonesty.
Murrow also started another television showcalled “Person to Person.” He spoke with famous people in their homes. Oneprogram visited Eleanor Roosevelt, wife of former President Franklin D.Roosevelt. The show also visited actress Marilyn Monroe, actor Marlon Brandoand Senator John F. Kennedy. Ed Murrow also produced a number of specialinvestigative programs for CBS. One such program was called “Harvest of Shame.”It showed the hard lives and poor living conditions of farm workers who movefrom place to place.
Some people say this broadcast was sopowerful that it influenced American lawmakers to pass measures to protectthese migrant workers. Murrow’s reporting and choice of subjects often led todisputes with his supervisors at CBS. AfterJohn F.Kennedy was elected president, he asked the newsman to lead the UnitedStates Information Agency. Murrow served as the agency’s director fromnineteen-sixty-one to nineteen-sixty-four. Then, he retired from the job.
Murrow was sick with lung cancer. He hadsmoked cigarettes for much of his life. He died in nineteen-sixty-five at hisfarm in Pawling, New York. He was fifty-seven years old. By the time he died,Murrow had won all of the top awards given to reporters. He also receivedhonors from five colleges. President Lyndon Johnson gave him the Medal ofFreedom. That is the highest honor a president can give to an American citizen.Today, Edward R. Murrow is remembered for his influence on broadcasting and thequality of his reporting. Former CBS chairman William Paley once said Murrowwas a man made for his time and work. Paley called him a student, a thinkerand, at heart, a poet of mankind. As a result, he said, Murrow was a greatreporter.
重点解析
1.complete 完成
Peter Mayle has just completed his first novel.
彼得·梅尔刚完成他的第一本小说。
2.permit 允许
The guards permitted me to bring my camera and tape recorder.
守卫允许我带上相机和录音机。
3.seizure 夺取；占领
...the seizure of territory through force.
…对领土的武装占领。
4.Adolf Hitler and his Nazi party had come to power in Germany.
come to power 当权；执政
Revolutionaries who come to power by force of arms usually have great crimes in their background.
依靠军队力量获得政权的革命家通常背后有巨大的罪行。
5.Her mother, Gladys Baker, suffered from mental problems.
suffer from 因…而受罚（苦, 损）; 因...而更糟; 受...之苦
Sometimes I still suffer from these weaknesses.
有时我还是在吃这些弱点的苦头。
6.They had learned to work quickly and clearly, much-needed qualities in radio.
much-needed 急需的；大量需要的
A much-needed enhancement is the ability to limit the scope of category types to individual test plans.
迫切需要进行的一项改进是，将类别类型的范围限制为个人测试计划的能力。
参考译文
我是菲丝·拉伯蒂斯。我是史蒂夫·恩贝尔。这里是VOA慢速英语栏目《美国人物志》。今天我们要讲述著名广播电视播报人爱德华·默罗。他帮助创造并发展了现代新闻播报。
埃格伯特·默罗于1908年出生于北卡罗来纳州。他的父母住在一个叫做Polecat Creek地区的农场里。默罗一家人都是贵格会信徒，这是一个以人道主义运动和反对战争闻名的宗教组织。
童年时，默罗一家足迹遍布全国。他们定居加拿大边界附近的华盛顿西部州。大学时，埃格伯特·默罗将名字改为爱德华。1930年，他在华盛顿州立学院完成了他的大学教育。爱德华在大学政治中很活跃。他曾是全国大学生联盟的主席。他组织辩论赛和其他赛事，还游遍美国和欧洲。1932年，爱德华·默罗加入了国际教育协会。他是该组织的助理主任。在此期间，他在一次学生会议中遇到了一位年轻女性—珍妮·布鲁斯特，并和她结了婚。之后，他们有了一个儿子。
1935年，爱德华·默罗接受了哥伦比亚广播公司的一份工作。他的工作是让名人上CBS广播节目。两年后，默罗被任命为CBS欧洲办公室的主管并搬到英国伦敦。他的工作是让欧洲官员和专家为CBS广播节目提供他们的评论。那时默罗29岁，他是公司驻欧洲的唯一代表。那时欧洲局势变得紧张。阿道夫·希特勒和他的纳粹党执政德国。到那时为止，美国广播新闻大多都是观点或评论。CBS官员考虑允许记者进行新闻报道。默罗为威廉·劳伦斯·夏伊勒提供了一份工作，他是一名报社记者。两个男人做了些不一样的事情。他们希望呈现出一些广播报道，能够讲述他们的所见所闻。1938年3月，两个男人让广播名垂史册。
他们制作了一档三十分钟广播报道，在纳粹德国占领的奥地利播报新闻。这意味着让在柏林的人和其他在欧洲首都的人发表对这些新闻故事的观点。默罗去了维也纳报道纳粹进入奥地利首都。广播节目还包括来自伦敦、柏林、巴黎、法国和罗马、意大利的报道。他们取得了巨大的成功。默罗回到伦敦并在二战开始后，继续他的广播节目。他的节目开场词是，“这里是伦敦。”
默罗是一名出色的记者，他选词很有技巧。他的报道似乎让美国人意识到了战争。例如，他将所描述的不列颠之战，就像他看见并经历过一样。在他的一些报道中，倾听者能够听到炸弹爆炸声或空袭警告声。默罗曾经从高楼顶部进行播报并描述他所看见的。以下是他在1939年8月31日报道的部分内容。默罗通过英国官方描述儿童撤离沿海地区的计划：“老师从家中接走孩子并送至安全区，在那里人们将照顾他们。学校儿童的父母强烈要求放走他们的孩子。父母们被告知他们的孩子很快会回到他们的新家。”
默罗组织了一个记者团队，这些记者的名字将在美国家喻户晓。其中包括查尔斯·科林伍德、罗伯特·特劳特、埃里克·塞瓦雷德以及霍华德·K·史密斯。该团队有11位成员。他们被称为“默罗男孩”。他们从欧洲主要国家首都报道新闻。他们的报道在《世界新闻综述》节目中播出。这些男人建立了广播新闻的传统。多数记者都为报纸或杂志工作。他们学习到了如何快速清楚地进行播报以及广播中的必备素质。默罗男孩将对美国广播也产生重大影响。
爱德华·默罗将他的听众们带到了未进之地。他让他们体验到了无法想象到的事情。例如，二战后，他是首批参观布痕瓦尔德集中营的同盟记者之一，在战争期间，这是纳粹集中营。
以下是他对那里囚犯的描述：
当我们走进院子里时，一个男人倒下了。还有两个六十多岁的人朝着公厕爬行。我看到了，但却无法描述出来。在战营的另一个地方，他们向我展示了几百个儿童。一些只有六岁。一个孩子卷起他的袖子，向我们展示他的号码。这是在他手臂上的纹身。”
战后，当他回到美国时，他变得出名。 他在欧洲的工作确保了他在新闻报道历史上的一席之地。1946年，他被任命为CBS新闻部副主席。但是第二年他就辞职并返回广播节目。默罗和一位制作人—弗雷德·W·弗兰德利记录了一系列记录专辑。这个系列被称为《I Can Hear It Now》。这些节目通过演讲和新闻广播呈现出历史事件。
之后，默罗和弗兰德利制作了一个类似的每周广播新闻—《Hear It Now》。在美国，1950年代的电视发展终结了无线广播的黄金时代。多数热门节目从广播中消失。越来越多的人开始看电视，所以默罗和他的团队来到了电视行业。他和弗兰德利合作开创《See It Now》系列。这和节目于1951年开播，直到1958年。第一期《See It Now》首次展示了两岸的电视画面。节目中展示了纽约城的布鲁克林大桥以及加利福利亚旧金山的金门大桥。在一期节目中，节目调查了约瑟夫·雷芒德·麦卡锡议员所提出的指控。他控告政府官员是 共产党支持者或成员。节目中展现出麦卡锡议员并没有真正的证据。一些人表示这个节目帮助结束了议员对共产党员的搜寻。专家表示该节目是电视历史上的重要栏目。其他《See It Now》的节目注重种族、战争和政府欺诈的重要问题。
默罗还开始了另一档电视节目《Person to Person》。节目中，他在名人的家中和他们交谈。一期节目拜访了埃莉诺·罗斯福—前总统富兰克林·德拉诺·罗斯福的妻子。节目还采访了女演员玛丽莲·梦露，男演员马龙·白兰度以及参议员约翰·肯尼迪。爱德华·默罗还为了CBS制作了一些特别调查栏目。其中一个是《Harvest of Shame》。节目展现了流离辗转的农场工人们的艰苦生活和恶劣工作条件。一些人表示这个节目强烈影响了美国立法者通过保护移民工人办法。默罗的报道和主题的选择常常引发他和CBS主管们的争论。
约翰·肯尼迪当选总统后，他让这位新闻记者领导美国新闻署。 1961年至1964年，默罗担任该新闻署主任，然后便退休了。默罗患有肺癌。他大半辈子都在抽烟。1965年，他在位于纽约波灵的农庄里去世。享年57岁。直到他死时，默罗已获得了授予记者的所有最高奖项。他还收到了来自五所大学的荣誉。林登·约翰逊总统授予了他自由勋章。这是总统授予美国公民的最高荣誉。如今，爱德华·默罗因其对广播行业的影响和其新闻报道的质量而被人牢记。前CBS主席威廉·佩利曾表示默罗是为时间和工作而生。佩利称他是一名学生、一个思考者；在内心里，他是一名人类的诗人。因此，他说默罗是一个伟大的记者。
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