Question

Drinks Have No Wings

You may have heard that “Red Bull gives you wings”. But while most people take the advertising slogan as a metaphor(隐喻), some Americans seem to have taken it very seriously.

Benjamin Careathers had been drinking the drink for 10 years, expecting to at least feel more energetic, but nothing happened. Feeling fooled by the ad, he took the issue to court.

In October, the Austria-based company agreed to pay $ 6.5 million (39.7 million yuan) to customers who have bought the drink since 2002. People in the US can apply for a share through energydrinksettlement.com before March 2015.

But is the case really that ridiculous?

Red Bull said they had done nothing wrong and they only paid the money to save the cost and trouble of legal action.

However, the suit(诉讼) told a different story. Even though there is no evidence that Red Bull energy drinks provide more benefit for consumers than a cup of coffee, the company markets their products as a superior source of energy that costs little.

“Such conduct means that Red Bull’s advertising and marketing is not just ‘puffery’ (吹捧) but is misleading and therefore actionable (可诉讼的) ,” the suit said.

The company said that the drink could promote healthy joints and reduce the risk of eye diseases. However, according to the organization, the product contains a lot of sugar, which could actually lead to many health problems.

Coca-Cola agreed to pay $ 1.2 million in compensation in July. But to fully stop the company from linking the drink to health benefit, Truth in Advertising, another non-profit organization, took the issue to court again in late October.

False advertisements have become a common problem around the world. China changed its consumer rights  last year to ban advertising companies and media from making or publishing false advertisements. Celebrities are also made responsible if they endorse (代言) false or substandard products.

1.Faced with the suit, the Red Bull company decided to _______________.

A. apologize to its customers and pay for their losses in health

B. take full responsibility for the bad effects it has caused to its customers

C. give no one but its American customers some money as a reward

D. spend some money to save the cost and trouble of legal action

2.What benefits can people get, according to the Red Bull company?

A. One can really fly like birds, for it offers you wings.

B. Drink it, and one can be forever energetic and young.

C. As it contains a lot of sugar, it can make one more powerful.

D. Healthy joints can be promoted if one takes this drink.

3.It is implied in the passaged that __________________.

A. in China more companies will be taken to court for failing to live up to their promises

B. both Red Bull and Coca-Cola are now winning the consumers’ trust and respect

C. Benjamin Careathers has benefited a great deal since he drank Red Bull

D. no puffery words have ever appeared in both Red Bull and Coca-Cola’s advertisements

4.Many countries’ attitude towards those false advertisements is likely to be ____________.

A. Tolerant.    B. Favorable.    C. Unbearable.    D. Indifferent.

Answer

1. D

2. D

3. A

4. C

【解析】

本文为应用文。本文以“红牛”为例，告诉我们夸大其词做虚假宣传的商家会受到法律的严惩。

1.细节理解题。根据文章第五段的内容Red Bull said they had done nothing wrong and they only paid the money to save the cost and trouble of legal action可知，红牛公司认为自己没有做错，他们只是花钱来挽回损失和处理法律诉讼的问题，因此可知D项符合题意。

2.细节理解题。根据文章第八段中的“The company said that the drink could promote healthy joints and reduce the risk of eye diseases.”可知，公司声称红牛饮料可以使关节更加健康，降低患眼病的风险。故选D。

3.推理判断题。根据文章第九和十段可知，可口可乐公司因夸大饮料的功效而受到惩罚，而现在世界范围内虚假广告已成为一个严重的问题，中国政府也调整法律来禁止公司做虚假广告宣传，连代言的明星都要承担法律责任。由此可推断出，将来会有更多夸大其词的公司被告上法庭的，因此选A项。

4.推理判断题。阅读全文可知，政府和很多机构都在对做虚假宣传的公司进行监督和处理，夸大其词的广告商品非但不能达到厂家宣传的效果，可能还会对消费者的身体造成危害，因此公众对这些虚假广告是无法容忍的。分析选项可知C项正确。